Doctors of Running Podcast · Doctors of Running

#281 Talking All Things Superblast 3 with ASICS

·49 min·2 clips

ASICS says Superblast 3 delivers about 15% more forefoot energy than previous Superblast models.

It starts on familiar footing. After the Rabbit note and roundtable welcome, Nathan Brown sets up the show as doctors of physical therapy talking running science and the shoes on their feet. Paul Lang is back, this time speaking as ASICS Senior Product Line Manager for Global Performance Running, so the Superblast talk comes from inside the product conversation rather than a regular review chair. The testing chat stays casual. One run turns into a 21.6-mile rhythm check, with the host leaving himself an exit before realizing he had already signed up for the whole thing. That detail makes the ride notes land. The shoe comes across a little more compliant, and that balance shows up more clearly during the longer easy run. Then Nathan asks the plate question: was ASICS ever tempted to add one as the Superblast line moved forward? Lang's answer is direct. For ASICS, the lack of a plate is the secret sauce, not an unfinished feature. It keeps the category cleaner. He says Superblast helped push the non-plated super shoe category into view, while ASICS still has plated models for runners who want them. Sonic Blast, Magic Speed, and the Meta shoes are the places where plates already fit. Superblast stays separate on purpose. The aim is a fast growing trainer that can work for runners across speed, shape, and size without forcing a plated feel on people who do not want it. The close gets practical: early March launch timing, March 1, and a listed price of $210. Lang also spreads the credit around, naming Arthur, Ando, Masamoto san, the development team, Taffy, pattern makers, sole engineers, factories, and ASICS as the wider group behind the shoe.

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