New Balance Men's MT00 Minimus Zero Trail Running Shoe

I bought these to replace the same pair, which has finally started coming apart after 600+ miles of marathon training and trail running. They're amazingly light -- I weighed them at 5.5oz per shoe in a size 13 -- but still have enough structure to feel substantial on the foot, unlike some minimalist shoes that feel more like a sock with treads.The light weight makes them perfect for travel, and the lack of soft materials makes them great for running in wet conditions because there's nothing to soak up water, it just sheds off or runs right out the bottom.I did have some issues with blisters and rubbing before they were broken in, so would recommend wearing socks for the first few times you wear them.

I'm not a runner, but having lacked an outdoors shoe for long enough, I thought it was time for a new pair. I am reviewing these shoes with the intent for use as comfortable shoes for sitting at the desk, everyday walking, and the occasional hiking and jog.For work, I sit at a desk for hours a day. My sole pair of shoes for over a year now has been a pair of Ecco Oxfords. Though they look great, I have finally realized that the dress shoe heel is causing me great soreness when I am sitting and driving my heel into the floor. I have wide feet, measured myself a EE. Ecco's shoes feel somewhat wider than most, but could be better. Thus, I went searching for the lightest, widest, heel-less shoe I could find. Extra points if I could wear as business casual. Gold star if it passed as a dress shoe. After much research I've concluded there is no such lightweight, heel-less dress shoe, though a few companies are working on that.Besides the Minimus Zero, I also tried on various other New Balance barefoot-esque trail shoes, the Vivobarefoot Ray (styled as moccasins) and Merrell Gloves, all barefoot shoes in varying degrees.The non-Zer Minimus New Balances shoes I tried on were too narrow in the heel and toe box for my comfort. The Vivobarefoots were wide, but could have been even wider for me personally. There was something about the fit or fabric that did not feel right for my feet - I experienced pain when I placed weight onto the balls of my feet. I think there was not enough stretch. The Merrell Gloves had too much of an ache.The MT00 Minimus Zero Trail: I got the size 10, 4E width and my feet fit perfectly, sockless. I wouldn't want to wear socks as I think that would make them too tight. Note that I measure myself as a EE, so either I measured incorrectly or these shoes run narrow by default. No heel, no arch. Wide toe box. I can freely wiggle my toes and it feels awesome.It feels very close to being barefoot in these, though I would say the Vivo Ray's were probably even closer still with the inserts taken out. I feel my feet "wrap" around the sidewalk curb and I do notice rocks and pebbles on the ground.The vibram sole comes from underneath to partially climb up the toe box, so that protects your toes from accidentally stubs in the forward motion, but wouldn't protect your toes from objects falling onto them - no protection at all.Mesh fabric covers your toe box - felt odd at first but now I love waving my foot around to get some air in them. You can sort of see your feet through the mesh, so that further takes you away from business casual if you are going for that.By themselves, the shoes look pretty decent as running shoes go - you can't pull off business casual by any means but I see plenty of people wearing sneakers to work now a days as part of the "outdoor chic" style.I wear them sockless and my feet do get really moist as you would expect to happen but I am dealing with that over cramped, sore feet. During a run, the mesh might cool your feet enough to keep dry but I haven't tested it out.A bit annoying is that the shoes make pitter patter noise when you step, I think owing to the sole being made up of "pods" as part of its tread [see the pictures] - so it sounds like you are walking around in soccer cleats. I'd rather do without that but again the comfort outweighs this annoyance.There a some reviews of this shoe not lasting for very long and I can see that - to keep the shoes light, there is just not much there. Most of the sole is some sort of foam, with the Vibram traction part covering the heel and the ball but not the mid-foot. I can see how the foam parts would start breaking down quickly.Since I just mean to mostly use these shoes for sitting and walking about town, I am not too concerned about it, but time will tell if they last long enough to make it worthwhile price-wise.

There is not a lot too this shoe. it is basically a mesh sock with laces and a very thin sole. This is great if you are looking for a light weight, minimalist, barefoot type shoe. It fits and feels great, unfortunately it just does not hold up. It started getting holes in it and falling apart with not much use.

This is one of the better minimalist shoes I have used. The sole provides great tractions compared to other strictly flat soled shoes. Trail running is not bad, although you are still going to feel the ruts and rocks. The only problem I have had is that small rocks get wedged between the grooves on the sole. Overall, great shoe, very light, fits like a glove to my standard shoe size, maybe 1/2 size smaller without socks.

First off I have been using minimalist running shoes (Vibram Five Fingers) for about a year before I purchased these shoes. They feel amazing! True to size, extremely light weight, and have more cushion than the Five Fingers. Unlike the Five Fingers though, I wear lightweight socks with the Minimus. I chose the trail zeros over the road zeros solely based on fit. The toe box was too wide on the roads for me. I wear an 11 D and the trails fit like a glove.I only use these shoes for running and crossfit exercises. The most I have ran in these shoes at one time has been 7 miles but im sure they would hold up fine for longer distances.These are amazing to lift in as well. Being low to the ground, you really feel balanced and stable when doing deadlifts, medium weight thrusters, snatches, cleans, jerks, kettlebell swings and any variation of squats. These shoes are my go-to shoes for 80% of the time for crossfit. I only switch it up to lift heavy. Be careful when rope climbing, these will tear easily. These have been my favorite workout shoes to date.Ok, now the down side. I have had to replace these shoes about every 4-5 months because the material just doesn't hold up. I have had the shoelace eyelets and tongue tear, but the soft outsole material was wearing down pretty quick when only running on asphalt as I do. I have notified New Balance of this when they were replacing a pair free of charge.The only reason i cannot give 5 stars is the longevity. It gets expensive to replace shoes 3x a year. With that said, I'm currently on my third pair which says a lot about how much i love the shoe. I have nothing but good things to say about New Balance and their customer service.

I was very nervous going from running in sneakers to running in minimal shoes. I started of slow in these shoes and am very surprised on how much similarity there is to running in my old sneakers. These shoes are very light, comfortable, stylish, and affordable. So far the only close to negative thing that I have to comment on is that you do feel the rocks, which is to be expected so no buggy.

Good fit and well made, but not really for me. Just not enough shock absorption for running on the various terrain where I used them. I wound up keeping them as water shoes.

The shoes look very comfortable and light but the problem I had with them were that they didnt fit me. I had to give them to my little cousin. I would recommend these shoes for someone who has small feet.