Mizuno Neo Zen 2 Review: Light Enlightenment

Introduction to the Mizuno Neo Zen 2

ROBBE: Last year’s Mizuno Neo Zen was so good that we named it one of the four horsemen of the shoe-pocalyse, those shoes that reign terror on all other daily trainers on account of how good they are, and can be had for $150 or less: the Neo Zen, Adidas Adizero Evo SL, New Balance Rebel v5, and the Asics Novablast 5. 

It was a banner year for trainers, as the real good stuff from the top tier shoes finally made its way into everyday running. It was the running shoe equivalent of Nerds Rope turning into Nerds Gummy Clusters. How can we even get any better than that? You don’t know if you don’t try, and with each calendar year comes another sales cycle. Which means you have to try, whether you want to or not.

Before I move on, let me pause and build a framework for this review going forward. Time and time again, we have seen shoe companies debut an absolute ripper of a shoe– something new and exciting and fresh– only to dial it back in subsequent versions. It’s the dumbing down cycle of footwear. Brands take a chance on something cool and exciting. It hits hard, but only for a small contingent of true running shoe geeks. Excitement builds for version 2. But then the inevitable happens.

To sell more shoes to the masses, they tame the shoe down, making it safer and more approachable to the everyday runner. It’s all just seatbelts and FDA warnings and my doctor telling me to cut down on my cholesterol. That’s great and all if you’re a responsible runner who gets in your 3-5 miles every morning and a long run on the weekend. But sometimes I want a shoe that rides in the bed of a pickup truck while ripping a heater on the back roads of Pennsyltucky, out of cell phone range from any medical professional telling him how to live his life. Abuse me, if you will, injuries be damned.

Just don’t make it safe, because that’s how you get the New Balance Rebel v2 or Saucony Endorphin Speed 3 or Brooks Glycerin Max 2. Shoes that went from great to gray overnight. 

Going into this review, I had a premonition that the Neo Zen 2 would follow that same storyline. After all, they changed the midsole entirely from a supercritical TPU to a supercritical EVA (the foam that shall not be named). However, they also got rid of the underfoot cavity, filling it in with more of that Enerzy NXT midsole foam. The upper seemed promising as well, moving to a mesh/knit blend with more support in the heel. It also shaved off a half-ounce of weight, coming in at 8.5 ounces for a US M9. So maybe a mix of some good and some bad.

Of course, there was only one thing left to do– run in the shoe.

MEG: Robbe absolutely nailed it when he talked about brands taking a shiny, new, exciting shoe… and then immediately putting it in khakis for version two. The Brooks Glycerin Max 2 is a gold-star example of that phenomenon. But today, we’re turning our attention to Mizuno – a brand that’s been doing a full 180 away from boring, stiff footwear. The original Mizuno Neo Zen was proof of life.

Now we’ve got the update. On the surface, it looks pretty similar, but there are some real changes under the hood – most notably a revamped midsole and a newly designed mesh/knit upper. So let’s stop circling the runway and get into it.

CHAD: There have been very few shoes I have reviewed in my time with Believe in the Run that have come with such a mix of emotions. Mizuno and I go way back, having run my first marathon in the Wave Rider 17. Recently, the Neo Vista and Neo Vista 2 have been some of my favorite running shoes and a contender for Super Trainer of the year, whereas the Wave Sky 9 was a huge miss for me for many reasons. 

Before the Neo Zen 2 was set to arrive, I had to recall the crew’s thoughts about the first iteration, and that’s what began to make me nervous. In summary, the shoe was an all-around very good shoe, but the upper fit had issues and the shoe was somewhat unstable. As a bigger runner, I often rely on an upper being secure enough to keep me over the platform of a shoe, and also some inherent stability to protect my ankles and PTT. Those two issues can make or break a shoe for me. Did the second version correct these issues and make it Clydesdale friendly? Let’s find out.

What we like about the Mizuno Neo Zen 2

ROBBE: Right away, the fit seemed on point. That didn’t change for me over the course of my testing, which has pretty much been the last month of running. I’ve been dealing with a pretty bad bout with plantar fasciitis, but this shoe has felt great underfoot. Before we get to that, let’s cover the upper. 

As mentioned, the upper is a combination of knit and engineered mesh with some stretch in the tongue. At first, I thought it may be too snug or even too small; however, my toe space was fine and eventually I found that it was the perfect fit. It stretched and molded to my foot, providing one of my favorite upper fits in recent memory. This was a big improvement over the last version, which I thought had a little too much room. I will say this– I have a narrow foot. I love the fit of the Puma Velocity Nitro 4, and pretty much every Nike shoe. I love a snug fit through the midfoot. Some folks hate that. If you have a wider foot, then pay attention to Meg’s review.

It also has an interesting design in that the gusset goes back into the heel, providing an extra level of security. Plenty of padding abounds in the heel area as well. To me, this was a near-perfect upper fit. Loved it.

While a good upper fit will certainly have me thinking about what shoe I want to lace up when I go out the door, the ride is always paramount. As with the Paramount production company, this midsole comes with a bit of controversy. 

It is different than v1, there is no doubt about it. Mizuno was pretty up front about this, saying that the goal was to rein in the instability of that midsole foam. To be fair, that’s something plenty of runners asked for. The first Neo Zen was a wild ride– super bouncy and fun, but it was all over the place when in motion, which may have led to some aches and pains in longer runs (since none of us do the proper cross training and core conditioning). That midsole was a supercritical TPU, a material known for both its energy return and durability. This midsole? A supercritical EVA.

Straight up, if you’re looking for unadulterated fun and bounce and something that’s different from everything else– then that’s v1. This version is different. But I don’t think it’s worse, and for me, I think it’s actually better. It is a bit more stable but it still has a great bounce to it. It’s not super soft on the run and there’s better cushion in the forefoot, which the last version lacked. It still feels like a big chunk of energetic foam underfoot, and because the upper is so locked in, it’s easy to just glide through miles. I took this up to a 10-mile long run, and despite my ongoing issues with plantar, found myself reaching for this shoe again and again, even after I got in the requisite miles for a review. 

So yes, in some ways it’s tamed down a bit, and it probably is more accessible for the average runner. But it’s still a fantastic shoe and easily competes with others in its range, including the Evo SL. 

While I don’t love the price uptick, it’s still a solid shoe at $160.

MEG: Robbe and I have very different opinions on the new upper—especially when it comes to fit—so I’ll save most of that banter for the next section. That said, the step-in feel is genuinely nice. Even though the midsole foam has been completely reworked, the underfoot ride still delivers that familiar soft-yet-bouncy sensation. And while I know plenty of people had stability complaints with the first version (I personally didn’t), those issues seem to be addressed here.

It goes without saying we test a lot of shoes, but some are less exciting to lace up. The Neo Zen 2? This one’s fun. It’s soft, it’s bouncy, and it’s happy to pick up the pace when you ask it to. Easy runs, recovery runs, even long runs, it handles all of it, with foam that feels just as good at mile ten as it does at mile one. 

CHAD: Mizuno continues to stack up wins in the aesthetics department with their Neo line, both the Neo Vista and Neo Zen. I’ve harped about how knit bootie uppers can be hit or miss, both in terms of comfort and look. Mizuno nailed it in both regards with the Neo Zen 2. It looks good and also feels good on the foot. I was a bit worried when I first went to put the shoe on because it felt like they had gone too far with making the upper more secure, and initially it felt like it would be too tight. However, once I started running, the upper stretched in all the right directions to shift from “too tight” to secure, exactly the feel I want in an upper. I think the combo of it being both a knit and engineered mesh helps create that extra secure lockdown feeling without feeling strangled.

Mizuno’s Enerzy NXT midsole foam might be one of the best non-super foams on the market. Moving from a supercritical TPU to supercritical EVA seems like it would be a step-back… not the case here. Typically if a foam feels soft underfoot on landing, it also feels squishy without much responsiveness. That’s not the case with the Neo Zen 2. The nitrogen-infused foam is soft on landing but feels like it gives you back most of what you put into it, so it also feels bouncy. It’s an incredibly pleasant running experience.

So, Mizuno fixed the upper fit issue but also appears to have solved the stability problem. There is a midsole wedge in the heel designed to provide medial support, so between that and the geometry of the shoe, the Neo Zen 2 has a similar level of stability to the Neo Vista 2, even with the plate that the NV2 has. The ride is incredibly smooth and I felt little-to-no lateral or medial movement.

What we don’t like about the Mizuno Neo Zen 2

ROBBE: Reviews are subjective, so I don’t have a ton of dislikes about this shoe. Overall, I prefer it to the original, but I do miss some of that excitement. I do know that there are plenty of people who will be a bit disappointed in the “taming down” of the midsole. Thomas and Karl were two of those people. 

I’m also skeptical about the durability of the underfoot sensation. For obvious reasons, we cannot run 200 miles in every shoe we review, so the durability is always an unknown. However, there are some clues based on past experiences with certain materials. I understand that EVA has come a long way, and that it feels great thanks to the supercritical foaming process. But it’s just a scientific fact that supercritical TPU is more durable. It’s also more expensive when it comes to sourcing and production, which makes me wonder if Mizuno subbed out the original TPU for this EVA in an effort to save costs (while charging $10 more). I don’t know if that’s true, but it’s something to ponder.

When it comes to underfoot feel, yeah, this shoe has felt great for the 30+ miles I’ve run in it. But we’ve seen plenty of proprietary EVA blends feel great for 100 miles and then crash and burn at 150 miles (New Balance Rebel, multiple Hoka shoes, etc.). Will that happen here? Who knows, but I have a lot more faith in a TPU midsole when it comes to durability and energy return over hundreds of miles.

The only other minor complaint I have is that Mizuno stuck with this higher ankle collar aesthetic that we saw in the first version, but the actual heel support is much lower, which creates a sort of moat around the ankle. Functionally I don’t think it matters, but it looks weird. I could also see rocks getting kicked up in there and not coming out.

MEG: The original Neo Zen came with a knit upper that I loved. Soft, stretchy, supportive – and the toe box? Spacious. I’m talking open-concept living. Plenty of square footage. Version two, however, feels more like a hug that doesn’t quite know when to let go. I just want a little more room. Everywhere.

I know a lot of people are going to enjoy that snug, locked-in fit, but I prefer the roomy, relaxed fit of version one.

CHAD: Not a ton to discuss here. Obviously with a one-piece bootie upper, you have to be cognizant of the lacing to avoid overdoing it and creating lace bite. Luckily there is a small rubber piece right under where the knotting of the shoe takes place, so that provides some protection. Outsole traction, despite there being decent coverage, wasn’t great. There were some wet/slushy conditions on one of my runs and I noticed some slippage when I was on the painted lines of the road.

Also, this is probably just personal preference, but I don’t know why they make the heel collar so exaggerated and go so high up. I love that it has the heel tab for ease in getting the shoe on, but the added fabric around the collar seems unnecessary. Just attach the pull tab to the back of the shoe and be done with it.

Lastly, I’m not sure what the max distance I would consider taking the Neo Zen 2, aka, not sure if this would be my choice as a long run shoe. Even with the 40.5 mm stack height (6 mm drop), I think my feet would eventually get fatigued in the bootie upper, and without a plate to stabilize the shoe, it might become a problem when the legs get tired and form breaks down.

Final thoughts on the Mizuno Neo Zen 2

ROBBE: Overall, I prefer this version over the last. I’ll take the slightly tamed down version over the last one because I personally found v1 to be a bit squirrelly. That said, I think there will be plenty of fans of v1 who may think this is a step back. It’s definitely more of a shoe for the masses. The upper is much improved, the fit is fantastic, the ride is still exciting and fun and I always look forward to running in this shoe. Do I wish it was still at $150? Yes, but it also seems like everything is going up and up and there’s no coming back. The Novablast 5 saw an in-line price increase from $140 to $145, so it’s not surprising this saw a $10 bump. And while I question the price increase while switching from TPU to EVA (even if it is an in-house blend), I still think it’s on the spectrum of what I’d pay for a great daily trainer. 

MEG: I’m firmly in the camp that would take the OG Neo Zen over version two. I get the updates on paper, I really do, but out on the roads, not as much. Most notably, my wide feet felt a little… claustrophobic.

The foam is still fun and bouncy, but version two feels like it’s been slightly domesticated. And do we really need that? Maybe. But I’d suggest heading back out to grab version one on sale.

CHAD: Another swing and another home run from Mizuno. In the lightweight, bouncy, daily do-it-all shoe category (i.e., Adidas Evo SL, New Balance Rebel v5, Saucony Endorphin Azura, Asics Megablast, etc.), the Neo Zen 2 has earned its spot near the top of the list. This shoe will make a lot of Best of 2026 lists, either as the winner or at least an honorable mention. Just another shoe in that $150-$160 bucket that is an absolute steal.

You can pick up the Mizuno Neo Zen 2 for $160 on February 5, 2026, from mizuno.com by using the buttons below.