Don’t disturb me! I’m in zen mode.
Okay, let's get on with it – it's my job after all... But we also need to talk about
Now, let me tell you something: Neo actually means “new,” and Zen relates to balance or harmony. It's no coincidence that the shoe is named as such. The Neo line currently includes Neo Zen and Neo Vista shoes. Today, we’ll focus on Neo Zen 2, which, as the name suggests, aims to bring you balance, so let's see if it truly does.
Neo Zen and
are both neutral training shoes. Zen lacks a plate, while Vista includes one.
For a shoe to be balanced, the various parts need to work together, and I think Mizuno has done an excellent job achieving this. Both the upper and midsole have been refined. If you have the Mizuno Neo Zen 1, you have a pretty wild shoe in hand – it wasn’t quite balanced. It was a bit untamed. Neo Zen 2 is more restrained: easier to manage.
Mizuno Neo Zen 2 - Significant changes
The upper was probably the part of Neo Zen 1 that most people struggled with. It was very flexible, perhaps too flexible to control the Enerzy NXT midsole beneath it. The upper of Neo Zen 2 is a combination of knit and engineered mesh – and it does exactly the job it’s supposed to.
I personally love the knitted part of the upper over the instep. Completely frictionless and smooth. It’s really comfortable. The upper has gained more structure due to the more traditional engineered mesh part, which is considerably more stable than, for example, knit. Around the heel, you get a good amount of padding on a relatively firm heel counter. All in all, a big step closer to peace and balance. Zen.
Mizuno Neo Zen 2 - Finding peace, finding balance?
At first glance, Neo Zen 2 doesn’t look like a shoe with the midsole depth it actually has. It measures a full 40.5 mm at the heel and 34.5 mm at the forefoot (6 mm heel drop), which means Neo Zen 2 sneaks into the big max cushioned running shoes. What it doesn’t look like from the outside, you feel when you slip into the shoe: You are well elevated and protected from the ground.
I mentioned earlier that Neo Zen 2 feels more tamed than its predecessor. It was as if Mizuno with their initial launches in the Neo series wanted to showcase what they could do with their new technologies, and then took notes and adjusted the shoe accordingly. This is the kind of development we shoe enthusiasts love to see.
The midsole is made of nitrogen-infused EVA, which I would describe as a very reliable foam material. A subdued shock absorption. It’s not used to trick you into extreme bounce, which I actually think Neo Zen 1 had. No, it simply fits better with the technology that ties it all together, namely Mizuno Smooth Speed Assist.
Mizuno Neo Zen 2 - Final destination: Complete balance
As you may have guessed, we succeeded. We found peace, we found balance. Mizuno Smooth Speed Assist was the last little piece in our Japanese puzzle.
To get the most out of Smooth Speed Assist, their term for a rocker geometry, the foam mustn’t be too soft. Mizuno has done a great job creating a shoe where the heel-to-toe phase feels completely natural. This is the shoe’s biggest strength, as I see it.
I experienced quickly getting into a flow when running in Neo Zen 2, which is rarely a bad thing.
Mizuno Neo Zen 2 - Versatile training shoe
I’ve already talked a bit about Japan, so I might as well continue. If you’re heading to Japan – or any other vacation destination – Neo Zen 2 could be a good addition to your packing list.
Should high-intensity intervals be on the schedule during your vacation, there are naturally shoes on the market that do it better, but they don’t have the versatility that Neo Zen 2 has.
Neo Zen 2 is a versatile running shoe. This versatility stems partly from its relatively low weight compared to other max cushioned running shoes, while the durable XT10 outsole material is grippy enough for use on light terrain.
Mizuno Neo Zen 2 quickly becomes a shoe you’ll reach for again and again because it can be used in so many different scenarios. In my opinion, Mizuno Neo Zen 2 can be the shoe that ties your running shoe arsenal together and creates balance.
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