Lems Primal 3 Review/Best Barefoot All-Around Shoe/Most Versatile Barefoot Shoe

*GIVEAWAY ALERT* To celebrate reaching 2k subscribers (thank you all so much!) we are having a giveaway. Chris has the details towards the end of the video! Today we review the Lems Primal 3, an update to their extremely popular Primal 2. We're releasing this video the same day Rose Anvil is releasing his video cutting the shoe in half, so make sure to follow the link below to his video where we get to make a special cameo! We love Lems shoes, so the chance to review the update to one of their most iconic shoes is one we jumped at. The third rendition of their popular Primal shoe does not disappoint, watch to see all the things we like about it and see where we think it could still improve. Time stamps, affiliate links, video links, and discount codes below!
ROSE ANVIL PRIMAL 3 VIDEO WITH OUR CAMEO:
• Why people call these ...
TIME STAMPS:
00:00: Intro/We take about our ROSE ANVIL CAMEO/Giveaway Teaser
1:10: Chris' Likes
4:14: Eric's Likes
6:41: Affiliates featuring Lems Shoe and Creepers Toe Socks
7:48: Chris' Dislikes
10:56: Eric's Dislikes
13:41: Chris' final opinon
14:13: *GIVEAWAY DETAILS*
AFFILIATE LINKS:
Lems Shoes:
www.lemsshoes....
Creepers Socks: (15% Discount Code SONSOFSEVER)
creeperssocks....
Patreon: patreon.com/So...
Sons of Sever Instagram:
/ sons_of_sever
Sons Of Sever Strava:
/ strava

[@snorrevonflake]

I love that they have a thicker sole while retaining wide toebox and zero drop. Thats why i am buy them even thought they are even more expensive in europe and there are cheaper options.

[@mechsupernova]

I just ordered a pair of these, I can't wait to try them out. I tend to go barefoot everywhere, these will be good for places that don't approve or when the grounds too hot😁

[@sonsofsever]

You'll have to let us know how you like them! Going from totally barefoot to these will be pretty different, but they're so dang comfy we think you'll love them.

[@Gman1024]

Congrats on surpassing two thousand subbies!!!! I dig the looks of these and being in their widest category, I'd consider them over others.

[@japanichiban3241]

i agree. i burn through soles. a cotton canvas, durable soled barefoot shoe would get my money.

[@kitcraft9516]

I'm good with the stack height but I don't love the eva in any of the Lems. Too much compression underfoot. Idk why but anything that squishes under my lateral arches destroys them in about 3 hours. It doesn't have to be thick either. For whatever reason I can wear firm arch support or no support at all. Anything between bothers my feet. Example: I can wear Briks or Red Wing without issue. Or Vivo's without insoles at like 4mm stack height. Or I can run my Jim Greens without an insole all day. Throw in a Lems insole and it obliterates my lateral arches. I have no idea why that is but it makes buying shoes a pain in the butt. Anyway, as always, I enjoyed the content! Thank you for sharing your time and expereince with us.

[@IgnacioFabbiani]

You guys should review the new rose anvil African trooper barefoot boot with Jim green, you guys should get a reviewer's unit early before the delivery date on December. Great to see you on his channel. Keep up the good work

[@sonsofsever]

@@IgnacioFabbiani they’re on their way 🫡

[@yashawal]

I love this channel, keep doing what you guys are doing!

[@kitcraft9516]

Update snagged a pair in olive. Super comfy. They run truer to size than my boulder boots (various models). I got a size 10.5 and all of my boulders are 11. These fit about the same in length but have more room at the pink toes, so slightly wider or at least for my foot shape. If you want to run them without insoles it might be worth going down half a size. Anyway, I am a 9.5 4E brannock and typically wear a 10 2/4E in sports shoes depending on brand. No issues with width at all. Perfectly wide in the midfoot and forefoot. The toe box is great for my foot shape in that normally I have issues with my pink toes rubbing, not with these. The have less room for the big toe than something like vivo but that doesn't matter for my foot shape. Also, I have high arches and high instep and the volume on these is fine if that is a consideration. The only shoe/boot I own with more volume is my Jim Green Barefoot African rangers fwiw.

[@Allan_Garcia]

I had the same issue regarding wanting a “recovery” style shoe, until I switched my training to using the Vivobarefoot hydra esc(swim/run) shoes. Now I never need a “recovery” style shoe. I figured out the issue was using shoes with a thicker layer of foam was causing my feet to experience alignment issues. I look at all of lems shoes now with huge red flags for me. I hope you guys review the Vivobarefoot hydra esc in the future. Thanks

[@kerryrwac]

Lem's Kourt Grips have the same nonslip outsole as the Boulder Grips boots, but they also have a similar stack height. My Primal Zens are virtually nonslip when wet compared to my Xero Prios and are more comfortable on concrete and asphalt.

[@sonsofsever]

The Zens strike a really great balance of minimalism and comfort, we love em!

[@martinzendejas8423]

Nice collab. Getting the recognition you guys deserve

[@adrianphoenix5604]

Looking forward to the zen vs 3 comparison! Came from RA channel ❤

[@sonsofsever]

That is one in the works. Glad you're here!

[@davidpalmer9014]

Any sizing advice on these? I'm totally new to this type of shoe. I heard Lems run small. I'm a 10.5 Brannock, but often 11 in sneakers.

[@sonsofsever]

Lems has historically been difficult with sizing, but they are getting better. For these we went with our typical US sizes and they were just fine.

[@bookgeek7907]

Sooo disappointed. I’ve been wanting to buy these shoes for awhile, love the look, but the high stack height kept me from purchasing. Now find out they added more stack height. No thanks 😢

[@sonsofsever]

@@bookgeek7907 *chanting* primal minimus. Primal minimus. Primal minimus

[@Bidouleroux]

Yeah, outside of boots for heavy winter use which can benefit from a higher stack height, Lems are not worth it IMO.

[@sonsofsever]

@@Bidouleroux I think they have a place for a demographic of people looking for a specific thing. Not everyone wants the most insanely minimal shoe, even if they know it’s “good for them.”

[@bookgeek7907]

@@sonsofsever I hear what you are saying and you’re right but then maybe they shouldn’t call them “barefoot shoes”

[@sonsofsever]

@@bookgeek7907 i’m not sure that’s quite fair either. Just because it doesn’t fit what you want in a barefoot shoe doesn’t mean it’s not one. These could be very barefoot to one person, but not very barefoot to another. You ever heard of Cody Lundeen? He legit lives his life completely barefoot, so he could argue that there’s no such thing as a barefoot shoe. I don’t think he would be right. But if anybody has the right to make that assertion, it’s him. This whole concept of barefoot shoes is a lot more gray than people want it to be.

[@deemich1815]

Is the toe box wider than primal 2 or the same?

[@sonsofsever]

@@deemich1815 it’s the same to my foot. The sole is wider, the toebox is not

[@alextheduck8449]

The website says there's only a half mm difference in stack height?

[@sonsofsever]

I think if you buy a Primal 2 now then yeah because it appears they're selling the 2 with a different insole than they used to, the thicker 4.5mm cork one.

[@alextheduck8449]

@@sonsofsever ah that's a shame :/ do they sell the soles they USED to come with still?

[@alextheduck8449]

@@sonsofsever I saw a video from 2 years ago talk about how the stack height of the primal 2 is 9mm including the "3.5 insole" so I'm not sure?

[@sonsofsever]

@@alextheduck8449 on the website under the specs for the Primal 2 it shows it being sold with a cork insole, if you click on that it takes you to the insole itself which is now 4.5mm, as far as I know you can't get the old ones anymore

[@mishafran]

👍

[@RickysPlums]

Did they make them wider? I bought a pair of their primal z and I regret my purchase. Nowhere near as wide as real barefoot shoes.

[@sonsofsever]

@@RickysPlums that’s funny because we’ve measured lems widest last compared to about six other popular brands and it’s one of the top three widest lasts we’ve worked with. It’s not wider than the previous version, except for on the sole itself

[@mattlm64]

@@sonsofsever I have wide feet and I asked them what width the Primal 2 is, and they said their size 12 is 29.9 cm long / 10.5 cm wide. This is long enough (slightly longer than ideal) but is not wide enough for me. I'd need another 5mm at least. Freet have better sizes for wide feet. Even their shoes could do with being an extra 1mm or so wider for me.

[@sonsofsever]

@@mattlm64 we don’t disagree when it comes to wider is better. But it definitely is subjective depending on your feet. I definitely wouldn’t think of freet as one of the wider companies 🤔 not bad but not dramatically better than lems, for me feet I guess

[@mattlm64]

@@sonsofsever Maybe it is due to how they measure the soles and the flexibility of the sides? It's a bit of a risk for me to buy Lems without me knowing they will fit well as I live outside the US. I know Freet fit me well enough. I think the stack height is another reason for me to give them a miss right now.

[@Laotzu.Goldbug]

As someone who has wide feet I can say that despite technically being on the same last the Primal 3/ Primal Zen will feel tighter than the Primal 2 because of the way the soul is designed. Lems will say they are the same with but the first two have rubber that comes up higher on the side and a slightly more defined arch which can put pressure on your foot. the Primal 2 is much less constructed so more of that width is going to be shaped by the soft upper and it feels a lot better. I could not wear the other two comfortably but the 2 feels good.

[@PaulGagnon-r6h]

They ruined the good design they had with Primal 2--the Primal 3 is a big departure from true barefoot design & is guaranteed to cause arch pain in those of us who prefer not to have a huge chunk or rubber where we don't need it.