Shoe Review - Brooks Pure Flow

The Brooks Pure series is Brooks answer to the barefoot/minimalist running shoe trend.  I use the term 'trend' since it's new and popular, but I am hoping that this trend sticks.  I have always been a fan of barefoot running, literal barefoot running.  Shoes hurt my feet.  But I live in a High Desert which means the ground on which I run is rarely forgiving to bare feet.  I am super excited about all the options for minimalist and barefoot shoes.  

I began training for a marathon at the beginning of January and bought these babies aka 'Pure Flow' a few weeks ago.  My initial impression is not only do they fit and serve a function, but they are FABULOUS looking to boot.

Initial Opinion:  They are beautiful.  The soles are iridescent. 

Second Opinion:  They are so bright that they are easy to find in the pile of shoes in our coat closet, which saves me critical minutes when I am trying to get out the door before Mister notices and comes running.

Actual Function Review:

• These darlings are comfortable.  I took them for a few short runs before taking them on longer runs.  The lower profile heel does change the muscle group slightly.  I found that they broke in sooner than most shoes. I have been wearing the same make and model of shoes for several years now, but every time I got a new pair I had to remind myself that I really did like these shoes.  I did not experience that this time.
• They are light, as in light weight.  I like that. Less weight means less force.
• I like to wiggle my toes while running, Brooks shoes have a wide toe box as a standard feature.  But these are a light weight mesh that allows even more movement as well as a split toe, the reasoning behind it is to allow independent function of the big toe for stronger push off, but I am at a slow even pace, so mostly I just like to think it allows more toe wiggle space.
• The blue "Nav Band" is meant to provide a snug fit.  I like it because it combined with the different lacing alleviates pressure on the top of my foot.  There are only five lace eyelets as opposed to 7.
• Other Pros: The laces are wavy and stay tied well.  The soles have less topography and are less likely to get chicken poop stuck in them when I feed them on the way in from a run.

CONS:

  The pad of my right big toe feels like there is a lump, but there isn't and it feels like that in other shoes, so maybe my foot is the problem.  

  The laces do not thread through the tongue and it tends to slide to the side more than traditionally laced shoes.
  The heels don't flare out, which makes it impossible to step out of, I actually have to take them off.  Not a huge deal, just a habit to break.

  At mile 9 of 13 my legs started to ache, mostly my calves.  This may be due to upping my mileage too quickly, putting too many miles in them too soon, or the fact that they were all done on pavement and I usually stick to trails.

Final word... I really like them!

Check out Brooks Shoe Adviser - Find Your Soulmate

Caveat - Brooks fit my feet, they might not fit your foot.  If you are planning to invest in a pair of quality running shoes, then I highly recommend going to a running shoe store and having your foot fit to the right shoe.  This is a simple process where the shoe expert will analyze your foot strike, at my store they have me put the shoes on, and film my feet while I run on a treadmill.  They then slow it down and together we watch and see how pretty or ugly my foot strike is in that pair of shoes.