Article by Sam Winebaum
Mizuno Neo Vista 3 ($200)
Introduction
The Neo Vista is Mizuno’s entry in the max cushion super critical foam trainer category. Light at about 9.2 oz / 261g for its big 44.5 mm heel / 36.5mm forefoot (both unchanged) it continues the EVA carrier now 5mm thicker and soft and bouncy supercritical TPU Enerzy NXT foam core with fiber/nylon Wave Plate of the prior version. It now has a new focus, increased midfoot to rear stability, not a strength of the prior version.
The 3D Wave Plate is expanded at the midfoot for increased stability and includes essentially a spring as its central strip compressing on loading then springing back
The rear stability theme continues with considerably deeper rear inner cushioning and a more substantial heel counter to hold the heel in the knit upper.
It is for sure more stable and I would venture to say the most stable of supertrainers with still a pleasantly bouncy and deeply cushioned softer ride but did Mizuno go too far or just far enough with the stability theme for more neutral runners? Is the wild and fun ride of the prior versions still around? Please read on to find out.
Pros:
Deep bouncy cushion depth Sam
The most stable of super trainers (also a Con) Sam
Remarkably light weight for its stack height, support and stability
Supportive and comfortable upper, and as before a knit but one that works as now plenty of deep inner rear padding to lock the foot: Sam
Cons:
Slow and stiff to transition off the rear of the shoe to toe off: overly stabilized, flat and also oddly springy feeling midfoot: Sam
Different: more serious riding shoe than more wild and free prior versions.
Stats
Approx.Weight: men's 9.2 oz / 261g US9 women’s oz / g
Sample Weights:
men’s 255g / 8.99oz US8.5 / EU42 (v2:9.24 oz / 262g US 8.5)
women’s g / oz US / EU
Stack Height: 44.5 mm heel / 36.5mm forefoot, 8mm drop (unchanged)
Platform Width: 90 mm heel / 85 mm midfoot / 110 mm forefoot (unchanged)
First Impressions, Fit and Upper
The upper continues with an engineered knit. The knit is fairly thick and has some stretch. It has been decently breathable during some recent warmer weather runs.
The upper is entirely one piece with the tongue integral, and knit as well. The only underlay/overlays are a 1” wide inner fabric strip to create the lacing system holder and a moderately stiff vertical toe bumper. That’s it for the front and midfoot part of the shoe.
Midfoot and front lock down is very good and excellent for a knit upper shoe, always tricky to achieve. The support at midfoot is for sure assisted by the new underfoot expanded Wave Plate there.
To address the shaky rear hold of the v2, Mizuno now incorporates much more substantial inner achilles cushions in the quite flexible now more rigid heel counter whereas v2 essentially had no heel counter stiffening beyond outer overlays towards the ankle collars and minimal internal padding as shown above.
Rear lockdown and rear upper support is dramatically improved.
The fit is perfect and very comfortable and is true to size for me (identical up front to v1) with enough stretch for moderately wider feet.
Midsole & Platform
The weight, platform width and stack height remains unchanged from v2. We clearly have a super trainer grade stack height of 44.5 mm heel / 36.5mm forefoot
The foams are also unchanged with the lower EVA slightly increased in depth about 5mm for a more responsive toe off which is felt on the run.
The upper layer of Enerzy NXT supercritical foam continues with its soft bouncy feel with the whole foam package deeply cushioned and highly vibration reducing.
Things change quite dramatically “inside” affecting the run feel and type of runner the Neo Vista is likely most suitable for.
The 3D fiberglass/nylon plate focuses on midfoot to rear stability and its support is noticeable and far more pronounced than in v2, and this was felt during an A/B run with v2
Not only does the plate at the rear and midfoot provide plenty of pronation support but the central strip acts as a “spring” compressing under load then releasing as the foot lifts.
The central strip’s location and action as well as the soft Enerzy NXT foam for sure points to a midfoot to forefoot as opposed to heel landing and faster paces in my testing. If you land further back the compression of the spring is sort of delayed and the transitions to the nicely reactive and somewhat flexible toe off is “delayed”. I felt a strange vertical spring up instead of forward at paces slower than 10 minute miles and even faster making the ride somewhat ponderous and labored.
Outsole
The outsole coverage is somewhat reduced with a more skeletal approach to save weight but also as the lower firmer EVA is increased and the new Wave Plate adds stability the shoe needs to rely less on the outsole for stability. Nonetheless, there is plenty of durable coverage
Interestingly though, the central rear cavity is not as extensive which would tend to increase stability. I think given the other elements noted above which increase stability Mizuno might have saved some weight and maybe minimized the somewhat ponderous over stabilized (for me any ways) midfoot feel with more central cavity.
Ride, Conclusions and Recommendations
I see the changes to the Neo Vista in version 3 has it staking out a position as a stability focused super trainer.
The new Wave Plate clearly provides pronation support while the changes to the upper (new deeper rear cushions and more heel counter) make the knit upper more supportive than before.
I am for sure a fan of the new upper but I think the Wave Plate goes too far for this neutral runner who tends to lightly heel strike at slower paces. My initial runs and also the A/B run with v2 had me blocked at midfoot in transitions with the soft foam, supportive plate and its spring delaying me by sending me up rather than forward as quickly as I would like. At faster paces approaching 9 minute miles, things got somewhat smoother. While not as supportive or a stable I prefer v2’s more neutral, wilder and more fun ride.
This said I can well see using the shoe for long runs where its deep forgiving cushion and stability when tired get increasingly important as the miles go by. Heavier runners with pronation control needs who are looking at super trainers may find it a solid option as will consistently midfoot to forefoot landing faster runners doing big mileage weeks
This is an initial review with more testers and more miles as well as comparisons to come.
The Mizuno Neo Vista 3 will release June 1, 2026. $200
Tester Profile
Sam is the Editor and Founder of Road Trail Run. Hex is in his 60’s with 2025 Sam’s 54th year of running roads and trails. He has a decades old 2:28 marathon PR. These days he runs halves in the 1:45 range if he gets very, very lucky. Sam trains 30-40 miles per week mostly at moderate paces on the roads and trails of New Hampshire and Park City, Utah be it on the run, hiking or on nordic skis. Sam is 5’9” /175cm and 160 lbs/ 73kg if he is not enjoying too many fine New England IPA’s.
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1 comment:
There is too much EVA in the Neo Vista 2 and now Mizuno has seen fit to increase that bottom EVA layer by another 5mm.
I don't like the direction Mizuno has taken with this shoe or the Zen. Earlier this year they took the Zen and swapped out the high performance SCF-TPU with cheaper SCF-EVA. Now, the EVA monster has nibbled away at the Neo Vista's TPU share effectively tilting the balance more towards EVA.
It's a fact that EVA midsoles pack out (compression set) much sooner than superfoams such as TPU or TPEE. EVA also has less rebound than these better foams. So the value proposition for the runner is simply not there with the Neo Zen 2 or Neo Vista 3. Mizuno is backsliding.
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