Nike Alphafly Next% 2 Review

Review of Nike Alphafly Next% 2

My thoughts on these Nike Alphafly Next% 2 shoes are overall positive, but they aren’t what I thought they’d be. Nor are they going to fit my purpose. Let’s go through them step by step.

The Feel

The Nike Alphafly Next% 2 shoes feel good on my feet. There is a little more cushioning at the heel and on the tongue. These provide an even more comfortable and secure feeling on my feet. They really do provide a glove-like fit, which I love. Some of my trainers will gap at the top, not with these. This was quite an impressive fit. Off to a good start.

The Atomknit 2 material is still breathable and lightweight. However, it has a more synthetic feel to the touch and on the foot. This isn’t a bad thing, and may prove to wear better than the original Atomknit. But it wasn’t really an issue before in my opinion. 

The shoe is slightly narrower than the previous version, which works well for me. I have a narrow foot. However, the arch feels a bit higher and I’m not sure this will provide the comfort found in the previous Alpha. More about this later.

Running in the Alphafly Next% 2

On the first few runs, the shoes impressed. Whenever breaking in new runners, the best practise is to do it slowly. Short runs at first and gradually build the distance. One of my initial observations is that there wasn’t the clunky sound that some of the Nike carbon plated trainers give. These had more of a traditional sound, if that makes sense. The worst sounding trainers, when new, may have been the Nike Zoom Tempo’s which could be heard from a mile away.

Given the fact that these were new with a slightly more rigid upper they were quite comfortable. My first three runs were 3 miles, 5 miles and most recently an 8 miler. One of my favourite things about the previous Alphafly Next%’s was the cushioning over a long distance. These didn’t provide the soft bounce like that. The ZoomX foam and the carbon plate used to provide remarkable return from each foot-strike. From the start, the feel of these was firm, more rigid. However, they were more stable. Whereas cornering in the older pair was touchy, these provide more confidence around bends. I’m not convinced this is really that important in a distance shoe however.

There is still plenty of bounce and return from the carbon plate and the ZoomX cushioning, but just not the same as before. It has a more sharp feel instead of running on clouds, it’s more like running on cork. Not bad, but not the same.

There is an 8mm drop in these, which is 4mm more than the previous version. This is significant and believe it or not Nike has added 15g of weight to my size (10’s). This is bound to be due to the more firm construction using stronger materials. There is also a higher arch and on my 8 miler I was beginning to feel a hotspot near the ball of my left foot. Despite the secure feel and the smooth ride, these aren’t the distance shoe that the older Alpha’s were. It feels like, for me, these are more of a middle distance shoe (in the endurance runner’s world). 

The only part of the original Alphafly’s that seemed to break down quickly was the sole. They had a tendency to split near the end of the carbon plate near mid-sole. On my first pair, the split in the foam allowed the plate to flex into the bottom of my foot. This caused a sharp stinging pain after a few miles. Granted, a little super glue fixed this, but still, an obvious flaw. With this new construction, this will almost definitely be rectified. It is obvious that Nike has addressed this. 

Conclusion

Overall, these are a disappointment in my eyes. Nike has turned what used to be a near perfect marathon shoe into a very good 10k shoe. Everything about these say 10k or 10 miles. For me anyway, this was the realm of the capable Nike Vaporfly. I will see what a few more 8 to 10 mile runs will do and if they break in better. But at the minute, I seem to have a very expensive 10k shoe, not my favourite distance. I will need to find a different marathon shoe once my older Alphafly’s are finished. I think I have at least another marathon or two in them. 

I’d love to hear your experience with them. I’d also love to hear your recommendations on my next marathon shoe. So please comment below.