New Balance SC Trainer vs ASICS Super Blast: Two Maximalist Trainers, Two Very Different Personalities

Introduction

Maximalist trainers are having a moment, and two shoes sit right at the heart of the conversation: the New Balance SC Trainer and the ASICS Super Blast. Both pack serious midsole foam, both are built for high-mileage training, and both ask a real question about what you want from an easy-day shoe. After putting in the miles with each, the differences come down to weight, ride feel, and price.

How We Compare Them

Both shoes were evaluated on upper comfort, midsole ride, outsole durability, fit, and value. Testing was done across easy days and moderate paces in cold conditions, which matters a lot for how foam behaves underfoot.

New Balance SC Trainer: Big Foam, Bigger Price

The SC Trainer is a serious chunk of shoe. It comes in around 9.4 to 9.5 ounces, roughly an ounce and a half heavier than the Super Blast, and there is a lot of midsole foam sitting underfoot. The upper uses an engineered mesh that feels well built, with a semi-gusseted tongue and a genuinely usable heel pull tab, a small but appreciated detail when fingers are cold in winter.

At a $220 price point, though, the value question is hard to ignore. It is a lot of money for a shoe that, in this testing, works best in a fairly narrow window: easy, heel-striking runs at slower paces.

Ride and Underfoot Feel

The midsole uses a dual-density construction, with a firmer foam layer at the bottom and a more responsive foam on top. The idea sounds great on paper, but in practice the ride felt best around the 8:30 to 9:00 per mile range. Pushing the pace toward 7:30 made things feel strange underfoot, enough that changing the foot strike to the heel brought the ride back to life.

There is also a temperature factor worth knowing about. At 45 degrees Fahrenheit the foam felt much better; below 20 degrees it hardened up noticeably, and the durometer readings landed in the low to mid-40s. In warmer weather, expect the ride to feel noticeably softer and more forgiving.

ASICS Super Blast: Lighter and More Versatile

The Super Blast is the lighter of the two by about an ounce and a half, and that difference shows up on every run. With a tall stack of around 45.5mm at the heel and 37.5mm at the forefoot, it delivers plenty of cushion while staying far more willing to move at quicker paces.

The outsole rubber holds up well, the torsional rigidity is impressively high for a shoe this soft underfoot, and the breathability of the engineered mesh upper should be excellent in summer conditions. If you want one trainer that can handle easy days without feeling completely one-dimensional, this is the more flexible option.

Durability and Daily Use

Both shoes look built to go the distance. The SC Trainer’s construction feels durable, and the Super Blast’s outsole coverage is restrained but effective. Neither showed early wear concerns in testing, and the midsoles should loosen up slightly as mileage climbs past the 50-mile mark.

Buying Advice: Which One Fits Your Training?

If you are a classic heel striker looking for a dedicated easy-day cruiser and you can get past the price, the SC Trainer makes sense. It is not a tweener: it is simply a slow, cushioned day shoe, and it should not be your first choice for tempos or faster work. The Super Blast, by contrast, is the better all-around pick. It is lighter, happier at more paces, and easier to justify as a daily training option.

Conclusion

The SC Trainer delivers a lot of foam and a plush slow-pace ride, but its weight, narrow use case, and $220 price make it a tough sell against the Super Blast, which stays lighter and far more versatile. Choose the SC Trainer for pure easy-day comfort, and the Super Blast if you want one shoe to cover more of your training week.