Sunday, June 30, 2013

Shoe Review: The Mizuno Wave Sayonara

The following post is sponsored by FitFluential LLC on behalf of Mizuno.



You will have to wait one day after the fourth of July, but on July 5th you can declare your "Independence" from your heavy every day training shoe and pick up a pair of the Mizuno Wave Sayonara!

   Light and fast, the Men's Sayonara I tested weighs 8.1 ounces with a 10mm drop. (Heel/Toe 19/9) What I really like about them was the way my foot "sat" in them. There was the perfect amount of support without the bulky feel. There was also plenty of cushioning without the added weight as well. The Mizuno G3 Blown rubber sole is flexible and provides great traction as well.
Soles with Soul! (and Traction too!)
 The first run I did in the Wave Sayonara was a 3 mile road training run with my group from the gym. The Sayonara felt great right out of the box and my feet felt well supported and were not moving around inside the shoe at all. The sizing on these shoes are true, so I would not recommend going up a half size. I wear a size 11 and the the Sayonara I got in that size fit perfectly.
  The next day was speed work and the Wave Sayonara really shined here. We ran a Fartlek along the local Greenway with 2mins @ 7:15 pace with 2 mins recovery X 8. Even with the hammer down, my feet felt well supported and cushioned and best of all, I felt fast!
  I ran several more runs at distances of 3-5 miles at 3/4 effort and the Sayonara gave me a smooth, comfortable ride each time.
  The final test was the long run. I was interested in seeing if there were any "hot spots" that would develop on my feet over the course of a two hour run. I took the Sayonara out for a 12 miler in the North Carolina heat and humidity to see how they would hold up.
   I sweat. A lot. On a long run in the summer months I sweat enough to soak my socks and shoes clear through! This summer has gotten off to a hot start here in NC and the humidity has been awful. I was happy to find after 12 tough road miles in 80+ degrees and 90% humidity that my feet felt fine. My socks and the shoes were quite moist, but my feet were blister free and there were no hot spots. The upper mesh remained comfortable with no pinching or rubbing, and the tongue held it's ground the entire run. There were a couple of nice hill climbs on this run too, and the Sayonara's flex, support and traction on the front end of the shoe during the climb really stood out.    
Drying out and cooling off after the long run!
   This was my first experience running in Mizuno and I must say I was quite impressed! The Wave Sayonara is a great all around every day trainer that I would recommend to anyone. My Mezamashii experience was definitely eye opening!

Learn More about Mizuno Shoes and the Mezamashii Experience at http://www.mizunousa.com/running


1 comment:

  1. Great Shoe ! I have been running on them for about 3 week. I also attempted some short runs first. I ran a 5K race in then then a 10K race and they felt fast and secure. I am coming off the Mizuno Elixer's which I love but always felt the heal was to hard. This Show takes care of that. A lower heal and softer feel. The toe box is wide, so your foot can flatten out for a solid push and there is great cushioning in this shoe. I ran a Marathon in them last week and they performed very well. My feet stood solid in the shoe and enabled me to stay light on my feet and press through the last miles at full pace providing me with a PR ! I highly recommend this shoe!

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