I’ve been running in the new Altra Flow 2 shoes for the past month, and my overall opinion is that I really like them. So much so that I actually look forward to running in them. I rotate through lots of shoes every week, and wearing the Flow 2s feels a bit like a special occasion!

I’ll tell you what it is that I like about them, but first let’s quickly dive into some stats.

They’re pitched as a smooth and moderately cushioned daily trainer.

The midsole is made from a new EGO P35 foam, which is lightweight, bouncy, and responsive.

They’re quite soft — but not the sort of soft that feels like a sponge — so they don’t zap all the energy out of your legs like some shoes do.

They have a 4mm heel-to-toe drop, and a decent amount of rocker, which makes them feel smooth and efficient when you’re cruising along at a decent pace.

For the stats geeks out there: the stack height is 28mm in the toe and 32mm in the heel, and they weigh 240g.

Altra shoes come in two main fits or shapes: the Original and the Standard.

These Flow 2s are the Standard fit — narrower than the Originals, but still quite generous, with a relatively wide toe box.

I’ve got wide feet and I hate narrow shoes that feel like they’re squashing my feet, but these Flow 2s feel like they’ve got plenty of space. Having said that, I’ve also owned quite a few pairs of Altras with the Original fit, and I’ve gone up a whole shoe size in these Flow 2s to give my toes a bit more room.

The outsole has a decent amount of rubber for a shoe that feels so light, so I’m expecting the durability to be pretty good.

What surprised me most about these shoes. I just ran my fastest parkrun in seven years wearing them last weekend — and I really wasn’t expecting it. 

In the last 2 years I’ve had quite a few cracks at running a parkrun PB in a pair of Nike Vaporflys, which are lightweight, full carbon super shoes.

Last weekend I was away in Far North Queensland for my 20th wedding anniversary, and I took the Flow 2s with me because they’re such a comfortable all-round shoe to wear. 

We turned up to the Park Run just before 7am, so not even time for a warm up. My first km went by fairly easily and faster than I expected, so I thought I might as well give the shoes a proper test and see how long I could hold my pace.

They felt bouncy but not squishy, which was nice. There were a few spots of rain in the last km, and on the smooth concrete path they did feel a bit slippery — but I think that might have been because I was trying to run flat out and my wheels had started to fall off quite a bit by that stage!

I’ have run in them a lot of times at an easy pace in the rain, and they felt fine — not slippery at all.

So in summary – If you are looking for a moderately cushioned and very comfortable daily trainer that can double as racing shoes if you need them too, then these Flow 2’s from Altra tick all of the boxes. They do for me anyway!