The Best Running Shoes for Threshold Pace, Long Runs, and Interval Running On The Market Right Now

I’m about to show you what I think are the five best running shoes for workouts in 2025 so far. These shoes are made to help you run fast while still giving you a little bit of support.

So if you’re in the market for running shoes for your threshold runs, your long runs, maybe your track intervals, basically anything between a race and an easy run, keep reading. This is for you.

We tested a whole lot of shoes and ranked our favorites from five down to one. So without further ado, here are the best running shoes for your workouts in 2025.

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#5 Best Lightweight Shoe:
Saucony Endorphin Speed 5

Score: 7.6

To me, this version of the Endorphin Speed is the best running shoe for workouts that Saucony’s ever made. It’s light and agile, but it also packs a punch.

It’s made to be super lightweight. The upper doesn’t weigh much, next to nothing. The midsole is made of Saucony’s Powerrun PB foam, which is a super lightweight foam that still has good responsiveness. One interesting thing: it has a plate, but it’s not carbon, it’s a nylon plate, which is technically better for shock absorption, but not necessarily for speed.

My one knock on the shoe is that I think Saucony could have made it faster. They could have used carbon instead of nylon, and they could have used their fastest foam, the PWRRUN HG foam, which is in the Endorphin Elite 2. But instead, they went with something a bit safer, a little more cushioned. I respect that they’re trying to find a balance between cushioned and fast.

What you get is a very lightweight shoe that just feels really good. I think this shoe will be popular with runners who value lightness, quick pace changes, even taking turns quickly, because it’s close to the ground and feels nice and grippy underneath.

Meanwhile, runners who are used to big, bulky super shoes might want to avoid the Speed 5, it may feel underwhelming if you’re expecting something supercharged with carbon or high-stack foam. And I mean, 35mm of stack height is not that much compared to some of the bigger, more powerful shoes out there.

Think of the Endorphin Speed 5 as your companion for fartleks, intervals, or anything that requires quick cadence and rapid pace changes.

We gave the Speed 5 a Marathon Handbook rating of 7.6.

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#4 Best Shoe That Packs A Powerful Punch:
Nike Pegasus Plus

Score 7.9

Nike came out with two versions of the Pegasus this year: the Pegasus Premium, which is big and bulky and powerful, but heavy, and the Pegasus Plus, which is a little less muscular but much lighter. And the Plus has quickly become one of my very favorite shoes to wear.

Like the Endorphin Speed 5, it’s light, fast, and close to the ground. It’s easy to get a nice quick turnover in this shoe. Even though it doesn’t have any hard structure, no carbon, no nylon, it gets away with just a big slab of ZoomX foam, Nike’s proprietary super foam used in their racing shoes.

So, no carbon plate, but still a whole lot of power in a super light package. This is kind of a made-up stat, but I can’t think of another shoe that weighs this little, has no plate, and still feels this powerful.

People who value lightness but also power will really enjoy the Pegasus Plus.

Now, classic Nike issue: it accommodates narrow feet.

This is just the D width, the regular width, and even with my narrow feet, after a few miles, the sides start to grate just a little. Not enough to make me dislike the shoe, but it’s noticeable. So if you have wider feet, this might not work well for you.

Otherwise, I call this shoe a secret weapon for fartleks or VO2 max workouts. It helps you travel quickly and still gives you cushion. After a tough 10 x 1K session, you can wake up the next day not feeling completely beat up.

We gave this shoe a rating of 7.9, mostly thanks to a strong 8.5 performance score.

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#3 Best Shoe for cushioning:
Brooks Hyperion Max 3

Score: 8.0

We just recorded a standalone review of this one. The Brooks Hyperion Max 3 fills a gap in Brooks’s super shoe lineup. They didn’t yet have a shoe with this kind of tall stack height and aggressive rock-forward profile.

It’s a bit heavy, but also incredibly powerful and just thrusts you onto your toes. Here’s how it’s made: two layers of foam. The first layer is DNA Gold: Brooks’s proprietary PEBAX foam used in their racing shoes. Underneath is another nitrogen-infused foam that’s a bit more conservative but still has some pop.

Between the two layers is the SpeedVault carbon plate, curved for extra bounce and pop. The midsole has rockered geometry, just like their racing shoes.

Basically, it’s kind of like the Brooks Hyperion Elite 5, but souped up: more cushion, a little heavier, maybe even more powerful.

This shoe will appeal to runners who like a lot of foam underfoot but also want to go fast. It’s quite versatile, great for most paces except maybe easy runs or tight track workouts, because you’re pretty tall wearing them.

If you like small, agile shoes like the Endorphin Speed 5, this might not be for you. And if you’re a toe striker, it might feel a bit awkward, it’s better for midfoot-to-toe transitions.

For everyone else, this shoe thrives at threshold and marathon paces. It’s an absolute beast.

We gave it an 8.0 overall.

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#2 Best Shoe for Stability:
Adidas Adizero Boston 13

Score: 8.3

Okay, I can’t believe I’m doing this—but it’s the Adidas Boston 13.

My colleague Michael Doyle and I have an ongoing feud about this shoe. Is it good or is it trash? Apparently, we’re not the only ones; it’s one of the most divisive shoes out there. For years, no one really knew what it was supposed to be…a workout shoe? An easy shoe?

It had a rockered profile but felt clunky and uncomfortable. I hated the Boston 10 so much I skipped the 11 and 12 entirely. But the Boston 13 is different: lighter, faster, and more aggressive. It’s a bonafide workout shoe now…and I actually love it.

The 13 feels small and low to the ground, like the Pegasus Plus or Speed 5, but with more power. And I actually feel more comfortable in it than either of those.

Construction-wise, it has a slab of Lightstrike Pro foam and carbon rods (lighter than a full plate) underneath. There’s also a more conservative foam in the heel for stability, which I wouldn’t be surprised to see Adidas phase out in the future.

It’s technically a marathon shoe, but I prefer it for 5K and 10K training. Great for hills, intervals, fartleks, and long runs. I thought a shoe this small would beat up my joints, but it didn’t.

That said, it’s a harder shoe. If you love lots of cushion, you might find it a bit slappy.

We gave it an 8.3, boosted by strong design and performance scores.

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#1 Best Shoe overall:
Nike Pegasus Premium

Score: 8.4

And now, the controversial pick: the Nike Pegasus Premium.

I was super skeptical about this one. We even did a standalone review right away to figure out how a shoe that weighs 11.5 oz could be this fast. Turns out, it has one of the most complicated but effective midsoles in running.

Three layers:

1. ZoomX foam on top.
2. A full-length Air Zoom pod (basically a hard, bouncy air unit that acts like a carbon plate).
3. A thin layer of ReactX foam on the bottom for shock absorption.

I think the genius of this shoe is that they kept the bottom foam layer thin, otherwise it’d be too heavy. It’s already heavy, but somehow it still flies.

I’ve had some of my best threshold workouts and long runs in this shoe. It doesn’t make sense on paper, but it works. It’s all business, north-south propulsion, no east-west play. It’s durable and doesn’t lose bounce.

It’s like the girl your mom tells you not to pursue, but you do anyway, because she’s the best. That’s what this shoe feels like. It looks like too much, but somehow, it just works.

Some people will hate it—it’s heavy, tall off the ground, and not great for tight turns. Also, it’s narrow like other Nike shoes, but I didn’t find it as bothersome as the Pegasus Plus. Still, wide-footed runners should try it in-store.

We gave the Pegasus Premium an 8.4, which narrowly edged out the Boston 13.