Not only do I own a vast amount of Vibram Five Fingers, but I also like running in Merrell shoes. So as soon as the new color (Cosmo Pink) of the Merrell Lithe Glove was available in the Netherlands I purchased a pair. And of course I quickly tried them out on a long run so that I could let you know what I think about them!

The first thing that you’ll notice upon opening the box is the color. The Cosmo Pink is very vibrant and it also has a nice orange color mixed into it. There is no doubt that you will be seen when wearing these!

The Merrell Lithe Glove for women is developed for trailrunning. The soles are made of a 4 mm TC-1 Vibram outer sole with a 1 mm protection sheet under the forefoot. Zero heeldrop, no damping whatsoever. The profile of the soles is quite rugged, but doesn’t feel weird when running on pavement. On trails, grass, sand and roots the sole provides enough traction to run easily. The sole protects from protruding stones and rogue roots. However, I find them less flexible than comparable VFF soles like the Treksport or Spyridon. The ground feeling is less than VFF KomodoSport, but about the same as VFF Spyridon.

They fit like a glove. The name says it already. But really, they do fit perfectly. The toebox is wide enough to give your toes the space they need when running. The lacing can be adjusted to fit the shoes around your feet the way you like it. I have rather small feet and they even fit me perfectly. The upper material is a soft fabric that doesn’t chafe. As opposed to the Merrell Pace Glove, the upper material doesn’t contain a mesh part. I prefer the material of the Lithe Glove: no sand going in when running on the beach.

I took them for a 25k run in the woods and on the beach. They behaved beautifully! Ground feeling is good enough, my toes were safe from roots and stones. I had o chafing, no blisters. The advantage of ‘normal’ shoes like these is the fact that you can wear ‘normal’ or compression socks in them. All in all I’d recommend these Lithe Gloves for everyone that likes minimalist shoes but hates the look of VFF (or who likes to mix it up and wear regular shoes in addition to FiveFingers). And to all VFF addicts I’d say: try these for a change, you might be surprised!

I will be running in these during my 80k Ecotrail de Paris this weekend. I’ll let you know if I survived.  :-D