Recently, it dawned on me how much my Sunday runs mean to me. I’ve been running for over 30 years, and during that time I have probably run on over 90% of those Sundays. The Sunday run often tells a lot about training, weather, where my head is at, the past week and more. Some Sunday’s are on the country road outside my house. Some are on trails, some the gym. When the week gets away from me, Sunday’s can end up being the long run. Or the recovery run from a harder Saturday effort. Unless I am sick, traveling or injured, a Sunday run will be on the schedule. And since the Sunday run has such a wide range of distance and location, it’s also a day when I hardly wear the same shoes. The shoe becomes just as important as the effort itself. So, I am going to start a weekly blog series about My Sunday Shoe. Why I chose it, the run and a snippet into my weekly life that ended my week with this specific shoe on this specific run. I hope it blends knowledge, humor and maybe some motivation for you to think about your own Sunday runs and making it a consistent part of your life. I am going to write this without AI. If you enjoy honest writing from a person, I hope you continue to check in on it.
When I think of a Sunday shoe, I first think of the type of run I am doing. When my week and life line up, my Sunday run is the cleanup of miles for the week. If I had a weekly mileage goal, Sunday becomes the defacto last chance to achieve it. In a perfect world, Sunday becomes an easy 4-8 mile effort. There is also no checking the watch on a Sunday run. The pace is the pace, no chasing splits. The body and mind dictate the pace; I just need to be equipped with the proper footwear and head out on the appropriate route. If I set my week up correctly, Sunday can become as easy as Lionel Richie envisioned.
With that in mind, todays first My Sunday Shoe really is the epitome of what I envision as a Sunday shoe. The new Mizuno Sky Prime. The Sky Prime just came out in the last two weeks, but I first got to see it in person last Winter. It caught my eye immediately by how comfortable it looked. Sometimes you can look at a shoe and imagine how it would feel on foot. You hold it and know exactly how the shoe will perform. That’s how I felt about the Sky Prime. It looks like a moonboot but bouncy. Massive but lighter than it appears. Bulky but not sloppy. Cushioned but not spongy. Wide but not awkward. It looked like the running shoe equivalent to the famed Jimmy Shoe from Seinfeld. Those are exactly what I want in a Sunday shoe. I want to run without necessarily running. I want a shoe that allows me to just go for a ride. I want low heart rate, high enjoyment. And before even running a mile in them, I knew they had achieved it.
For today’s maiden voyage, I took them to FSK High School’s empty track. Today also happened to be the first time I even took them out of the box. The first positive for me was the fit. One thing I really enjoy in monster Fat Boy shoes, is the extra depth many provide. The Sky Prime really drops your foot in and it provides so much room both top to bottom for my foot. I have aggressive bunions and at times I have to be really thoughtful on my shoes. While they’re pretty calm now, I could also tell this will be a great option on days they’re not. The second notice, was how enjoyable the cushion was. This obviously is a massive shoe with many layers of foam and it’s easy to botch the type of foam in a shoe like this.
At $200, I am sure there is an instinct to make it so responsive it can be a justifiable purchase for someone looking to run a marathon. Having a shoe that is really aimed for plodding, or almost recovery day shoe, means you have to make it so enjoyable at step in. The limited days in the week you may use it almost becomes a non-factor. For me, the Sky Prime will be, at best, 1-2 day day a week option. It was the perfect get up and get out the door without feeling like I am working too hard. It’s too bulky for anything quick, too much for a mid week junk mile run. But for that recovery/post injury/Sunday morning/plodding with the fellas run, I will absolutely keep this in the rotation.
Two shoes came to mind when trying the Sky Prime. The first was how I felt the first runs in the Hoka Skyward X. At the time, I was getting ready for a long trail race and Sunday’s were heavy time on feet days. The Skyward X was a plodding shoe that made runs of several hours feel effortless. I would put on a podcast and just bop along without any effort. The downside was the cushion was firmer, the plate would bug my bunion and they were just a pinch too narrow. It was good at the time, but not great. The second is the Asics Superblast 2. Not necessarily in the performance, but in the way you just feel swallowed by comfort in it. You want to take them out. The Sky Prime feels like it pulls some from both the SuperBlast 2 and the Skyward X. It has the right amount of responsive cushion, while also giving the right fit and ease you’d want in a Sunday shoe.
I don’t expect the Sky Prime to be a massive hit shoe. A 47mm tall shoe that is not going to be an everyday trainer is really a tiny market. However, if you are looking to add a shoe that makes easy runs feel even easier, cushion to make your feet happy and a roomy fit in both the width and depth, I think you can certainly do a lot worse than the Mizuno Sky Prime.
If I am to be nitpicky, Mizuno continues to do this weird pull tab on the top of the laces that annoys me. I understand wanting to have a way to lock the tongue down and maybe pull out any bunching, but it becomes something in the way when you’re lacing them up. I can also see this shoe being warm during the summer. Luckily for us, we’re about to turn to fall so by the time the temps change again, I will be on to the next great Sunday Shoe.
Thanks for reading and I hope you come back for next week’s My Sunday Shoe.
