The New Balance Fresh Foam X 880v12

This feature is brought to you by New Balance and The Running Company. New Balance’s 2022 range of running shoes are now available at your local The Running Company store.

We recently teamed up with New Balance on a feature in Tempo Journal to highlight the best of their model releases in 2022. Below we hear from NATHAN SHEARER on his thoughts around the latest New Balance Fresh Foam X 880v12. For the full article, visit Tempo Journal.

Words and Images by Riley Wolff

The Fresh Foam X 880v12 is the latest update to the long-heralded 880. It’s a shoe that has never been about being flashy – instead, it’s a neutral, daily trainer with the right balance of cushion and responsiveness. Occasional runners like it because it feels like a running shoe should feel, and purists love it because it gets the job done without gimmicks or fanfare. We tapped Nathan Shearer, retail development manager at The Running Company, for his thoughts on the shoe and who might love it.

“Version 12 of the New Balance 880 would comfortably be the best iteration – for me specifically – that I’ve ever worn. Historically, I’ve found the shoe a little bit too stiff and rigid, and I have an equally rigid foot so it tended to feel a little bit clunky and like I was fighting the shoe too much.”

Nathan, who hails from Preston and got into running in his early 20s, says the evolution of the 880 has given him exactly what he was looking for.

“This latest version, with the softness of Fresh Foam in the heel and the livelier and higher rebound FuelCell in the forefoot, has made for a wonderfully smooth ride for my gait and I think I’ve really benefited from the softer and more flexible midsole.”

So, who does Nathan think might like the 880v12?

“With the softer overall platform and a more aggressive fit, particularly around the heel, I think the modern 880 is now firmly a runner’s shoe – it will suit someone with a slightly more efficient gait and perhaps slightly less mobile mechanics.”