Editor’s Note, October 27, 2026: The Brooks Glycerin Flex is now 24% off. It’s a lightweight shoe that provides a generous layer of cushioning for hitting. those hard tempos. Cushioned shoes provide both the comfort and support you need tacking on miles whether you’re a beginner or experienced runner.
We take for granted what our bodies are capable of with just one step; the impact of running can range from 2.5 to even 5 times as much as a person’s body weight with each foot strike. A cushioned running shoe acts as a buffer for the constant pounding you subject your body to and helps you cover faster thanks to that support. At Runner’s World, our gear team tests all levels of foam in the crop of shoes that brands release every season.
We’ve tested daily trainers, stability shoes, and cushioned styles—and there are several. In terms of cushioned shoes, we’ve run in trainers that are racing-, everyday training-, or recovery-specific. Knowing foams only reveals a partial picture in finding your ideal cushioned pair.
Thanks to our staff and team of run testers of various running levels, paces, and weekly mileage, we developed a list to help you find the best cushioned shoe that works for you and the types of workouts for your training plan. For 60 years, Runner’s World has been one of the premier publications for runners, including walkers, joggers, sprinters, trail runners, marathoners, and more. Recommending high-performance running gear has long been a core part of our mission.
Our gear team tests the latest and greatest running equipment, from running shoes and clothes to treadmills and running watches. As the running reviews editor and a lifelong runner, I selected these shoes based on my personal expertise and feedback from our editors and wear-test team. We solicit feedback from our shoe testing program that curates impressions from more than 300 local runners from all different backgrounds to make sure we get a wide variety of perspectives.
These shoes earned high praise for their excellent padding and strong running performance wherever we wore them, be it road or trail, workouts or races, marathons or short tempo runs. Formerly Brooks’s most cushioned trainer (that mantle now belongs to the Glycerin Max), the Glycerin 23 is one of our favorite daily trainers. It’s just a smidge heavier than the Ghost 17 and is upgraded with light and responsive DNA Tuned foam.
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