HOBIBEAR Unisex Wide Barefoot Shoes for Men Women Outdoor
HOBIBEAR Unisex Wide Barefoot Shoes for Men Women Outdoor Trail Running Minimalist Walking Shoes Lightweight and Breathable
From the brand
HOBIBEAR Unisex Wide Barefoot Shoes for Men Women Outdoor Trail Running Minimalist Walking Shoes Lightweight and Breathable
These shoes are very comfortable to wear. I have always had issues with ‘normal’ shoes making my toes feel like they have been placed in a vice. Not with these!
I thought the different shape of the toes may cause slight issues with driving, however I found this to not be the case at all. It just feels absolutely natural to wear these and that offers a very pleasant experience.
100% recommended.
I love these shoes. They’re the most comfortable I’ve ever worn. The toe box is extra wide with plenty of room for wearing toe spacers in. The sole is zero drop and flexible enough to feel the ground but thick enough to protect you from small stones etc. I wear them to them gym everyday for weight lifting and various kinds of cardio and I’ve got another colour for day to day use. Much better quality and fit than another popular barefoot brand I own and far better value.
Actually took a punt at these shoes and to be fair they’re not bad at all. Lots of room in the toe and comfortable to wear. So far only in the gym but in the treadmill and general workouts. Light weight and comfortable. Fit to size.
The shoes themselves are great, but the edges of the tongue are very thick and nearly caused a blister when I first used them. They seem a bit more comfortable the more I wear them. I do not know if the heat from my feet are softening the edges of the tongue, or if my feet are just getting used to it.
I like these a lot.
I worked with a guy who told me about this brand, as i had Vivobarefoot, but they weren’t black, so not acceptable for work.
I bought these and i could tell the difference, but also, since both are barefoot shoes, they’ve both helped.
Obviously, with the cold weather, these aren’t really wearable since they’re made for warm weather.
However, the reason I’m giving them a 4/5 is because the heel part is not very good. You feel some pain after standing for a while.
Foot still a bit swollen from a bunion op, these are very comfortable and have been wearing them daily for a about a month. They are very lightweight and look flimsy but have proved sturdy enough so far. I hope not to have to use them for more than a few months, so long term durability is not a big issue. The real problem is the soles, which are very thin indeed and also make an alarming squeaking sound on some hard flooring. I put in some memory foam insoles and that helps, but not with the squeaking.
I received the shoe ten mins ago and put them on straight away, they fit beautifully, my toes are spread nicely with no pressure which I like . I wear bearfoot shoes but needs shoes with no holes for rainy days and these fit the bill . Very happy
These aren’t full on barefoot shoes but they are really well made with a bit of padding on the soles and achilles area. I didn’t want to commit to an expensive pair of barefoot shoes and these are proving to be a good buy . I’ve yet to do a big walk in them but driving and walking around the office all day they seem lighter and more comfortable than my usual trainers it’s like wearing slippers to work.
It’s like wearing slippers although I haven’t worn slippers since childhood! The only drawback is there is no grip on wet metal surfaces. So be careful on manholes and womanholes for that matter though that is another story.
I wanted to try barefoot trainers but I couldn’t afford 120+ so I decided to give these a try. I was very pleased with the quality for the price. They look very good and they are so comfortable.
It is a great product, fits really well, and for the price, the quality is really good. Will buy again.
A negative aspect and constructive feedback for the maker… the sole does not provide the best grip, especially when is wet.
I’m already used to barefoot shoes, but there all so expensive for less shoe??? Not anymore these are the widest barefoot shoes I have tried on and my feet love the freedom. I’ll be buying these from now on please make a water proof version or maybe leather that would be amazing
These however look like normal shoes.
They are so light and natural feeling, the first 2 days I felt like I’ve left the house forgetting some form of clothing.
As you walk you can feel the ground, walk over greats and feel the gaps but there just enough padding that you feel but it doesn’t hurt.
Paired with the very creapy looking five finger socks they are even better.
I really like theys shoes there very comfortable and walking in they feels more natural and I can really feel the foot muscles working where with normal shoes you don’t use the only negative thing I have with the items is when I went for a bike ride with them on my bike as spiked peddles and you could really feel the spikes dog in the bottom of the shoes and the other thing is I had to walk on a wet wooden platform after it had been raining and I slipped and hurt my ankle and brushed my ankle but as I said it was raining the night before so it made the wooden plat form really slippery other then that incident I rally do like theys shoes and I would recommend them.
Very impressed with these for the price. I’d even prefer to pay a little more and get some in canvas. There’s no much ground feel but I find ground feel overrated after the initial novelty.
A word in sizing. They have the EU sizing right but not the UK. I’m a UK 12 which is a 47 EU. Their UK 12 arrived listed as 12/46 on the tag. So I bought the 13/47 which fits like a 47EU UK 12.
I’m extremely flat-footed. Ordered a UK12, black, brown sole. Great fit, they weigh little and make my plates look tiny.
Wore them for two days walking around Valencia, 5-6 miles a day, minor downside was some pain in the top of my right foot, possibly down to these effectively offering little in the way if support, so I reverted to some more regular trainers for a couple of days.
While I appreciate these are essentially unsupported barefoot shoes, I would say that unless you’re Mowgli, you might benefit from an insole that shifts weight onto the outside of your foot initially.
Otherwise, all good!
The toe box is superwide and unconstraining but they don’t look too like clown shoes. I vary 6.5/7, usually needing 7 for width – these are plenty wide enough, but I actually needed 7 for length.
Only crit is the stitching is quite rough on the inside where the suede band meets the sole. I intend to wear with socks anyway but I’m not sure they’d be wearable barefoot. One is worse than the other. They could do with tape/lining (I may deploy duct tape to preserve my socks!).
They’re meshy like trainers so more breathable and flexible than canvas but therefore not waterproof.
P.p.s. for anyone criticising these for having no support: these are not meant to support your feet. They are meant to encourage your feet to strengthen and support themselves as nature intended. If you want more support I’m sure you could remove the supplied insoles and replace with ones that support the feet. But isn’t it worth trying to rehabilitate your feet rather than encouraging lazy muscles which lead to bunions?!
The shoes look exactly like the pictures (I bought black with a brown sole). The sole quality is excellent, with tremendous surface grip. Indoors, they sound a little ‘clickety-clackety’ on tile floors. The soles, and therefore the shoes are quite bendable, and easy to pack into luggage. The joining of the rubber sole to the mesh material is excellent and consistent all around. The mesh material itself is lightweight, with minimal water resistance, if any really. So, no good in the rain (somewhat contrary to them pitched as ‘outdoor’ runners), but given the construction material, and true for the majority of trail runners, this is to be expected.
The shoes are pitched for ‘trail running’: the sole suits this description, but just about: however, the upper material, whilst breathable, seems to lack sufficient wicking. As such, my feet sweated more water than could be dispelled, and the inside of the shoes felt slippy halfway through a (short) run: now this could also be my socks, but I’ve worn the same socks in my Nike Terra Kiger trail runners without the same issue. So, these shoes seem really excellent for casual wear, but I’ll gravitate to the Nikes for any effortful running.
However, as a casual shoe they are quickly becoming my favourite, and work well with jeans. The toe box is wide but not clowny, and the achilles (back of the heel) is exceptionally-well padded. Time will tell how the inner side lining holds up with heavy use, as it feels quite thin.
Size-wise, my typical shoe size was correct, normally I take UK11. For Nike I buy 11.5, and for Hoka 12.5, but my ‘normal’ size of UK11 works for these Hobibears. I advise buying your normal size.
Comfort-wise, these are the best barefoot shoes I’ve had, for casual wear, that is. Now I’ve only had 5 or 6. Some barefoot shoes make me feel like I’m tilting backwards a little, but these are just right. Also, the inner sole is removable. Last, on some barefoot shoes, the tongue doesn’t stay put, it can slide sideways a bit with wear: it stays put with these. Maybe that’s just me! Oh … and the shoe laces are really good.
Overall I’m happy I bought them.
Pros:
-Wide toebox, wider than some of the more famous brands for barefoot shoes, so your foot feels quite free and light, though they are not excessively wide.
-Aesthetics. These actually look pretty good in my opinion, there are brands whose whole identity is barefoot shoes but fashionable, and their most popular models look a lot like these, with basically the same materials used in the upper construction. These shoes look the same and are about 30% of the total price of those shoes.
-Breathable
-Durability. I think these shoes may actually last longer than some other barefoot brands because the sole feels harder and thicker than others. They’re still comfortable and flexible, and allow you to feel the ground underneath of course (though perhaps to a lesser extent than those other brands). On balance I think this will make the soles on these last longer for a slight reduction in barefoot feel.
-Removable insole with cushioning, which I imagine would be good for people transitioning to barefoot shoes.
Cons:
-Stack height (sole width) is thicker than what you would be used to if you’ve worn barefoot shoes before. This is really only a con for those with the preference for as minimal shoe as possible. If you’re new to barefoot shoes, or if you’ve worn them before but would actually prefer a reduction in “ground-feel” you may like these. I don’t have a precise measurement for the stack height of these shoes, but I’d estimate they are around 10mm.
Neutral:
-Construction. The sole is glued on well enough that I can’t see any of the glue around the edges if you look up close, which is actually surprisingly rare in my experience even among expensive barefoot shoes. The finishing on the upper is also nice, there’s no wayward stiching at all and the materials look and feel really good. The only downside I’ve noticed is that at the very end of the shoe on the upper part of the toe box, the material falls in slightly, making the shoe look dented. Now you can push these dents up but how long they stay up is inconsistent. This is really only a minor aesthetic concern, and I don’t think it would even be visible on the black models, but I’ve got a grey pair and the dents are visible and I don’t like how they look whenever I see the dents.
-Achilles cushioning. So at the back of the shoe, the part that hugs your ankle is cushioned. This is just personal preference. I’m neither for or against it tbh.
The shoes come packaged in a plastic zip bag.