Best Speed Shoes of 2022: Five Picks for Your Quality Session Days

Introduction

With so many excellent carbon-plated racers on the market, the traditional speed shoe category has undergone a lot of change. Yet there are still a handful of shoes released in 2022 that are worth reaching for on quality session days, when you might not want to log your hard workouts in your carbon-plated racers. Here are five favorites for exactly that role.

1. Adidas Prime X Strung

The Adidas Prime X Strung carries over the same midsole formula as the original Prime X from 2021, with a different upper. What makes it so good for long runs with long stretches of marathon-effort miles is the midsole: Lightstrike Pro foam combined with several rigid elements, including carbon energy rods, carbon energy blades in a lower layer visible through windows in the outsole, and a carbon plate in the heel. The result is a dampened experience that is also surprisingly springy.

On paper it does not entirely make sense: the stack is way too tall at 50 millimeters, and the narrow midfoot and heel mean it is not always the most stable shoe. But once you get up to speed at marathon pace, it wants to stay there, and it feels great. Your body also takes less of a beating in it, which makes it a favorite for the long, tough marathon workouts that you want to go to bed early for the night before.

2. Asics Superblast

The Asics Superblast arrived around the New York City marathon and takes a different approach: a big, thick layer of FF Turbo foam with no carbon at all. Stabilizing that foam is a layer of FF Blast Plus, the same foam found in shoes like the Novablast 3.

At $220 it is an expensive shoe for something without a carbon plate, but set that aside and ask whether the shoe works. For the same marathon-effort workouts where the Prime X shines, the Superblast is equally exciting, and it has even been raced over marathon distance. That combination of plush foam and race-day capability earns it a clear place among 2022’s quality-session picks.

3. Asics Takumi Sen

Here the picks start to get a little weird. The Asics Takumi Sen is a 5K and 10K racer, so it might seem odd for someone who loves half and full marathons to enjoy it so much. Even though it is meant for short-distance racing, it is genuinely good for threshold work, mile repeats, and pretty much any other marathon workout, especially when you need to run a bit faster than marathon pace.

It is a blast to run in even when the total distance of the workout is longer than a distance you would want to race in it. You probably would not want to race much beyond a 15K in this shoe, but for sessions totaling 13, 15, or even 17 miles, it works. Compared with similar options it feels a little more nimble, a little more stripped down, and more raw, which makes it a lot of fun on the days when you need to go fast.

4. Altra Vanish Carbon

The Altra Vanish Carbon may not appear on many people’s lists, but it earned a reputation as one of the more underrated shoes of 2022. Altra’s Ego Pro foam is really nice: soft but also responsive, which makes it a great companion for long marathon workouts.

It is probably not the most cushioned, the most responsive, or the outright best carbon-plated racer out there. What it offers instead is fit: although it is one of the slimmer-fitting shoes Altra makes, the toe box is more generous than most other racing shoes on the market. For a shoe you will be in multiple times per week, that means it is easier on your feet than the more aggressive racer-fit uppers, and that counts for a lot across a full training block.

5. Asics Magic Speed 2

The final pick is the only traditional speed shoe on this list. Traditionally, the speed shoe has been something like a stripped-down training companion to a bigger carbon-plated sibling, in the mold of shoes like the Boston, Hyperion Tempo, or Kinvara. The shoes above all bring their own kind of pinnacle technology; the Magic Speed 2 is the classic speed-day shoe, and it is a good one.

It feels like the Magic Speed we should have gotten in version one, which played more like a gussied-up Evo Ride and never felt like a true companion to the Metaspeed series. This version pairs a nylon shank with FF Blast Plus, and the result rides firmer and snappier than other FF Blast Plus shoes like the Novablast 3, with an early toe-off reminiscent of the Metaspeed Edge Plus. If you love that shoe, you will likely love this one too. It is even race capable, having been taken to a 5K personal record, and it makes a cost-effective option if you want a shoe you can both work out in and race in.

Buying Advice

It has been a strange year for speed shoes, and the genre may keep evolving. Most people still need a way to work out, and not everyone wants to run all their sessions in their race-day shoes. If you want maximum marathon-effort comfort, look at the Prime X Strung or Superblast; for fast, nimble sessions, the Takumi Sen is hard to beat; for a roomier toe box across frequent workouts, the Vanish Carbon stands out; and for a classic, budget-friendlier speed-day shoe that can even race, the Magic Speed 2 is the pick.

Conclusion

Each of these five shoes earns its place by matching a specific workout need rather than simply mimicking a carbon racer. Pick the one that fits your sessions and your feet, and your quality days will be better for it.