Lidl's carbon plated running shoes cost a fraction of the Nike alternatives

Every year, one of the big gossipy topics of the marathon running season is which runners are wearing which pairs of shoes. An unlikely contender has entered the field: Lidl.

Lidl’s Crivit brand has been printed on countless shoes to date, from basic runners to walking shoes and casual pairs. But this one’s a little different, a carbon plated running shoe called the Crivit CarbonLite 1.0.

It could, potentially, be ideal for performance marathon-running.

Pro-style running shoes use carbon plates to increase the stiffness of the shoe structure, allowing them to use super-soft and responsive foam layers without the whole thing turning into a marshmallow.

Among the most famous carbon plated pairs are the Nike Vaporfly 4, the Puma Fast-R Nitro Elite 3 and Asics Metaspeed Sky Tokyo. They all cost well upwards of £200 at RRP, and yet tend to sell out instantly at launch.

The Crivit CarbonLite 1.0? Just £39.99.

We initially thought these shoes would only go on sale in Ireland, where they reached the “middle of Lidl” on Friday. But we’ve now heard they’ll arrive across the UK on March 29th, a Sunday. They may not last much longer than that either, given how much attention these pairs have already picked up online.

But are they any good? We’re hoping someone like Shortlist contributor Mike Sawh — one of the run-shoe-reviewing legends The Run Testers over on YouTube — but we do have a few vital statistics.

The Crivit CarbonLite 1.0 have an EVA midsole, a familiar 8mm drop and a 38mm stack height. They are listed as 250g in weight, although that will of course vary by size.

What these shoes don’t appear to have are the multiple layers of foam of differing densities, used in real high-performance plated shoes to provide a pliant but responsive feel. Also unlike those pairs, where the carbon insert is usually sandwiched between foam layers, the Crivit CarbonLite 1.0’s appears to sit just under the insole.

Not turned off? Put March 29th in your calendar as that’s when these trainers are due on Llidl shelves. The Crivit CarbonLite 1.0 will come in black and white, with red highlights, colour styles.

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