All this, and yet, these little barefoot tanks only weigh 6.4 oz with a 3.7 mm outsole and a 2mm EVA foam insole. Next, we have the Xero Prio , which is the only pair on our list that has been featured on ABC's Shark Tank . While the founders’ time on the show didn’t result in an investment, the company has been EXTREMELY successful ever since.

The reason barefoot shoes allow your feet to move more naturally, as if you were barefoot, is because they adhere to certain principles: a flat sole with no drop from heel to toe, a thin and flexible sole, no arch support, and an anatomical, foot-shaped toe box. Speaking of which, our fashionable running sunglasses are a great choice for shades you can wear when working out or having fun out with friends – and they’re extremely affordable! Fila Skele-toes are both toe shoes and have an overall minimalist design—not much upper and not much sole. Unfortunately, the Skele-toes rubber sole is noticeably stiffer than what I’ve come to expect from my toe shoes. The stiffness is most noticeable at the arch as the Skele-toes sole is curved at the arch to mimic the shape of the foot. Vibram innovated the technology and earned the patents. With our success, copyists and counterfeiters have come out of the woodwork. We will continue to take aggressive action against all who infringe our intellectual property. These infringements are not only damaging to Vibram, they also hurt our retail partners and the public trust. Vibram will work diligently to bring such action to a stop.” These anytime, anywhere shoes with Fila’s signature four-toed “skeleton” design outsole will have the whole family stepping out in cutting edge style. An important comfort design attribute of Skeletoes is the EZ Slide feature that, along with pull bungees, combines the two smallest toes for ease of entry. This is probably the biggest improvement in toe shoes over the Vibram Five Finger! I find that is a lot easier for me to slip in and out of the Skeletoes than my VFF KSO.

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Given the Nike Free and a pair of four-toed Skeletoes (this is a pic), it’s incredibly easy to imagine what a toed Nike Free would look like; well, with the Voltage, all the guesswork has been eliminated. Just take a look at the Skele-toes Voltage and you’ll have to agree — it really is the bastard lovechild of the Free and a pair of toe shoes:

Whatever the case, if you’re looking for less interference when you run compared to traditional options , any of the footwear we cover below will be a good place to start – especially many of the more affordable pairs. The skeletons work just fine for what they are designed for. Casual wear. The harder sole and heel to toe design is necessary for things like…walking. In the event you’re angling for a pair of marshmallow shoes, well, you’ve got some options. I’m going to keep my comparisons of the Skele-toes Voltage to the Nike Free Run+, Nike Free 3.0, and Reebok Realflex, as I have these shoes (and maybe will review them one day — any interest?). That said, at 15 oz, this is still a heavier for a running shoe when compared to most on this list, but that’s why I said I wouldn’t recommend it if all you’re looking for is a barefoot shoe for jogging.

Take that in for a minute. Are you horrified? All your worst nightmares in shoe design made reality? The reason I emphasize trail running is that these are REALLY heavy-duty shoes for “barefoot” options. They come with a serious amount of grip that’s great for going over rough terrain and a significant amount of rubber armor to keep your skin safe. Long-time readers may know that I’ve yet to review the Nike Frees on BirthdayShoes.com. This is despite the fact that a) there is a huge fan-base of the Nike Free line: people really like their marshamllow shoes! Match that up to b) the fact that Nike markets the Free as being close to barefoot. It’s common knowledge among minimalist footwear enthusiasts that Nike Frees were born out of Nike having studied barefoot running. The Nike Frees were Nike’s first “barefoot shoe.” To wit, Chris McDougall wrote about the birth of the Nike Free in Born to Run. You can read that excerpt below if you’re interested in the history behind the Free (it’s fascinating to me):