Mizuno Neo Zen 1

The Run Testers observes the outsole on the Mizuno Neo Zen is very good, with a good layer of rubber; there is a big bit of exposed midsole but it is indented into the shoe so it would take a while to get through that rubber to really start wearing down the midsole.

The Run Testers states the Mizuno Neo Zen has a thick stack of Mizuno Enerzy NXT, the brand's soft nitrogen-infused foam, designed for energy return and comfort.

The Run Testers states the Neo Zen's X10 outsole is made from durable carbon rubber built to improve durability in high-use areas and provide good traction in varied conditions.

The Run Testers 's recommendation: the Mizuno Neo Zen is for someone who wants a comfortable nice shoe, likes really soft midsoles, and is not planning on doing anything too fast; for going faster, the reviewer suggests the Neo Vista instead.

jogoncrago finds the Mizuno Neo Zen 2 has not lived up to the legacy and ethos that made the original Neo Zen special.

jogoncrago finds the Neo Zen 2 is not really a Neo Zen anymore and expects no strong correlation between people who like the Neo Zen 2 and people who like the original Neo Zen.

jogoncrago finds the midsole of the Neo Zen 2 has completely changed the attitude of the shoe, losing the original's fun, versatile, all-rounder character.

jogoncrago is baffled by Mizuno moving from one of the best midsole foams (Nitro TPU) in the original to a very normal-feeling foam in the Neo Zen 2.

jogoncrago observes the Neo Zen 2 update turns something fun, dynamic, and bouncy into something more bland and watered down for the general public.

jogoncrago speculates the original Neo Zen did not need much changed — just a new upper and maybe a bit more rocker through the forefoot or a shank — not an entire midsole foam overhaul.

jogoncrago speculates the original Neo Zen may have been a little soft for all-out sessions and too compressive to go long, but had an any-day feel that gave juice when not feeling it and rewarded pace by responding to force.

jogoncrago states the Neo Zen 2 is not a bad shoe and does its function nicely, but is not the same as the original Neo Zen.

MidLife Runner acknowledges that another commenter stated sizing is still the same and one still needs to half-size down, and defers that it may be true for others, but for him size 9 (regular size) is fine.

MidLife Runner after 50 miles in the Neo Zen V2 was missing and craving the feel of the V1.

MidLife Runner attributes to Thomas from Believe in the Run the view that more people thought the V1 was too mushy, too soft, not supportive, not structured enough, and that is fixed in V2.

MidLife Runner considered the Neo Zen V1 a dynamic, unique, peppy, bouncy shoe.

MidLife Runner finds the Neo Zen V1 is still softer and the Neo Zen V2 is more supportive.

MidLife Runner observes that the Neo Zen V2 upper fit is still 'just a little bit long' but the difference is marginal compared to V1.

MidLife Runner prefers the softness of the Neo Zen V1 if he had to choose between the two.

MidLife Runner recommends that if someone likes the Neo Zen V1, they should get it on sale.

MidLife Runner states he is in the 'love the Zen 1' camp.

MidLife Runner states that in the Neo Vista (and by context the Neo Zen V1), one had to half-size down, but for V2 he wears his regular US men's size 9 (while showing an 8.5 for V1).

MidLife Runner finds that the price difference between a "just a shoe" daily trainer and a dynamic daily trainer like the Mizuno Neo Zen is often only $10–$20 max, and he prefers to spend the extra money to get something fun.

MidLife Runner describes the Mizuno Neo Zen 1 upper as a 'booty knit upper' (presumably 'bootie knit upper').

MidLife Runner finds the Mizuno Neo Zen 1 midsole feels soft.

MidLife Runner prefers the softness ('magic') of the Mizuno Neo Zen 1 over the Neo Zen 2.

MidLife Runner recommends that buyers who love the Mizuno Neo Zen 1 should stock up when they go on sale around February 1st.

MidLife Runner describes the Mizuno Neo Zen as a dynamic daily trainer like the Nova Blast 5, offering a little speed, a little softness, and a little something nice.

MidLife Runner distinguishes between 'soft' and 'comfortable' for the Mizuno Neo Zen: he finds it is not comfortable (not much padded heel collar) but is soft underfoot — 'talking marshmallows.'

MidLife Runner finds the Mizuno Neo Zen is 'absolute gold at daily paces.'

MidLife Runner finds the Mizuno Neo Zen is a very soft ride.

MidLife Runner finds the Mizuno Neo Zen is good at recovery but is best at daily everyday miles, which he states is its intended purpose as a daily trainer.

MidLife Runner finds the Mizuno Neo Zen's Enerzy Next foam is resilient: the shoe compresses and decompresses nicely.

MidLife Runner observes the Mizuno Neo Zen's knit upper fit runs about half a size too large; he normally wears US men's size 9 but went half a size down in this shoe.

MidLife Runner prefers the Mizuno Neo Zen over the Neo Vista V2 as a daily trainer because he can still go recovery pace and can still pick up the pace; he wants the workhorse to 'eat it up.'

MidLife Runner speculates the Mizuno Neo Zen outsole might be slippery in inclement weather but he lives in South Texas and does not run in much rain, so he has not found it slippery.

MidLife Runner states the Mizuno Neo Zen costs about $150.

MidLife Runner suggests the upper is the only reason he would not consider the Mizuno Neo Zen the best daily trainer of the year.

Runnertia compares the Mizuno Neo Zen to the Adidas Evo SL, stating the Neo Zen does not soar as high as the Evo SL but also does not stoop as low.

Runnertia describes the Mizuno Neo Zen as a companion daily trainer, suitable for recovery runs up to perhaps half marathon pace for short periods when new.

Runnertia dislikes the Mizuno Neo Zen upper, describing it as a booty-style construction that does not work for many people.

Runnertia finds running in the Mizuno Neo Zen feels effortful; they attribute part of this to a 24-mile double day the day before, but also feel they are sinking in and the shoe is not really rebounding anymore.

Runnertia finds the Mizuno Neo Zen does a better job than the Adidas Evo SL at being an all-arounder and a more comfortable shoe with fewer flaws.

Runnertia finds the Mizuno Neo Zen does not have decent compression set resistance but does have pretty good fatigue resistance during a run.

Runnertia finds the Mizuno Neo Zen foam, when new, is really soft and also really bouncy.

Runnertia finds the Mizuno Neo Zen is a great shoe when new, very bouncy for such a soft shoe, and perfect as a training foam.

Runnertia finds the Mizuno Neo Zen midsole, when new, was a joy to run in, very soft and buttery, rebounding in a pneumatic and linear way.

Runnertia is surprised at how well the Mizuno Neo Zen outsole is holding up at near 200 miles.

Runnertia observes that the Mizuno Neo Zen became flat very suddenly, one or two runs ago.

Runnertia observes that the Mizuno Neo Zen used to feel bouncy but now feels like they are sinking in immediately.

Runnertia observes that the longer they ran in the Mizuno Neo Zen on this run, the more it felt flat.

Runnertia observes the Mizuno Neo Zen has pretty severe tippy instability.

Runnertia observes the Mizuno Neo Zen's outsole rubber wearing through and grooves becoming smoother on one side.

Runnertia reports they rolled their ankles twice in the Mizuno Neo Zen and fell down in front of Run Club wearing it.

Runnertia speculates that the Mizuno Neo Zen's booty-style upper is the real downfall of the shoe.

Runnertia states that, on balance, they recommend the Mizuno Neo Zen and honestly think it is a better shoe than the Adidas Evo SL.

Runnertia states the Mizuno Neo Zen costs $150.

Runnertia states there is more mileage to be had in the Mizuno Neo Zen outsole.

Runnertia states they would recommend the Mizuno Neo Zen.

Runnertia thinks the Mizuno Neo Zen is still a good value at $150.

Runnertia finds that the Mizuno Neo Zen has compressed a ton and will probably stop being a bouncy shoe and just start being a shoe around 200 miles.

Runnertia believes some issues with the Mizuno Neo Zen could have been corrected if they had sized down, because the shoe has a sloppy fit.

Runnertia believes the Mizuno Neo Zen is overall a more quality shoe than the Adidas Evo SL.

Runnertia compares the Mizuno Neo Zen to the Adidas Evo SL, stating the Evo SL is the fast side of daily and the Neo Zen is the recovery side of daily, with a large overlap in pace range.

Runnertia describes the Mizuno Neo Zen as a high-stack daily trainer with very squishy soft foam.

Runnertia finds the Mizuno Neo Zen capable of picking up the pace and not a slouch or heavy.

Runnertia finds the Mizuno Neo Zen tall and unstable, and was initially hesitant to run in it while dealing with a leg injury due to fear of rolling an ankle.

Runnertia finds the rubber outsole of the Mizuno Neo Zen is not the best at gripping in the wet, but also not the worst they have experienced.

Runnertia has noticed that past 8 or 10 miles, the foam in the Mizuno Neo Zen feels like it is starting to compress and has fatigue resistance issues.

Runnertia observes the Mizuno Neo Zen is 'killing it' on the back half of the run, describing it as soft, bouncy, stacked, and cushioned.

Runnertia observes the Mizuno Neo Zen is too big on top and, due to the bootie-style construction, this affects overall stability in the platform.

Runnertia reports a recurring intermittent issue with feeling hot spots under their forefoot in the Mizuno Neo Zen.

Runnertia reports experiencing big toe rubbing on their right foot in the Mizuno Neo Zen.

Runnertia reports getting hot spots on the ball of their right foot and slightly less on the left foot in the Mizuno Neo Zen.

Runnertia reports the Mizuno Neo Zen can hit paces down to 7:30 per mile for them when not in heat.

Runnertia reports tripping and falling in the Mizuno Neo Zen in front of Run Club.

Runnertia says the Mizuno Neo Zen is primarily used for recovery efforts.

Runnertia speculates that even if they sized down, the Mizuno Neo Zen upper would still be sloppy.

Runnertia speculates the sloppy fit of the Mizuno Neo Zen may have contributed to them tripping and falling in the shoe.

Runnertia thinks Mizuno should get rid of or improve the bootie-style uppers on the Neo Zen.

Runnertia thinks the sloppy upper of the Mizuno Neo Zen deters people who have had bad experiences with bootie-style uppers from wanting to try the shoe.

Runnertia , who is tired and doing a recovery run, describes the Mizuno Neo Zen as soft and squishy.

Runnertia observes that the Mizuno Neo Zen 1 does not have the best wet weather grip; the reviewer finds it is certainly not the worst, but does not feel so sure-footed in this shoe.

Runnertia observes that the Mizuno Neo Zen 1 feels really slippery on wet surfaces.

Runnertia attributes a booty-style / gussetted upper construction to the Mizuno Neo Zen, noting it is a polarizing design choice that may limit the customer base.

Runnertia compares the Mizuno Neo Zen (which he sometimes calls 'Neoen') with the Adidas Evo SL, stating that at $150 each they are similarly priced.

Runnertia describes the Mizuno Neo Zen's bounce as 'super nice' but not the bounciest shoe in the world; he likens the sensation to sinking into memory foam like a hydraulic press, with a trampoline-like or slingshot rebound.

Runnertia observes that the Mizuno Neo Zen feels consistently platform-wobbly and higher off the ground, and the soft foam adds to instability; he states you do not want to take sharp turns in it.

Runnertia observes that the Mizuno Neo Zen has a looser, bordering on sloppy fit upper.

Runnertia speculates that the Mizuno Neo Zen may have stability issues at faster paces (half marathon pace or faster, 10k pace or faster) due to the sloppy upper, but that with a half-size-down fit it might handle half marathon pace more reliably because the foam has resilience without causing foot fatigue.

Runnertia states he keeps the Mizuno Neo Zen for marathon pace or slower.

Runnertia states he went true to size in the Mizuno Neo Zen and stands by it, but could see the benefit of better lockdown if he went down a half size.

Runnertia states the Mizuno Neo Zen can serve as a single do-it-all shoe.

Runnertia states the Mizuno Neo Zen is a daily trainer suited for slower, recovery running and chilling; he describes it as tuned for easier paces.

Runnertia states the Mizuno Neo Zen uses an aliphatic TPU foam which he describes as 'really soft' and a full slab of consistent foam.

Runnertia states the Mizuno Neo Zen works for his slower paces up to wherever he wants to go, and he has gone pretty fast in it.

Runnertia states the Mizuno Neo Zen's outsole grip was not perfect on damp ground.