Shoes and Running

Tonight, I managed to squeeze a run in... When I got home, I put on my Nike Free's (more on this below) and tried to run properly (not landing on my heels) for 3.something miles.  Now, I managed to hold about an 8:30 pace, which was totally unexpected, so I was happy about that.  Running more 'barefoot-like' adds more stress to my calves, but less on my bones, so although I need to stretch tonight, my knees and ankles didn't hurt.  Of course, running only 3 helped as well :)

Now, the shoes.... I mentioned before my going back and forth on getting more 'stability' shoes, or motion-control shoes, versus getting shoes that offer little stability.  I will probably end up getting Asics 2100 series shoes, but part of me wants to get the Vibram Five Fingers.  They look rather silly, but they seem to have a following.  For what they do, are are probably really good.  There's several styles available, from the 'classic' -- the first one they made, to others, which include the KSO (Keep Stuff Out) as well as a 'water' one, and one that works better in cold weather.  Now, barefoot running, or at least minimalist running, has gotten a lot of press, by fans, books, and even major running magazines.  I do believe that running shoes, by their very nature, shield the foot -- too well.  I think I read in a book that running shoes are like neck braces.  They work so well that the muscles become weak.  Also, since running shoes weren't invented until 1920 or so, but we've been running (well, 'we' as in humans, not 'we' as in you and me, or at least not me) for much longer than that, our bodies must know something.  Hence, running in shoes that don't offer much stability.  There was even a Harvard study that showed that running barefoot-style (landing on forefoot or midfoot) showed several times less impact than landing on your heel.

So... I might get something less than stability shoes, but since my legs and feet have been in 'neck braces' for years (figuratively, not literally), I shouldn't just jump with both feet (get it?), but need to work my way to it.  Therefore, getting the Asics 2100 series shoes (as one pair of my current shoes has 700 miles on them), and then, maybe something else.. Vibram Five Fingers???