Why the New Balance Fresh Foam 1080 just became our new spring go-to shoe

When the newest version of the New Balance 1080s arrived this year, we were curious. Last year’s model saw a major update where the brand decided to switch out their classic, more solid EVA foam to replace it with their iconic Fresh Foam material. This resulted in a softer, cushier support system and one that many neutral runners were a fan of. While the solid old model focused mainly on function, in 2016, this shoe got a major makeover. New Balance refined the look making it, well, prettier, more sleek and more in touch with the styles of 2017.
First Impressions
After such a major shift from the 2015 to the 2016 model, we were expecting a more subtle update for this year’s shoe. When we opened the shoe box last month, that’s exactly what we saw. The Fresh Foam 1080 v7 is a tweaked version of last year’s shoe with a slightly narrower toe box, an adjusted sole, and a hot-spot free upper. And of course, with first impressions comes looks. And since the popularity of athleisure has set a new bar for all athletic wear, chunky, frumpy shoes are just not going to cut it anymore– no matter how functional. Style-wise we felt like the colours pop on this one with a nice yellow-blue blend and slight hot pink accents. It’s got an interesting look but if this is your everyday running shoe, it’s also not so overpowering that it will clash with your favourite gear either.