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Are you on the hunt for a great cushioned running shoe that doesn’t feel overly soft or unstable? The Asics Novablast 5 is once again a change from its predecessor model which we really enjoyed, but again we think these changes are just making what was good even better.
While this is another massive stack height shoe, it just doesn’t feel unstable to me. It felt like a comfortable ride that I could repeat over and over. And in fact, in the few weeks that I’ve had the shoe it’s already made it through a couple 8 miles runs, a couple 5 miles runs from the roads to the treadmill.
In general, I’d say save these max stacks for the road over the treadmill, but obviously it was a ride I enjoyed enough to test i there anyways.
As always, we’ll give you the pro’s, the con’s and our honest assessment of this shoe. There’s no one running shoe that is going to work best for every single runner! So hopefully the goal of our reviews it just to help you decide if this is the one that you should try.
Who Is It Good For?
Who is Asics Novablast 5 a good fit for? Let’s break it down with some common categories:
- Wide Feet: It’s not a wide shoe, but accommodating for wider feet
- Heavier Runners: Fantastic option for fit, cushion and feeling stable with the stack height
- Long Runs: 100% this is designed to carry you over the miles with good cushion, support and energy return
- Front of the Pack: Only as an easy run shoe, this is not a tempo or speed shoe.
This will easily be a shoe we recommend for a lot of runners in our best cushioned running shoes.
Asics Novablast 5 Overview
Asics had a major hit with the Novablast 3 and while the Novablast 4 was still great, they absolutely brought back some of those key features that are going to make the Asics Novablast 5 a beloved shoe.
I’m already dreading when they might update it again!
The Asics Novablast 5 is a max cushioned daily trainer that doesn’t cause you to sink in and still results in energy return. It will easily be the shoe you reach for on long run days.
The biggest update this year is swapping out the midsole with a full length FF Blast Max from the previous FF Blast+ ECO. This is the first time they’ve done a full midsole underfoot. I know that’s a lot of jargon, but the innovations in foam are why shoes seem to be changing so much right now. In this case, the newer foam helps give you back some of that snap from the V3.
In fact, Asics states that the Blast Max increases “bounce properties by 8.5%. Which is to say that instead of feeling like you’re getting sucked in to the cushion, the shoe feels like it springs back with each step (i.e. the foam bounces back to it’s shape). 
Adding foam, they also took away some of the midsole by narrowing the outer of the shoe.
Those flares you see along the sides and heel are often designed to help these high stack shoes feel more stable. But with the foam not sinking down as much, they were able to trim down the shoe without losing stability.
That being said, these are definitely not a stability shoe, even with the heel counter, and if you struggle with pronation, I’d point you to something like the Kayano.
The other update to this model is a change to the upper. We heard this discussion across a lot of brands at The Running Event this year, they went from mesh to a Jacquard upper.
What does that mean for you? It’s a little bit lighter so they can keep adding that cushion without adding weight and it’s a little bit more breathable as well.
The final change is an update to the rubber on the outsole. Is it anything exciting…not really. Is it better for grip than the previous version, meh. Really unless we’re talking about trail shoes, most daily trainers are providing roughly the same grip on wet roads.
What didn’t change? They kept the stack height and that great $140 price tag.
We hate to gush about a shoe, but so far it’s really checking a lot of boxes for the middle of the pack runners. The one downside might simply the roomier fit of this shoe, which we’ll note in fit below.
Novablast 5 Specifications
- Heel toe drop: 8mm
- Weight: 7.9 oz women’s, 9.1 oz men’s
- Stack Height: 41.5mm
- Usage: Daily trainer (not a speed shoe)
- Not available in wide
- Available in eight colors
- Available at Asics.com and Zappos $140 (my favorite for easy returns)
The Novablast is going to feel more energy return than the more cushioned Nimbus and yet not as speedy as the Superblast. The Superblast could really take you from training through race day for mid-pack runners.
This visual of the Novablast 4 vs Novablast 5, gives you an idea of the changes to the flare of the shoe and the midsole. (Man I personally love the beige colors, but boy can you see how loved they’ve been, yikes.)
They shaved just a smidge off of the heel bevel and that will likely benefit heel strikers with a more comfortable ride.
Novablast 5 Fit
In general, Asics running shoes are a pretty standard width, this one has a slightly bigger fit through the midfoot. Not loose like the Cloudmonster 2 which we hated, but just room. That’s going to be great if you have a wider foot or even a high arch that needs more space. I still had no issue lacing and feeling locked in to the shoe.
I wore my normal running shoe size in these and they fit as expected in length.
The tongue is thin, but not sharp, which was an issue other brands had in trying to cut weight. It still has a little padding to it and doesn’t ride too high on the ankle.
The tongue is also connected about mid-way to create that sock like fit where it doesn’t slide all over your foot, but also isn’t restrictive around the ankle (aka a gusseted winged tongue if you want to be technical). The Novablast 5 did use a tag with the name to go through the laces, which helps even more with keeping it in place.
It’s breathable as you’d expect from pretty much all of our running shoes at this point.
Interestingly, I haven’t loved the stack height in some shoes, but didn’t notice it at all here. I think this due to that wider base I mentioned creating such a stable feeling. The outsole has been updated with newer rubber as well, but to be honest I never noticed an issue previously so this wasn’t a big focus of my testing.
On 90% of my running shoes, I use a heel lock lacing and these have enough laces to make that easily doable.
Similar Shoes to Asics Novablast 5
What’s currently out there to rival this massive cushioned shoe? We’ve tested a few that feel similar, but different based on the brand fit:
Asics Novablast 5 vs Asics Gel Nimbus 27
One of the issues I have with many brands right now is their shoes are getting so similar, that it’s hard to know if there’s really a difference that’s going to matter to you. In this case, I’d say there is a feel difference that’s noting.
The Nimbus 27 is coming in January, so just shortly after the launch of the Novablast. So let’s compare to the newest version!
Key Differences:
- Nimbus is a heavier shoe by 1-2 oz
- Nimubs is higher stack height at 42.5 to the Novablast 41.5
- Same heel to toe drop
- Nimbus is considered their plushiest shoe using the previous Novablast 3 cushion with even more stack
- More cushion to the Nimbus tongue, but less around the heel collar
- Novablast has a bit more rocker effect
- Different rubber on the outsole, the Novablast feels a little stickier
Who Will Like the Asics Novablast 5?
If you like a cushioned daily trainer this is going to be a winner. I used the 4 plenty and the 5 will now happily replace it and I think feel even better on the legs for long runs.
You know what I’m talking about. When you slip on a shoe and just think “ahhh nice” because of the cushion.
The 8mm heel drop is also within my preferred range. I have found over the years that a lot of runners seem to have less IT Band and other issues when they are in shoes from 4mm to 8mm. Could I tell you why, not really. Just one of those things that has held pretty true.
- Training for anything from 5K to marathon
- Good long run shoe due to both cushion and weight
- Enough stability to also keep you feeling good on long runs without actually correcting your footstrike
- Not ideal if you want a snappier speed shoe
- Not a good choice if you prefer lower stack height or like a firmer shoe like the Nike Pegasus
Carbon Neutral Running Shoes
When there’s a chance to call out any sustainability efforts being made by a brand we love to do so. This is important to all of us runners who want to keep spending miles outside in great fresh air!
Asics has stated, “We’re committed to reducing our CO₂ emissions throughout the value chain, so we’re being transparent about how we measure and continuously work to reduce our emissions.”
One way you’ll see is this is on the note inside the shoe which is measuring it’s footprint. The Novablast Carbon Footprint is 17% lower than the industry average.
This is done with a combination of the upper being made from recycled materials and a dying process that reduces water emissions by 33%.
Both of these are pretty on par with what we’re seeing other brands like Brooks begin to lean in to and we love it.
All right there you have it! My review of the Asics Novablast 5!
At the $140 price point, it really is a shoe that’s going to hit the mark for so many runners.
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