The Adidas Adizero Boston 12

This month Profeet team member, Polly, reviews the Adidas Adizero Boston 12

Inspired by Boston Marathon winners since 1982, the Adizero Boston range is designed to take you from tempo pace training sessions to the longer almighty marathons. Though over the past couple of years it has had its highs and its lows, the new Boston 12 is set to make a trusty come back after the 11s.

Having personally missed out on the Boston 9, and going straight to the Boston 10, it was interesting to see the reviews from past wearers expressing their concerns about the different, stiffer fit and feel to the shoe. Being unaware of the change, I wore the 10s for my speed-tempo training sessions and enjoyed their company for just shy of a year. However, when the 11s came out the further alterations to the fit and feel continued to leave most runners disappointed, including myself.

Function

1. Equipped with the Boston’s ultra-light Lightstrike Pro cushioning and combined with the Lightstrike 2.0 for a dual-density foam, there is a softer, smoother ride off the toe but a durable and sturdy base in the rear with little to no break-in period needed. The shoe is finished with a Continental outsole to provide reliable traction during any condition. The mechanically engineered, and 50% recycled, meshed upper adds to the lightweight feel of the shoe and a secure and sufficient lacing locks the foot down.
2. Designed to be a neutral shoe, the structure and support during each stride comes from the Energy Rods built into the sole. The foot is able to perform in a dynamic manner, whilst the full-length rods provide enough stiffness and support to prevent the foot sinking into the foam delivering an appropriate amount of efficient energy return to give that ‘springy’ feeling at toe-off.The updated rods now offer an additional lateral extension, with the aim to drive the mid-foot medially if a heel-striker, or act as a more efficient stabiliser if a lateral mid-foot striker. Providing a higher stack with a varus angle at the heel, it creates a subtle lateral bias as you land comfortably into the stride.
3. The 6.5mm heel-toe drop adds to the smooth heel-toe transition, but with the soft Lightstrike Pro material at the forefoot the drop seems greater, even more so with the large fore-foot rocker to assist in the snappy yet smooth ride. However, with the softer forefoot material composition, I found it wasn’t as noticeable unless I upped my speed over a shorter distance, going from a rear-foot to a mid-foot striker – then the snap kicked in.
4. Another, more subtle (unless you know where to look) change is the placements of cutouts found in the sole to expose the Energy Rods. Bostons 10 and 11 found the cutout was closer to the fore-foot, whereas the Boston 12s finds the cutout in the mid-foot. This could align with increased potential for medial movement for that dynamic foot function, further classifying this shoe as a true-neutral trainer, as opposed to the 10 and 11 which were stable/neutral trainers.

Recommendations

Biomechanically, over a longer distance the foot will want to work in a more dynamic state. A rigid, stiff shoe is great to prevent the foot collapsing into the foam for a strong, reliable and snappy ride, but can prevent the foot working most efficiently over a long period of time risking tension held in the foot.

The Bostons 12s have a bit of that ‘best of both worlds’: A sturdy Energy Rod function for the quicker interval training session but with sufficient flexibility to allow good foot function during uptempo, more-miles runs.

But, getting two feet into two doors does mean it may be missing a few features. I personally wouldn’t use this as a race shoe as I feel that the snappy, rigid sole response will be missed, but I also wouldn’t use it for my longer, slower, recovery runs, as I prefer more structure around my foot.

If you are fan of this shoe or trust Adidas as a brand for yourself, pairing the Boston 12s with the Adizero Adios Pro 3s for your carbon plated racing shoe will work well. If you are looking for something with less stack height and find the Energy Rods not as stable as you’d like, switching to the Adizero 8s that hold a fairly similar function should be a nice solution.

Alternatively, if you find the Boston 12s not the right fit for you but want a shoe with a similar function, the Brooks Hyperion Max covers the ground. With a similar weight, smooth stride transition and comparable performance outcome with softer and plushier upper.