Topo Fli-Lyte 6 Review | Less Daily Trainer, More Cross Trainer

The Fli-Lyte 6 now sits as Topo’s classic low stack daily trainer for the minimalist runners out there who felt betrayed by other brands fattening up their classic low stack trainers in recent iterations. Simply put it’s a simple, no nonsense running shoe that can handle much of what you throw at it.

It began as a versatile lightweight daily trainer with the ability to rip through fast intervals. Over time the Topo Fli-Lyte has evolved as needs changed within the brand.

We’ve reviewed a lot of Topo running shoes this year and while we’ve raved about many, we also know they aren’t yet the winning shoe for every runner. Let’s talk about this shoe that seems to be bucking the trends.

Topo Fli-Lyte 6 Overview

I was intrigued at the opportunity to try this shoe. Since I started paying attention to shoe stats such as stack heights, midsole materials, and other tech I’m not sure I’ve run in such a modestly-stacked shoe. I’ve come close, but I’ve never been this low to the ground.

I wasn’t sure what to make of my first run, which was a quick introductory two miles with strides. It could have been the heaviness in my legs from that morning’s weight lifting session or it could have been adjusting to such a low stack height, but that run felt barely better than awful. Whatever the case I was determined to put this shoe through the ringer.

I’ve since done a long run with some marathon pace and threshold pace, a few easy runs, and some intervals. Several miles later I can report the shoe opened up nicely once I hit around 15 miles and has been much more enjoyable to run in.

The Fli-Lyte 6’s ZipFoam midsole, as you can expect from such a diminutive shoe, is on the firmer side, presumably to avoid bottoming out. There’s just a hint of softness so the ride is not harsh when running at easy paces, I also found that firmness helps with quicker leg turnover.

The forefoot flexibility is great, allowing natural foot movement through your stride. If you’re a heel striker you might experience what I felt was a clunky ride, but if you land on your mid or forefoot the ride is much better.

As I mentioned earlier, the first few versions of the Fli-Lyte were often touted as speed training shoes so I wanted to see how they stacked up against Topo’s newer speed trainer, the Cyclone. I ran an interval workout with 2 sets of 6 x 200 meter intervals with 200m recovery jogs. The first set of 6 was in the Fli-Lyte.

I timed it almost perfectly to end up back at my car so I could pause and put on my pair of Cyclone 2s for the next set. My effort level was noticeably easier in the Cyclones. This is not to say the Fli-Lyte 6 is a bad shoe, it just doesn’t do speedwork as well as a similar shoe with a high-tech foam underfoot.

The introduction of said Pebax powered Cyclone a couple years ago has seen Topo reposition the Fli-Lyte 6 in their lineup alongside the ST series as a shoe that can handle running and weight lifting.

With it’s thicker midsole the Fli-Lyte has more utility as a cross trainer than the ST, in my humble opinion. The increased stack makes it a better option for those who like to run to and from the gym. I can confirm the shoe is stable enough to handle single leg lifts, box jumps, lateral hops, and cooldown miles on the treadmill.

I was never a fan of white running shoes, but a recent splurge purchase of a competitor brand’s all white shoe with 3 black stripes may have changed my perspective. White shoes just look pretty, and that’s no different with the white and navy blue colorway I received. The off-white accents on the heel aren’t just there to make the navy blue look good, they add some structure to the flexible internal heel counter as well.

Topo Fli-Lyte 6 Fit & Feel

Until further notice it’s safe to assume the toe box is wonderful in just about anything Topo is offering up. Their signature fit is a bit more dialed in than in other models but the width and height of the toe box are good.

The midfoot, while usually snug and supportive, felt more snug than what I’ve experienced before. It did not pose any issues for me but that’s something to pay attention to if you have a wide midfoot.

The heel hold was wonderful, with the aforementioned off-white molded overlays offering some structural assistance to the pliable internal heel counter. The midsole extends up over the base of the heel to add some more stability and guidance for heel strikers.

Best of all, the upper is very breathable, which will come in handy in the coming summer months and beyond. The upper was a little baggy in the forefoot but it didn’t cause any blisters for me. I had to play around with the lacing on the first two rows to fully get locked in up front. Despite the baggy fit that resembled my jeans in the 90’s, Topo continued to stick the landing with their uppers, even if there are a few that can get a bit steamy.

The plush padding around the tongue and ankle are missing in the Fli-Lyte 6, but that’s not really expected in such a lightweight shoe. The tongue, while thinner than expected, has enough padding for comfort. I did find the tongue to be quite long, it can stand to have a centimeter or so shaved off and still serve its purpose.

The outsole grip was good, but I did not have a chance to run over any wet terrain, not even past any running sprinklers, oddly enough. Such is life. There is some exposed foam in the mid foot and some in the forefoot, but the surrounding outsole rubber did feel nice and sticky when I ran over sandy parts of the beach path I frequent.

Thin flex grooves run horizontally along the strips of rubber in the forefoot, giving the shoe more freedom to flex with the foot. The exposed foam and rubber still look brand new after testing so I’d expect decent durability from this shoe.

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