Never used a pair before so I was curious who has used them and how did they work for you. Anything good or bad please. Thanks.
I wear the Gaviota series due to it being a stability shoe. Of all the ones I’ve tried on these seemed to feel the best. I think I went through 2 Gaviota 2’s, 3 gaviota 3’s and am on my first pair of Gaviota 4’s.
They seem to have an obnoxiously wide looking sole which was tough for me to get used to aesthetically but overall I love them.
I’m by no means competitive in Tri - just an old man waging a battle with my dad bod. 😠So I’m sure there are more competitive folks that would have a better opinion.
Never used a pair before so I was curious who has used them and how did they work for you. Anything good or bad please. Thanks.
Too broad of a question. Tell us what you’ve been using, what you liked and disliked about your shoes and then we can give you some recommendations.
Your question is equivalent to should I paint my barn a color?
Hokas let me keep running… they were/are a game changer for me.
I learned about them from slowman’s articles right here,
https://www.slowtwitch.com/Products/Running_Footwear_by_brand/Hoka_One_One/What_Hoka_Means_jj3376.html
start by reading through the knowledgebase articles,
<:: Welcome to Slowtwitch.com ::>: Search Results
then as DD says, tell us about your current shoes, injuries, history, and run goals 
I just switched from Skechers Razor to Hoka Rincon 3 and I love them. They’re light, very well cushioned, and responsive. They’re light years better than my Skechers. Apparently they are a very good marathon shoe. The one thing I notice is that the midfoot is narrow. Lots of room in the toe box and heel. I have narrow feet so it’s no problem. The tongue is short also for the last lace loop. I do a runners knot and don’t use the top loop. It provides a lock down feel. As a result I double knot the long laces. Overall this shoe is my favorite running shoe ever.
Never used a pair before so I was curious who has used them and how did they work for you. Anything good or bad please. Thanks.
what desertdude said. we need to know more about you. what you ran in before, what your imperatives are. there are hokas i can’t run in at all. but i run every single run in hokas and have for 12 years.
I’m with you Slowman, not sure how many pairs I have owned. I have run in them since they hit the market. Train in Bondi’s and race in Carbon X.
I’m with you Slowman, not sure how many pairs I have owned. I have run in them since they hit the market. Train in Bondi’s and race in Carbon X.
exactly. my same 2 shoes for the same 2 uses. with the one difference, that for training i’ve moved to the bondi x.
The first recommendation would be to try both stability and regular models in store and see how they feel.
Like a few other posters, I’ve run a lot of miles in them and think certain models are great for certain types of runs.
I will recommend that you are aware of how you strike the ground. Some runners will slip into a heel strike because there’s so much foam it doesn’t feel bad at the time. The problem comes later when you accumulate all that vibration up your legs into your knees, hips, and lower back.
Never used a pair before so I was curious who has used them and how did they work for you. Anything good or bad please. Thanks.
I switched over to Hoka about 3yrs ago (from Nike) - the first shoe was a Bondi to help with some Achilles issues and then proceeded to get other models.
I love the fact the sizing has been for me, perfect across the board and I can just order a pair in any model knowing it will fit.
I find I can run further in them, than others before my feet start yelling, and my current favourite for the treadmill is the RocketX and Mach5 for general running. I love the wide midsole, and the generous toe box.
I feel they have fell behind other brands in terms of foam technologies recently, with my racing shoe currently the Asics Metaspeed Sky (but feel the RocketX has a much nicer upper and fit) There is RocketX2 out soon which supposedly has a newer foam, similar to the Puma / Adidas supershoes (not Pebax like Nike)
The Rincon, and Mach5 are a really nice entry into the Hoka world. My only issue with Hoka - and this is probably due to the continued use of EVA foam, is that the shoes go ‘dead’ very quickly for me, my last Rincon I got only 200km out of them, before they felt like bricks (and I’m only 70kg too)
Never used a pair before so I was curious who has used them and how did they work for you. Anything good or bad please. Thanks.
I switched over to Hoka about 3yrs ago (from Nike) - the first shoe was a Bondi to help with some Achilles issues and then proceeded to get other models.
I love the fact the sizing has been for me, perfect across the board and I can just order a pair in any model knowing it will fit.
My experience is slightly different. Most of my running is on dirt and gravel trails, with some lengths of asphalt in between. Prompted by a series of calf and hamstring problems, I ordered a pair of Hoka Challengers about three years ago and instantly loved them. Since then I exclusively run in Hokas (and compression socks) and haven’t had any issues since. Like you, I found that sizing is very accurate, at least across different versions of the Challenger, but my feet are a bit on the wider side, and a pair of Cliftons I ordered for more asphalt-heavy training runs was decidedly too narrow.
But all in all, Hokas were a revelation for me as well. (was also impressed with their customer service when the upper of my first pair of Challengers failed).
Hokas were a revelation for me. I run in Bondi. Use the leather gaviota for work. And have the speedgoat for trails. My only complaint was the uppers split at the ball of my foot quickly. I don’t wear wide shoes for anything else, but now I get wide for Hokas, and that seems to help so far.
I ran on Asics GT-2000 shoes for decades. I was using Superfeet inserts and only got around 350 miles on them before I got knee pain.
On a whim, I bought a pair of Hoka Bondi shoes last fall to experiment. I got almost 500 miles on them and never had knee pain. I only junked them because the outsoles were pretty much gone. And I do not think I need the inserts either. I am experimenting with that now.
I really like them. They are tall and thick, but like running and walking on clouds.
Agree with you on the “dead” feeling, but not sure if it’s just certain models. I had a pair of the original Mach and those have over 1000 miles (now treadmill only) and still feel decent. But since then I’ve had Rincons, Rincon2, and Arahi4 all of which I stopped running in after about 200 miles because they just felt off. I’m normally not that sensitive and rarely retire shoes because of “feel”.
I’ve since swapped to Skechers for daily use because they’re always on clearance and have the Razor Excess and Speed 6. The foam in those is much nicer. Not as stable as Hokas though.
I might try Hokas again but it would be hard to go back after running in all the new shoes with the better foam like Nike, Saucony, and even Skechers.
Never used a pair before so I was curious who has used them and how did they work for you. Anything good or bad please. Thanks.
I switched over to Hoka about 3yrs ago (from Nike) - the first shoe was a Bondi to help with some Achilles issues and then proceeded to get other models.
I love the fact the sizing has been for me, perfect across the board and I can just order a pair in any model knowing it will fit.
I find I can run further in them, than others before my feet start yelling, and my current favourite for the treadmill is the RocketX and Mach5 for general running. I love the wide midsole, and the generous toe box.
I feel they have fell behind other brands in terms of foam technologies recently, with my racing shoe currently the Asics Metaspeed Sky (but feel the RocketX has a much nicer upper and fit) There is RocketX2 out soon which supposedly has a newer foam, similar to the Puma / Adidas supershoes (not Pebax like Nike)
The Rincon, and Mach5 are a really nice entry into the Hoka world. My only issue with Hoka - and this is probably due to the continued use of EVA foam, is that the shoes go ‘dead’ very quickly for me, my last Rincon I got only 200km out of them, before they felt like bricks (and I’m only 70kg too)
I ran on Asics GT-2000 shoes for decades. I was using Superfeet inserts and only got around 350 miles on them before I got knee pain.
On a whim, I bought a pair of Hoka Bondi shoes last fall to experiment. I got almost 500 miles on them and never had knee pain. I only junked them because the outsoles were pretty much gone. And I do not think I need the inserts either. I am experimenting with that now.
I really like them. They are tall and thick, but like running and walking on clouds.
I ran for 2 years in Bondi 6s. Were great for my arthritis at the time.
I do have several caveats though, so much so that I no longer use them:
- SUPER slow due to weight and inefficiency. This can affect your interval work as well and slightly decrease your leg turnover in training.
- Much harder to transition to lightweight race shoes like Endorphin pro or Alphafly. I got a severe calf strain from doing this last season, even though I was putting in the miles before race day.
- I actually suspect my legs get better muscular endurance training from firmer shoes (currently I’m running in Brooks). Again, it’s a balance for older folks like me to find which shoes I can run in without causing worsening arthritis that requires actual time off, vs shoes that are so soft that I become too fragile for my super hard effort on race day.
I will, however go back to Bondis and the Nike Invincible (even more cushy than the Bondi, believe it or not) if coming back from injury or bone bruising from aggravated arthritis. More of an injury recovery shoe for me.
Agree with you on the “dead” feeling, but not sure if it’s just certain models. I had a pair of the original Mach and those have over 1000 miles (now treadmill only) and still feel decent. But since then I’ve had Rincons, Rincon2, and Arahi4 all of which I stopped running in after about 200 miles because they just felt off. I’m normally not that sensitive and rarely retire shoes because of “feel”.
I’ve since swapped to Skechers for daily use because they’re always on clearance and have the Razor Excess and Speed 6. The foam in those is much nicer. Not as stable as Hokas though.
I might try Hokas again but it would be hard to go back after running in all the new shoes with the better foam like Nike, Saucony, and even Skechers.
Never used a pair before so I was curious who has used them and how did they work for you. Anything good or bad please. Thanks.
I switched over to Hoka about 3yrs ago (from Nike) - the first shoe was a Bondi to help with some Achilles issues and then proceeded to get other models.
I love the fact the sizing has been for me, perfect across the board and I can just order a pair in any model knowing it will fit.
I find I can run further in them, than others before my feet start yelling, and my current favourite for the treadmill is the RocketX and Mach5 for general running. I love the wide midsole, and the generous toe box.
I feel they have fell behind other brands in terms of foam technologies recently, with my racing shoe currently the Asics Metaspeed Sky (but feel the RocketX has a much nicer upper and fit) There is RocketX2 out soon which supposedly has a newer foam, similar to the Puma / Adidas supershoes (not Pebax like Nike)
The Rincon, and Mach5 are a really nice entry into the Hoka world. My only issue with Hoka - and this is probably due to the continued use of EVA foam, is that the shoes go ‘dead’ very quickly for me, my last Rincon I got only 200km out of them, before they felt like bricks (and I’m only 70kg too)
This goes to show one’s experience is very much different from one person to the next. I went to Hoka Rincon from Skechers Razor and found the Rincon much more cushioned and responsive than the Razor. The Razor is a good shoe, but so far I’ve loved my Rincons. I’ve only got 67 miles on mine, so hopefully they last much longer than 200 miles. Most reviews are saying the Rincon 3 is lasting around 400 miles now.
- SUPER slow due to weight and inefficiency. This can affect your interval work as well and slightly decrease your leg turnover in training.These are great points and have been in the back of my mind. I race Olympics and shorter in light shoes. I still race HIM and all road races in my training shoes (Bondi 7 now). I have had the Bondi X in the back of my mind for racing, but just have not experimented yet. Now I am more curious how the X compares to the regular for weight and efficiency.
I found the Rincon2 to be responsive when new and decently cushioned, light as well. But to me, the Razor Excess feels “bouncier”, the foam is very noticeable. I do find the Rincon2 more cushioned than the Skechers Speed6. My main compliant is that the cushioning dropped significantly with use. Especially relative to other shoes and even older Hokas.
I like the stability of Hokas a lot though so if they changed the foam, I would definitely try again.
Agree with you on the “dead” feeling, but not sure if it’s just certain models. I had a pair of the original Mach and those have over 1000 miles (now treadmill only) and still feel decent. But since then I’ve had Rincons, Rincon2, and Arahi4 all of which I stopped running in after about 200 miles because they just felt off. I’m normally not that sensitive and rarely retire shoes because of “feel”.
I’ve since swapped to Skechers for daily use because they’re always on clearance and have the Razor Excess and Speed 6. The foam in those is much nicer. Not as stable as Hokas though.
I might try Hokas again but it would be hard to go back after running in all the new shoes with the better foam like Nike, Saucony, and even Skechers.
Never used a pair before so I was curious who has used them and how did they work for you. Anything good or bad please. Thanks.
I switched over to Hoka about 3yrs ago (from Nike) - the first shoe was a Bondi to help with some Achilles issues and then proceeded to get other models.
I love the fact the sizing has been for me, perfect across the board and I can just order a pair in any model knowing it will fit.
I find I can run further in them, than others before my feet start yelling, and my current favourite for the treadmill is the RocketX and Mach5 for general running. I love the wide midsole, and the generous toe box.
I feel they have fell behind other brands in terms of foam technologies recently, with my racing shoe currently the Asics Metaspeed Sky (but feel the RocketX has a much nicer upper and fit) There is RocketX2 out soon which supposedly has a newer foam, similar to the Puma / Adidas supershoes (not Pebax like Nike)
The Rincon, and Mach5 are a really nice entry into the Hoka world. My only issue with Hoka - and this is probably due to the continued use of EVA foam, is that the shoes go ‘dead’ very quickly for me, my last Rincon I got only 200km out of them, before they felt like bricks (and I’m only 70kg too)
This goes to show one’s experience is very much different from one person to the next. I went to Hoka Rincon from Skechers Razor and found the Rincon much more cushioned and responsive than the Razor. The Razor is a good shoe, but so far I’ve loved my Rincons. I’ve only got 67 miles on mine, so hopefully they last much longer than 200 miles. Most reviews are saying the Rincon 3 is lasting around 400 miles now.
My $0.02- great for training, not good for (road) racing.
I really enjoy the Mach 4s for faster runs and Cliftons for daily trainers. The Rincons are nice fast options too, but don’t last long. Tried on the Bondis once in a running store and said hell no immediately, felt like a boat on my feet. Their road race offerings are terrible though compared to other carbon plated racers, though admittedly I prefer a high stack, soft, springy shoe for races.
Trail offerings are much more solid across the board. Speedgoat 5s and the old Speedgoat EVOs are super nice long runs trail shoes that can handle most terrains and long runs, except for really rocky or muddy (high stack heights feel unstable). The Tectons are badass trail racing shoes for shorter races. Though Hoka doesn’t have any offerings to handle Muddy or sloppy terrain like the Salomon Speedcross or the the Saucony Peregrines.
- SUPER slow due to weight and inefficiency. This can affect your interval work as well and slightly decrease your leg turnover in training.These are great points and have been in the back of my mind. I race Olympics and shorter in light shoes. I still race HIM and all road races in my training shoes (Bondi 7 now). I have had the Bondi X in the back of my mind for racing, but just have not experimented yet. Now I am more curious how the X compares to the regular for weight and efficiency.
I also owned the Bondi x and for awhile it was my go-to-shoe for interval day.
It lives up to its name - it’s a Bondi with a carbon plate. Which means it has that carbon plate springy stiffness to it, but also has the bounce/cush of the midsole after that spring pop. Sadly, it also means that it’s not much faster than the Bondi6. Any other race CF shoe like the Endorphin pro or Alphafly will beat the pants off it on race day.
I tested them with intervals - for me it seems that whatever the shoe (even the slow Bondi6), I can HTFU enough to get it up to the same Z4-5 paces I need for 400-800m intervals, but I can just do more of them with the race CF shoes (or even the ENdorphin speed.) You will feel the bulk of the Bondi and it’s speed-sucking shock absorption immediately if you alternate the shoes between intervals. Took me a few sessions to find this, as my first test session I rotated shoes with each interval, and the Bondi6 was equaling the Alphafly for 800s, even though I clearly felt it was a lot harder with the Bondi6s. Turns out if I just do more intervals , the falloff shows pretty quickly. The falloff also shows well with longer tempo runs as well - I’m a good 15-20sec/mile slower with the Bondi6 than a CF race shoe on these types of workouts - literally a different class of runner.
If your goal is to just finish the run on race day injury free with a good, hard effort, and aren’t worried about leaving some time on the table, then Bondix would work fine. If you’re trying to be as competitive as possible though, or shooting for season-bests, or PRs, you need to find a training/racing shoe combo that allow you to use those super fast race CF shoes on race day. Alphaflys or Endorphin Pros vs a BondiX is NOT a fair fight.