Customer Reviews inov-8 F-Lite™ 230

I wore these shoes for a couple weeks and stopped due to pain in the arch. The shoe has a small heel on it and the edge of it presses on my arch. They'd be fine for some sprint work but walking about the town on sidewalks is a no go for me with these shoes. I have since bought a pair of Leming/Stem, they are much better for my very flat feet. Zappos doesn't carry Leming at this time. I picked up a pair in Ann Arbor at Fourth Ave Birkenstock.

The shoe is very lightweight with a fairly thin sole keeping your feet closer to the ground. I've got flat and wide feet, and the shoes work pretty well for that. There's not an uncomfortable arch. Only thing is, it seems to be really pointy at the toe section. I got a half size larger, and I'd say the width fits pretty well, although it is pretty long.

I am wide across the toes and shoes felt snug there before easing. Fine now. Also, I have narrow arch; the shoe laces up for great support (and holds against slipping forward). Wanted a black comfort travel shoe for wear with conservative-leaning jeans and sport coat, but would also work for a hike or run when opportunity presented. Very secure over rougher terrain. "Black" is the challenge -- didn't want any color -- even on sole. Sole is grippy and not likely to wear very long, but that's an okay tradeoff for what feels like wearing a heavy sock.

I agree with everybody else, this is a very well-fitting shoe (in spite of being uni-sex sized! it's amazing!), styled like a man's cool oxford with extra protection at the toe. Heel does not slip off, hallelujah! Quality seems fine, good treads, nice practical gray color, I like it a lot except there's too little cushioning underfoot. So they would be good for short hikes or walks along dusty roads, but not for running. I fear this is a trend in lighter athletic shoes, I need my padding!

I'm usually between a medium and a wide. These are listed as medium, but were very narrow and have to be sent back.

Awesome shoe. I use for crossfit, except rope climbs and running. I am a Women's size 7, the UK 4 (Men's 5/Women's 6.5) is barely small enough for my foot. I would try a 1/2 size smaller if they made it.

I absolutely love these! They are pefect for Crossfit which is what I bought them for. I ordered my size 7½ but I felt that they ran big. I returned them for half a size smaller and they fit perfectly with thick socks. I almost feel I could have gone half a size smaller but they work. They are super light, very comfortable and very good looking!

I don't do Crossfit and I don't run. I bought these shoes purely for asthetics. And, I love them, they fit perfect, look great and supriseingly resistant. Normally I wear a size 8.5 but I had to go with the 9.5 in these shoes. The one thing you can't tell from the picture is the black covering over the toes is not hard, it is just a sort of chemical/drypaste covering over the toes. No toe support which at first seems weird but the more you wear them the more you like it and get why they did it that way.

These are light weight and really conform to your foot. Great shoes for Crossfit, weight lifting, and short distance running!

This is one great shoe. It is very comfortable, flexible and light. We do crossfit, and they are perfect for the task. I hope that they hold up, as I can get two pair of Chuck Taylors for the same price. But overall I really like them.

I am a Crossfitter and this was my first pair of INOV-8s. They have taken me a bit of getting used to, but I am starting to love them. I still prefer a bit more support for running, but for everything else they are now my go to shoe! If you are going from a very supportive shoe such as I did give them sometime before jumping to an opinion.

These were my first pair of Inov-8 shoes which I purchased for adventure racing. I've done one race and I am very pleased with their performance. There is a low profile heel to prevent ankle roll-over. They are super light weight and most importantly no blisters or hot spots when they were wet. I did a couple of training runs in them and they lack cushioning for road running so stick to the trails with these babies but be careful of rocks and roots as they have limited toe protection. I'm sold on the Inov-8 shoe.

One of my friends who is an ultra marathon runner swears by his Inov-8's. I was intrigued when the time came to buy new shoes. I figured that these may work well seeing as I put in 3-5 miles daily and wanted something more lightweight than a traditional trail/road shoe. Having read some of the other reviews, I would highly suggest solely dedicating these shoes to cross-fit. I don't know that the fit is sufficiently good for a race or for running. The mesh fabric, contrary to advertisement, doesn't contour the feet well. The shoes don't run too large. They are a unisex shoe; if you don't want room in the toe box, order a half-size down. I wear a women's size 10, and these have about the same amount of wiggle room in the toe box as all of my other shoes. The width is on the narrower side. Men and women with wide feet will want to avoid Inov-8 shoes. These fit me just right, so I imagine men with narrow feet would do well in these, but men with a regular D-width (or women who wear wide widths) will probably find these narrow and uncomfortable. The mesh offers breathability, but it's not an ideal fabric for feeling secure in one's footing. I never would have paid full price for them. Even after having put in 15-20 miles in these, I can see wear on the sole, so I doubt these will make it to 600 miles as advertised. Maybe I'm just old school, but I much prefer the feel of my Nike Free and my Mizuno Wave Riders. If I ever try another pair of Inov-8's, they will be ones that are especially geared towards running, not something that spans cross-fit and races (I don't believe any cross-fit shoes suit running).

I do not understand why noone has mentioned the extremely narrow toe base -- especially since it is supposed to fit men as well as woman. It is a shame because they are lightweight and nice looking and would have been the perfect shoe for travel and walking.

Okay, where do I start with this shoe? To begin with, I have been wearing "minimalist" type footwear for about two years, so I'm very used to the feel. This shoe, however, is a lot different. I had to drop a half size down, and it still didn't feel right. The insole that comes with the shoe is a perforated thin insole that feels weird against bare feet. When I wore thin socks, the shoe felt cramped. It's also very narrow, and my feet are pretty slender, but this felt too snug. I was ready to throw in the towel, but decided to give them time since almost all of the reviews are really positive. After a couple of weeks the shoe feels like it's molding to my foot shape. I still like the Nike Free's and NB Minimus a lot better, as I feel that they're much more comfortable. Another thing that annoys me about this shoe is that you look like you're wearing elf shoes. It makes your foot look really small...not a thing most guys want. Overall, not a bad shoe, but not great either, especially for the price.

Very true to size. I don't care for these shoes. They are behind on technology. I think one of the Reebok shoes would be nicer and better for Crossfit.

I understand and appreciate the back to basics movement, especially in footwear, but this shoe just wasn't what I expected. To be honest, I thought overall it was of very poor quality materials. I wore them around the house for a few days before I decided to return them; I felt like I was walking around in flimsy flip flops. I was underwhelmed by the lack of support.

Runs extremely small! So light weight, might not offer enough cushioning.

These shoes looked neat online and out of the box. But when I put them on they were kind of fugly and didn't feel as though I had a shoe on. Like I didn't have shoes on, and that is not a good thing!

Bought these as a lightweight trail runner. I really like Nike Free Run shoes and needed a trail alternative to them. Grip appears excellent, but these shoes were not for me. Ran 3 miles in them and then posted on eBay for sale. Not comfortable at all. Felt like the soles of my feet were slapping the ground. Shoe is very pointy in the front; looks ridiculous. The gray color looks purple-like in some light.

Love the f-lite 195....very lightweight and great fit.

Love these. Just converted from Asics and my run felt so much smoother with lighter shoes. Plus the colors are fun.

I like these very much. They are super comfortable. I run in them and have found them a perfect transition shoe on the way to barefoot running.