Are the "Toe Shoes" for running a bad idea for flat footed individuals?

If you have no (or not much) arch to your foot it’s best to have shoes which provide arch support or else you’ll put pressure on the metatarsals. (esp. the little bones on the pinky-toe sides of your feet, especially if you pronate.)

I had to get specialized house slippers made of cork (really not kidding, they were prescribed by a Podiatrist) because my feet are very flat. The same Podiatrist also instructed me to find very stiff running shoes (they shouldn’t have a lot of “give” in them) with strong arch support.

So, based on the advice I got, my guess would be if your feet are very flat – more important than whether you get the “toe” kind of shoe or traditional running shoe is the arch support and stiffness of the shoe.

I heard from someone who started wearing them after a serious leg injury that they were fantastic. He claimed he had made more progress with them than with his physical therapist, so from this testimony I imagine they’d be good for anyone!
But they still look ridiculous.

1) They look DUMB.
2) Good marketing will get people to buy ANYTHING
3) I’ve asked people about them (who have them) and they say they are ok, but they don’t rave about them, and that includes my severely flat-footed friend.

Please, say the second one over and over in your head when you are looking into something as gimmicky as this.

You mean the Vibram Five Fingers? It all depends, have you tried them? I have been running w/ Brooks for awhile and love them. I really want to try Vibrams, I like the concept of it and have been practicing walking around and running on my forefront instead of my heels and it feels much better. The impact to your heels and legs takes damage after long distances. I live in the South bay and have places like Running Revolution where they make you run on the tread mill w/ shoes and check your gait, stride and the pressure distribution of your feet when you stand. If you don’t have a store like that, check out REI.