Nike Men's Air Zoom Structure 22 Running Shoes

Product Information

I remember watching a Galen Rupp interview years ago in which he said that he has always been a “Structure guy” and does all his training in the Structure. The highly flexible forefoot results in less snappy, more relaxed ride transitions. The Structure 23 flexes behind the airbag, towards the middle of the sole. Is your closet getting a little crowded with all those specialty shoes you’ve been collecting? It’s true, right? The Structure 23 is no longer a traditional stability shoe with a firm ride and a harder medial post. The Nike Zoom Structure are one of two stability options Nike offers. The other is the Odyssey. While the Odyssey is build for performance stability, the Zoom Structure are build to be a daily trainer.

Imagine if ASICS removed the firm medial post from the Kayano and gave it a single-density midsole. That’s exactly what they did with the Kayano Lite but at least they still kept the regular Kayano for runners who still want traditional stability. I assumed that the shoe would soften and return more energy as it broke in. However, this was not something I noticed, and instead the double digit runs I did in these left my feet and legs feeling more tired.I used my Structure 24 for mainly easy, middle distance runs which is what it feels most comfortable doing although it is capable of slightly faster efforts. The best thing about the Structure 24 is that it doesn’t feel like a firm, stiff stability trainer that pokes your arch. It’s a comfortable, stable and versatile trainer which can handle most runs. This is no more of a stability shoe than the Pegasus, or the Vomero is. The only thing that it shares in common with previous Structures is the name.

Remember when Nike led us to believe that the Structure was being discontinued because they compared the React Infinity Run to it and said that the React Infinity Run caused runners fewer injuries than the Structure 22?This was such a pleasant surprise for me. Nike uses a dual-density midsole with Phylon and Cushlon materials to create what they call Dynamic Support. The Nike Structure has never been a soft shoe. It was the firm midsole that gave it its highly stable ride. The problem, however, is that looks alone do not make a shoe. The sole unit was too firm, unresponsive and it took a couple of miles on every run to feel comfortable running in them.

The Zoom Structures has many competitors in terms of price, ride and stability. I found the cushioning and stability similar to that of a Saucony Guide rather than an Omni, or a Brooks Ravenna more than an Adrenaline. They still give that support, but the comfort quotient just gets better and better. The performance of these shoes and the fact that Nike develops all their foams in the house has me believing in Nike again. Upper - no one does it better than Nike The word that describes the ride of the Structure 24 best is “balanced”. It feels well-cushioned without being mushy or firm and it falls into the same category as shoes like the ASICS Cumulus, Brooks Ghost and Hoka Clifton– versatile trainers that can fill the role of 2 or 3 shoes in your rotation.The densities of the lateral and the medial sides are the same but the wall of the medial side is just much higher. Inward rolling of the foot is controlled by making the medial side more cushioned than the lateral side. On the medial side, the midsole is built up more than on the lateral side so there is a noticeable level of under-arch support without the firm poking sensational. When you have a classic like the Structure which has been around for 22 versions, it would be silly to just kill off the name and forget it ever existed. When I tested the Structure 23 last year, I was astonished how different it was to previous Structures which were firm and stiff. The 23 felt much more cushioned and much more flexible; I liked the new direction that the Structure had gone in. It was a Nike classic, reimagined. The Dynamic support of the sole unit which i felt more closer to the heel felt unbalanced. This was mostly due to the height of the heel.

The easiest way to tell the difference between the Structure 23 and 24 is the engineered mesh used. It no longer has small perforations on the midfoot and on top of the toe box. Instead, the mesh is smooth so it feels more streamlined. The structure uses a multi-thread that gives grip but still lets you rip. The treads don’t have aggressive lugs that get in the way of the road. During gait analysis you will be asked to walk and run on our in-store treadmill whilst your movements are recorded using the latest Daftfish software. A slow-motion, detailed analysis will show and explain your biomechanics, specifically looking at pronation, the inward-turning movement that occurs when your foot touches the ground. During walking and running this acts as cushioning for the body. When I say breathable, I run in sunny Las Vegas, and I’m telling you, the uppers ventilate nicely on those sweaty runs. Soles that politely grip the road

Nike Air Zoom Structure 23 Intro

Partial bootie wraps the foot for a snug, comfortable fit. Notches at the tongue provide easy on and off. Another change they made to the upper the location of the laces. They moved them up farther up the shoe. The was done in hopes to allow the forefoot to spread out in a natural way while you run. After my first run in the Structure 23, I understood why Nike refrained from categorising the shoe as a stability shoe. I found the level of cushioning to be higher than most daily trainers and even softer than a lot of max-cushioned shoes. It was for sure softer than the Glycerin 18 and the Bondi 7.