NIKE Men’s Journey Running Shoe

Product	Nike Journey Run
Manufacturer	Nike
Category	Road Running Trainers
Purchased	May 2025
Price Paid	Approximately £135
Purchased From	Amazon
Size / Version Tested	[ADD SIZE]
Surface	Road
Cushioning	Maximum cushioning
Heel-to-Toe Drop	10 mm
Tested So Far	Every parkrun since May 2025 plus road running use

I would love to say that purchasing the Nike Journey Run was the result of weeks of research into running gait, cushioning technology, heel drop and the merits of competing road shoes.

I don’t think it was.

I certainly cannot find any record of some great research exercise before buying them.

The main reason I remember noticing them?

They were orange.

Sometimes sophisticated purchasing decisions really are that complicated.

There was, however, a little more thought behind spending the money once they had caught my eye.

I was about to start parkrun and wanted a proper pair of running shoes rather than simply using general leisure trainers. I was particularly conscious of the impact that road running can place through the feet and legs, so cushioning was important to me.

I have never believed that buying the most expensive product automatically makes it the best, but footwear seemed like one area where buying something specifically designed for the job made sense.

At roughly £135, these felt like a significant investment in a pair of trainers.

More than a year later, I think it was money extremely well spent.

Unlike some equipment reviews where I am still forming an early opinion, these have now had a proper period of real-world use.

I bought them immediately before starting parkrun in May 2025 and they have been my shoes for every parkrun since.

• Every parkrun completed since May 2025
• Regular 5K road running
• Tarmac paths and paved surfaces
• Dry summer running
• Wet British running conditions
• Repeated use over more than a year

That is a much more useful test for me than wearing a shoe for a couple of runs and writing a review immediately afterwards.

I know what these trainers feel like after five kilometres. I know what they feel like when I am tired. I know what they feel like after repeated use.

Most importantly, I know that I still reach for exactly the same pair whenever I am heading out for a parkrun.

The first thing I noticed was the cushioning.

There is a lot of padding underneath and around the foot, but I do not find that makes the trainers feel cumbersome.

Instead they have this wonderfully soft feeling when the foot hits the ground.

For somebody starting running and conscious of repeatedly hitting hard surfaces, that was exactly what I hoped I had paid for.

They were comfortable immediately. No lengthy breaking-in period, no hotspots and no point where I found myself wondering whether spending more than £100 on trainers had been a terrible mistake.

Quite the opposite.

The first few outings left me wondering why I had spent so many years thinking that trainers were basically trainers.

If there is one word that defines the Nike Journey Run for me, it is comfort.

These are extraordinarily comfortable trainers.

There is plenty of cushioning underneath the foot and generous padding around it, giving the whole shoe a soft, supportive feel.

I have never had any blister problems with them. I have never experienced rubbing. I have never finished a parkrun thinking that my feet were the reason I had struggled.

That last point is perhaps the biggest compliment I can give a running shoe.

When I am running, I really do not think about the trainers.

I might think about my legs. I might think about my breathing. I might wonder why the finish line is apparently moving further away rather than closer.

But I do not think about my feet.

The shoes simply do their job.

I am not pretending to be an elite runner who can tell you how a few grams of shoe weight affected my split times.

What I can tell you is how these perform for the sort of running I actually do.

For my parkruns, they have been excellent.

The cushioning softens the repeated impact of running on hard surfaces and gives me a feeling of protection underneath the foot without making the shoe feel unstable.

Running in them feels smooth and, dare I say it, almost comfortable.

I realise that describing running as comfortable may be stretching the English language slightly, but the footwear certainly is not the uncomfortable part.

I have never found myself wanting more cushioning, more support or a softer shoe during a 5K.

What Worked Well

• Exceptional comfort.
• Plenty of cushioning underfoot.
• No blisters or rubbing throughout more than a year of use.
• Very comfortable for 5K road running and parkrun.
• Good padded feel around the foot.
• They remain comfortable even when I am tiring towards the end of a run.
• They have given me much more confidence in investing in proper running footwear.

What Could Be Better

This is the awkward bit.

I genuinely have not found anything about these shoes that bothers me.

That does not mean there are no better running shoes available, and it certainly does not mean they will be the perfect shoe for every runner.

It simply means that, for the way I use them, I have not encountered a drawback that I can honestly put into a review simply for the sake of appearing balanced.

I’d rather say that than manufacture a criticism that I do not actually have.

This is where I can be considerably more confident than I was when reviewing my newer trail shoes.

I bought the Journey Run in May 2025 and they have now been used for more than a year.

They have completed every parkrun I have done during that period and remain my first choice whenever I am running on the road.

There has been no failure of the upper, no problem with the cushioning and nothing has happened that makes me feel they are approaching the end of their useful life.

More importantly, the comfort that impressed me when they were new is still there.

For a product where cushioning was one of my main reasons for spending the extra money, that is important.

These have now been used enough that I am comfortable saying the positive first impression was not simply the novelty of putting on an expensive new pair of trainers.

They have lasted, and they are still performing.

Absolutely.

I paid somewhere around £135 for these, which is considerably more than I had historically thought about spending on trainers.

At the time, that felt expensive.

They have subsequently changed my view of what constitutes value in running footwear.

A £40 pair of trainers that is uncomfortable, gives me blisters or makes running on hard surfaces unpleasant would not be better value simply because the number on the receipt was smaller.

These have lasted for more than a year, completed every parkrun with me and remained exceptionally comfortable throughout.

For something that sits between me and the road every single time my foot lands, I think that matters.

The Journey Run demonstrated something to me that has subsequently influenced the way I look at both road and trail footwear:

sometimes you genuinely do get what you pay for.

Based on my own experience, I would happily recommend these to somebody looking for a comfortable road running shoe.

I think they particularly suit:

• New runners who want plenty of cushioning underfoot.
• Regular parkrunners.
• 5K road runners.
• Runners who prioritise comfort over having the lightest or most aggressive racing shoe.
• Anyone moving from general leisure trainers into footwear specifically designed for running.
• People who simply want a very comfortable pair of road running shoes.

I cannot say whether they would be the right choice for somebody chasing every possible second in a competitive road race, because that is not how I use them and I have no meaningful experience of dedicated racing shoes.

But for the sort of recreational running and parkrun I do, I have absolutely no hesitation in recommending them.

I am taking exactly the same approach here as I did with my trail shoes.

I am not going to populate a review with alternative premium running shoes that I have never worn simply because product reviews are apparently supposed to contain a list of competitors.

Before these, my comparison was largely with cheaper trainers and more general leisure footwear.

That comparison tells me that the Journey Run are vastly better for running than the cheaper shoes I had used previously, but it does not tell me whether they are better than an equivalent ASICS, Brooks, Saucony, New Balance or another Nike road-running model.

Until I have actually run in competing shoes, pretending otherwise would make the comparison fairly meaningless.

If and when I try other proper road running shoes, I will come back and update this section.