Puma MagMax Nitro
If you’re not one to read the whole review, I get that, so to kick things off I will just say that Puma has done it again! If Puma hasn’t been on your radar from the Deviate or Magnify series, then put it on your radar cause this shoe is special! When it comes to cult favorite shoes I expect this to be right up there with the Superblast for non-plated super-trainer stardom.
Men: 10.2 oz
Women: 8.4
Drop: 8 mm
Fit: True to Size
MSRP: $180
The Breakdown
The Outsole
To date Pumagrip remains some of the best rubber in the industry. This shoe grips the concrete in all conditions and has enough rubber on the outsole to make sure that the MagMax has plenty of durability. While the shoes massive stack height precludes me from taking it off the road, I have full confidence on concrete, asphalt or crushed gravel paths.
The Midsole
While the midsole is stamped as Nitrofoam, you’re getting the premium treatment with this midsole. It is a thick stack of nitrogen infused PEBA material. While PEBA on its own is already incredibly resilient and bouncy, when you run with this nitrogen infusion, you get a shoe that feels super bouncy but more stable than you would expect from that much material without any plate or other device. A stability provided in large part to by shape of the midsole which has an hourglass shape, when viewed from above, resisting any extraneous lateral wobble in any point of the stride.
The Upper
This is a very plush and comfortable upper. It is built to take you through a lot of training miles. The heel collar has plenty of cushion as does the tongue. The upper is well structured and makes sure that you stay secure on top of that massive stack of midsole material. The forefoot flare provides ample space for those who like a wider toe box while the mild slimming in the midfoot hold the foot in place nicely. With this much cushion in the midsole it is common to see a little bit of heel slipping in the first try-on and run in the shoe, but that should go away as the forefoot breaks in.
The Fit
I recommend purchasing true to size on this one. Puma isn’t always great about every color fitting the same but from what i’ve seen, this one is fitting true to size fairly consistently across the board.
Running and Walking
This shoe is made to do a bit of everything. It has a massive stack of supercritical PEBA which means super cush and super bouncy. While this shoe is on the heavier side for a racer, for the average runner I think this could get you through all your training and still have a really great feel for race day as well. The geometry on this shoe makes it fun to push your paces in while the amount of cushion makes it ideal to get you through your full training cycle healthy. The exception would be if you’re pushing hard on 5k/10k and then I think that this shoe might be a little bit much to race in, but at the half marathon to full distance I think it would be a fantastic option, and a solid trainer for both.
The shoe has plenty of stability if you’re running on concrete, asphalt or dirt/gravel path and the pumagrip on the bottom gives you plenty of traction on all surfaces. The upper breaths well and even through these extended heat days of Houston’s summer, I didn’t notice that my foot got boggy in the shoe while running.
The stack height on this shoe lends itself to being a recovery easy run shoe, but it picks up the pace nicely into the longer tempo sessions, and pairs really well with the Deviate Nitro 3 or Deviate Elite 3 for interval sessions and race days, especially as I said above if your focus is on the 5k/10k. While I work in the industry and have the option to choose multiple shoes, if I were having to pick a single shoe for my running within the Puma line-up it would be the MagMax. I think this shoe combines the best elements of their lineup into on shoe that truly delivers on comfort as well as performance.
The Gym
While I love this shoe for the roads and even the dirt, I don’t think this would be an ideal pick as a general gym shoe. If your primary focus is getting into the gym to lift with some running on the side or in more recent developments you’re a hyrox athlete, I think the Deviate 3 would be the better choice for you. If you spend most of your times on the road and just do auxiliary work in the gym, you’re not gonna have an issue either way.
Daily Life
When it comes to wearing this shoe in daily life, my metric is that comfort is king and this shoe is royalty. It feels fantastic underfoot and has plenty of structure to get you through the long days. If you’re a shift worker and spending a lot of time on your feet I definitely recommend looking into this shoe. The biggest issue currently is availability of this model, but it looks like they will have plenty available in 2025.
Purchase the Magmax from Wild Pear Running with the code “spirit” at checkout and get 10% off your order!