, fast, biomechanically efficient runner, they could be used day in, day out. What you get is a low-profile, responsive shoe with mild to moderate cushioning and a small medial post. The post helps with stability, as does a mildly curved last

Weight 402gEvaluation ECS – the Ecto Cantilever System – is Avia’s take on the ‘mechanical midsole’ – Nike’s Shox and Adidas A3 were the first shoes to utilise this concept, but while Nike and Adidas use the pillars to provide cushioning, Avia uses

Weight 401gEvaluation The Twin Strike is the third shoe from Adidas to use its A3 technology, but it’s the first to use the podular cushioning system in both the rearfoot and forefoot. Designed to stabilise and guide the foot from heel-strike to toe

draws into the lacing system to cinch the rearfoot more snugly. The midsole has the appeal of being firm yet cushioned and protective, which increasingly characterises Mizuno shoes, and some weartesters have even been using it in brisk training

Weight 334gEvaluation Avia returned to the UK marketplace 18 months ago with shoes priced so well that you wondered what the catch was. There wasn’t one – though now the shoes have moved to more realistic price levels. That means that while you used

Weight 225gEvaluation It’s good to see Adidas’s carbon-fibre Pro Plate in a really light shoe – after all, it’s designed to increase propulsive power. Testing of the last shoe – the 300g-plus Gazelle Pro Plate – found that the stiff, springy plate

Weight 315gEvaluation The GRID Praxis joins Saucony’s range to provide comfort, support and performance alongside the GRID Nitrous. It’s a shoe that should appeal to neutral to mild overpronators looking for cushioning and some stabilty allied to a

Weight 403gEvaluation The Pro 5 is the sort of shoe that Etonic was previously best known for: mega-stable, ultra-supportive and well-cushioned.It's a traditional motion control shoe with a virtually straight last, a big medial post and supportive

) and will be used in more of Brooks top-selling models next year. Best Looking Shoe Award: Adidas Response Cushion 17 Following one too many comments about less-than-fashionable running shoes, we decided to have a bit of fun with this new category

this function by using column-like pods in the heel to act as individual shock absorbers. Since 80 per cent of runners land on their heels first, decoupled heels have become a popular way to enhance a shoe's cushioning.   FootbridgeA reinforced platform under