New Balance Fresh Foam X More v4 Review

New Balance Fresh Foam X More v4 Introduction

Four years ago, New Balance saw the inclination of much brands offering maximal cushion offerings and introduced the Fresh Foam More. The sanction says it all, there’s conscionable much to this shoe.

The stack tallness was formidable, and designed with a rocker midsole, the runner could onshore and rotation into their adjacent step.

Each twelvemonth since being introduced, New Balance has wholly redesigned the shoe, and this offering is nary different.

At $150, the More v4s vie against shoes specified arsenic the Saucony Endorphin Shift 3, Skechers GoRun Max Road 6, Puma ForeverRun Nitro, Hoka One One Clifton 9, and the ASICS GlideRide 3.

This radical of high-to-max cushioned shoes connection immoderate of the much fashionable trainers connected the marketplace close now, and the Fresh Foam More are firmly successful that discussion.

New Balance Fresh Foam X More v4 First Impressions

I was precise excited to spot what New Balance would bash to update 1 of my favourite shoes of the past fewer years. When they arrived I was impressed by the ocular and the construction. They felt coagulated and the precocious looks comfortable.

When I archetypal enactment them on, they were incredibly comfortable, and felt precise coagulated underfoot. The assertive rocker plan made maine privation to move. However, connected the archetypal tally – a 5 mile regular tally – I developed blisters connected some feet wherever the midfoot and the toe-box meet.

I hoped this was conscionable a interruption successful period, but it was the archetypal footwear I’ve experienced blisters with successful a fewer years.

New Balance Fresh Foam X More v4 Upper

The precocious is an engineered mesh which is breathable and soft. It is good made and has immoderate large details, portion staying reasonably simple. The precocious uses a printed plan of the New Balance logo connected the outer midfoot to assistance fastener you in.

This is besides accomplished done the plan and operation of the shoe. The bottommost is reasonably tight, the midfoot is precise tight, past the precocious flares retired to a regular width toe-box. The precocious fits true-to-size successful length, and is precise comfy for mundane wear.

The plan of the upper, however, is besides a large flaw that saw maine dreading wearing these shoes connected runs. The modulation from the midfoot into the toebox was truthful terrible that I developed blisters connected each tally I had successful this shoe, nary substance the distance. I tried to spot if it was lone longer runs, and inactive developed blisters and reddish spots connected the shot of my large toed connected some feet aft 1.5 miles.

Beyond the midfoot blisters, I besides developed blisters connected the bottommost of my ft connected longer runs arsenic my bottommost was moving astir passim the run. I tried antithetic lacing patterns to instrumentality attraction of the issue, but nary of them worked. To beryllium fair, I ne'er felt my bottommost slipping, but did consciousness the blistery spots and blisters forming connected immoderate tally longer than 10km.

New Balance Fresh Foam X More v4 Sole Unit

New Balance utilizes their top-line Fresh Foam X which provides unthinkable cushion and vigor return. It feels firmer nether ft that immoderate different foam offerings retired there, specified arsenic those offered by Brooks and Saucony, nevertheless the operation of cushion and vigor instrumentality from Fresh Foam X is possibly the champion retired determination astatine the moment.

This midsole uses strategically placed flex grooves to assistance the modulation from bottommost to toe. This coupled with an assertive rocker plan helps you propulsion the gait portion having the cushion underfoot for longer miles. This facet creates a precise creaseless thrust that is rather enjoyable. This rocker plan starts with a bottommost bevel designed to assistance successful daze absorption for heel-strikers, and transitions into a wide toed country that gives a unchangeable interaction portion connected which to push.

The outsole uses a Ground Contact Foam to assistance chopped down connected value portion giving a bully magnitude of traction. However, this worldly tin conflict connected bedewed surfaces if you person to crook a batch of corners.

At 38mm nether the heel, transitioning 4mm to 34mm nether the toes, this footwear has the cushion to log each the miles you’ll privation to run.

New Balance Fresh Foam X More v4 Conclusions

This shoe is 1 of the astir disappointing I’ve tally successful years. I perfectly loved the More v3, and logged much than 300 miles successful them. They were my go-to footwear for agelong runs each of past year. The operation of a soft, wide – yet supportive – precocious and the Fresh Foam X midsole that offered large cushion and vigor instrumentality made the v3 1 heck of a ride.

Unfortunately, New Balance decided they needed to alteration a large happening successful a mode that ruined the footwear for me. I bash not person peculiarly wide feet, they mightiness beryllium wider than some, but I usually deterioration regular width with nary issues. Yet, this footwear caused width-related blisters astatine each distance.

I tin spot if you person constrictive feet that this footwear could beryllium astonishing for you. The sole portion is inactive apical notch, the operation is immaculate, and the technologies marque a large footwear connected paper. If your feet acceptable successful the precocious successful the close way, this footwear would beryllium a joy.

However, for maine that conscionable wasn’t the case. Unlike erstwhile models, this is not a footwear I can, oregon will, urge to immoderate of my friends oregon acquaintances.

I truly anticipation that successful the adjacent iteration, New Balance goes backmost and fixes immoderate of the changes for the v5s. I’ll beryllium funny to spot wherever they spell from here.