4% - Your Experiences

Ran my standard 60 min uptempo run in them to test them out. Ran anywhere between 5s-15s per mile faster and the route has never felt easier. They made my back and glutes a tad sore.

I'd compare running in them to skiing in skis with camber. They are a huge leap forward in shoe technology. The spring from the plate feels unreal. I am a mid foot striker and could feel a ton of energy at toe off. One the one hand they may be cheating, on the other hand, isn't that what the mizuno wave is supposed to be? If anything the mizuno wave plates are a marketing gimmick, the 4% is the real deal, and makes me feel questionable when wearing it.

Dril wrote:

Ran my standard 60 min uptempo run in them to test them out. Ran anywhere between 5s-15s per mile faster and the route has never felt easier. They made my back and glutes a tad sore.

I'd compare running in them to skiing in skis with camber. They are a huge leap forward in shoe technology. The spring from the plate feels unreal. I am a mid foot striker and could feel a ton of energy at toe off. One the one hand they may be cheating, on the other hand, isn't that what the mizuno wave is supposed to be? If anything the mizuno wave plates are a marketing gimmick, the 4% is the real deal, and makes me feel questionable when wearing it.

That's an interesting take. Although I doubt I'll ever actually source a pair to test!

I did one run on a treadmill with them, 20 minute tempo. I am a forefoot striker that is used to 4mm drop shoes and feeling was a little strange. Not sure if it's due to the drop difference or just the roll on the shoe, but it was certainly a different experience than my normal flats/trainers.

That said, I ran my tempo faster than I expected and quite easily. Could be placebo effect, but even without the plate they would be a fast shoe considering the weight/profile. Nice to have something that light with a little cushion too, they may have me feeling more comfortable at the end of my next full which is a nice takeaway.

I have worn them 3 times.

The first was just to try them out on a short 5 mile run easy pace. They felt weird running slow so I did some strides at the end and that's when they felt like normal running shoes to me.

Then I ran in a 5k. Got a PR by 15 seconds.

Then I ran in a 10k. Got a PR by 45 seconds.

These things are the real deal. Can't wait to run a marathon in them.

I run most of my miles in the Zoom Fly SP (not 4%) and have never run faster, no matter what the workout. I am also a forefoot striker and found the geometry to be weird at first, but you get used to it. I run faster in these 8oz shoes than any of the real lightweight racing shoes. I also have grown to like the significant cushioning as it really helps absorb some of the beating your legs take, especially on downhills.

After 200+ hard miles in the SP in all weather, they show no signs of significant issues. Upper has held together great with no tears or holes. I think they are worth $150, and that's the first time I've said that about a shoe.

DC Wonk wrote:

I run most of my miles in the Zoom Fly SP (not 4%) and have never run faster, no matter what the workout. I am also a forefoot striker and found the geometry to be weird at first, but you get used to it. I run faster in these 8oz shoes than any of the real lightweight racing shoes. I also have grown to like the significant cushioning as it really helps absorb some of the beating your legs take, especially on downhills.

After 200+ hard miles in the SP in all weather, they show no signs of significant issues. Upper has held together great with no tears or holes. I think they are worth $150, and that's the first time I've said that about a shoe.

Very interesting. Have you, or anyone else out there, compared the Zoom Fly with the 4%? Seems like there is a chance they are quite close.

I am currently doing all trianing in the Zoom Fly and have the 4%'s in my closet until a 5k and Half come around in March. Not going to wear them for any run before the 5k race, but I have tried them on and they feel better than the Zoom Fly's (which I really like) just walking around my apartment. Can't wait to see what they feel like when I get moving, but I do want them to last for my June marathon so I'm not going to do any training runs on them before the 5k.

One thing I will say is the VF4's run smaller than the Zoom Fly's for some reason. I'm a 12 in the ZF and an 11.5 in the VF4.

My personal experience has been they are more like a 5%. They actually made me so fast that I did my regular 50 minute steady state in 47:30. Where did the 2:30 go? It's happened to me before though, in regular shoes. Sometimes I go so fast that I do my 2 minute fartleks in 1:50, yeah sooooo......

Well, I PR'd in Berlin by almost 15 minutes wearingthem. Ran a hilly half and PR'd by two minutes. My thoughts:

-Legs felt great after races. Cushioning is definitely nice

-I attribute training more than the shoes for the PRs

-For shorter races, I prefer racing flats since I do feel like I run in mud when wearing these. It's a weird feeling for me

-It's a weird/great shoe all in one. I can't pinpoint and confirm that it helps a lot, but can't rule it out either

Still don't think it's worth $250.

Had Achillies issues for about three months. Literally limping after every run in August, September. I bought my first pair of Zoom Flys the first week of October. After the very first run in the Zoom Flys I had absolutely Zero Achillies pain !!! I bought the Zoom Fly SP about a week later for rotation purposes. Bought another pair of Zoom Flys early December and broke down and purchased the Vaporfly 4% shortly afterwards. So since October 3rd I've run strictly in Zoom Flys and Vaporflys for a few progression runs and one 17 mile long run. I got a free entry into a local marathon and considered just running it as a training run leading up to Boston 2018. Well, needless to say I ran the marathon and PRed by 4 minutes and 24 seconds. All I have done since October 3rd is progression runs and a weekly long run. I went into this marathon averaging 32.5 miles per week and now have a 2:47:00 PR. Completely sold on these and so looking forward to Boston 2018!!!! Worth every penny IMO....

Zoom Fly wrote:

One thing I will say is the VF4's run smaller than the Zoom Fly's for some reason. I'm a 12 in the ZF and an 11.5 in the VF4.

Isn't that called "running big"? Anyway, I had the same experience.

For what it's worth, I think both the VF and the ZF feel, subjectively, like very slow shoes. I've heard people say they feel like they're flying in them, but I feel like I'm just sinking into them. On the other hand, they don't seem to have any negative impact on my pace. If they make me faster, it's not something I've been able to tell just doing workouts and sub-max runs. I'll see how the VFs do in an actual race.

Also note that the cushioning is different in 4% compared to the standard ZF/SP. The ZF/SP is lunarlon with the plate in there, while the 4% is the only one with the new material. However, if you prefer more firmness, the ZF/SP is more firm. I prefer it, but I'm not a marathoner and usually don't race any farther than 10 miles.

I'm surprised with how well the outer sole has lasted on the SP. I generally crush forefoot area and wear that down fast, but mine haven't worn off yet. I'm sure I'll be done with the shoe before the outer wears down.

The only thing on the SP I replace are the laces. The stock laces are slippery and don't stay tightened well IMO. Easy fix.

I'm clearly in the minority, but I've been having pretty noticeable Achilles, calf, and ankle tightness and/or soreness after wearing the 4%'s, as described in Fellrnr's review http://fellrnr.com/wiki/Nike_Vaporfly_4%25

I ran in my SP Chicago last night for a 5 mile progression. 6:33, 6:23, 6:10, 5:59, 5:50. That was after a 15 mile long run @ 7:07 pace Sunday morning. The long run was in my Zoom Fly Baby Blue colorway. In the Vaporfly 4% that same 5 mile progression run would be 15-20 seconds faster per mile.

Which marathon?

I have the Zoom Fly and 4%. I found the zoom flys pretty meh. They both have decent cushioning given the weight although the 4% is far lighter (8.75 vs 6.5 in size 10). The Zoom fly is way too heavy for me to consider racing in. The Zoom Fly reminds me more of a Lunar shoe than the 4%. The Zoom Fly has the squishy lunar foam in it, which I also wouldn't race in as its too soft for my tastes. Both shoes lack flex, but without the full carbon fiber plate the Zoom Fly doesn't have nearly the same pop.

How many of these posts are by Nike shills?

I went from 2:25 to 2:19 in the marathon in them...

Obviously I was training well, but it was a huge jump for me (after running 10 or so marathons at 2:25 to 2:27 range).

These shoes really messed up my Achilles. Ended up having to take three weeks off from just one run in them. I cannot even imagine racing a marathon with the experience of how sore my Achilles was after 30 minutes.