Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Topo Athletic MT-2 Review


If you have been following my blog for a while, you know that I really like Topo Athletic shoes.  They offer shoes with a low heel drop and wide toe box.  This allows your toes to spread out instead of feeling claustrophobic like in most shoes.  The durability of the materials that they use is excellent as well.  The MT is one of the first shoes that I tested out on my blog.  It is still one of my favorite trail shoes because it is so light, comfortable, and really flexes with your foot.  I was really curious about how the MT-2 would compare, considering I had such high expectations.

If you are not familiar with Topo Athletic shoes, they fit snug in the heel and midfoot, while it they are loose in the toe box.  That way your toes can be free without your feel slipping around in the shoes.  As I stated above, the wide toe box allows your toes to spread out, which has several benefits.  This will not only help you be more stable, but will also reduce foot injuries commonly caused by shoes that compress your toes.  I am currently dealing with pain in both of my feet due to testing out shoes that compressed my toes. 

I have tested 7 shoes from Topo Athletic and have been impressed with every one.  Here are some of my past reviews.


The MT-2 has a 3mm heel drop as opposed to the MT, which is a zero heel drop shoe.  The difference was not noticeable to me.  It still had the low heel drop feeling, which I prefer.  The lower heel drop allows your body to be in a better alignment, which will help reduce injuries.

The weight of the MT-2 is about 8.5 ounces, which is slightly heavier than the MT, at about 8 ounces.  Again, there wasn’t much of a difference.  I really like running in a lighter weight shoe.  It isn’t a highly cushioned shoe like Hoka One One or Altra shoes, but it does offer the ability to feel the ground (ground contact) without leaving your feet unprotected.  I think that they used just the right amount of cushion with the MT-2. 

One thing that I really liked about the MT was that it used multi-directional lugs on the outsole and had groves to allow your feet to flex.  I find that the MT-2’s outsole is equally as good and Topo Athletic has incorporated a mud release feature to the outsole as well.  I have read concerns by other reviewers that in really muddy situations the MT-2 can slip a little.  I have run in wet, but not extremely muddy conditions and I found that they performed well.  I also felt that there was a decent amount of protection under your foot so if you step on a sharp rock, it shouldn’t leave you with a bone bruise.  The traction was great on gravel, packed trails, and granite outcroppings. 

The upper material has a breathable mesh and has more midfoot overlays which make for a great fitting and durable shoe.  The tongue is fully gusseted, meaning it is attached to the sides of the shoe.  That will keep more rocks and debris out of your shoes.  Nothing sucks more than having to stop to get a tiny rock out from under the ball of your foot.

Pros:
Light weight (8.5 ounces)
Wide toe box allows toes to spread out
3mm drop allows for better form and posture
Great price ($100 at the Topo Athletic website)
Fully gusseted tongue

Topo Athletic’s Social Media Links:

Once again, Topo Athletic has put out a great shoe that should be considered if you are looking for an awesome trail shoe.  This feather light shoe comes with a low heel drop, breathable mesh upper, flexible outsole, and is just a pleasure to run in.  It is hard to beat the $100 price tag either.  You can get a pair at the Topo Athletic website, or check the Topo Athletic Store Locator for a store near you. 

Note:  I received this product in exchange for a review.  The review is my personal opinion of the product and I was not required to give a particular opinion of it.  I am not a doctor, so please use all of the products that I review at your own risk.

1 comment:

  1. This post this tongue is usually thoroughly gusseted, significance it truly is placed on this features on the running shoe. That can hold far more crud in addition to dust from a shoes and boots. Almost nothing sucks in excess of requiring you to halt to have a teeny steel from beneath baseball of this foot or so.

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