VIVOBAREFOOT Neo review

I've been meaning to getting around and doing a review of my Vivobarefoot Neos. We got them on Nov 21st and I have been running in them where I can as well as wearing them just for walking around. I found my pair of Neos on the website TheClymb.com . I was able to find it for about $60, which is a fantastic deal.

So very nice.

So first about the styling and materials. I love, love, love the look of these. They have been described as a more retro look and I certainly agree. I dig the look of these they have now become my go to casual shoe just because I love how they look so much.

The upper is super flexible. Suede around the edges with the white parts of the shoes being a breathable mesh. The insides of the shoe are nice and soft. Very luxurious. I can go barefoot in these and it feels great. I do have one complaint about it though. Due to the stitching by the heel of the grey suede and the, umm green fabric there is a small portion of stitching right at the heel that sticks out just a little bit more. At the end of the first day of wearing my Neos I had a new blister formed on my heel.

My blister. Actually just kidding. This was more recent due to running over my own heel with a shopping cart.

This is the blister that I got. Still hurt though.

The first blister I've gotten from minimalist shoes. Like I said, this was due to doubling back on the stiching so it stuck out just a little bit more. Not sure if this is a common problem, but it was present in my shoes. I'm mostly wearing them with socks right now so it's not much of a problem at the moment. Hopefully in the summer it will have sorted itself out but we shall see.

You may be able to make out the stitches just to the left and right of the heel.

The Neos have a removeable footbed in them. You can either wear them with or without the footbed depending on if you want to feel the ground a little bit more or not. I found the ground feel was really good. I could feel individual rocks while wearing it, but those rocks no longer hurt. The sole is nice and flexible with the honeycomb tread giving pretty good traction.

Nice and flexible

Honeycomb tread, good traction.

The Neos were great during the fall with it being a little cold, however once we got more than just a dusting of snow I had to abandon using them in favor of my water shoes. At least until I get my Neo Trails. Sheesh, I'm incorrigible. Laff  I might try these again with it being colder using the two layers of socks and see just how good they are with the cold.

I had never tried these on before so I had to guess about the right size when ordering them. I ended up with a size 41. I found the fit to be pretty good except I could stand to have a little more room in the toes. I don't feel like I have lots of room and find that when putting my feet in, my big toe and little toe are already touching the sides which doesn't leave much room for splaying. I ran on the treadmill today and stopped halfway through because I felt my first little toe and second little toe (the little piggy that stayed home and the little piggy that has roast beef) were squished and trying to bend under each other. Didn't feel very good so I switched into my Vibram Bikilas. Had I been able to try them on first I might have gone with a bigger size to make up for the smaller toe box, but a super great deal on them meant I couldn't do so.

I have worn these shoes running outside, running on the treadmill, walking around as well as playing floor hockey in them. Other than the stitching on the back and the slightly narrow toe box I love these shoes. They have now become my go to casual shoe and they work so well in so many situations. I highly recommend them.