Puma Pure: Pure Speed Meets Lightweight Performance

ON THE RUN

Jacob: In a world where the $150 uptempo non-plated trainer is dominating the market, Puma has released the purr-fect shoe that can compete! This is one of the most competitive markets in the industry currently with a lot of great shoes, but the Pure stands out. I had the Pure circled on my calendar to review for a few months, and thankfully it has lived up to the expectations. It is a firmer feel than some of the other shoes in the category, but feels like a springboard underfoot.

Kaden: The Puma Deviate Pure Nitro falls into one of the most exciting and competitive segments of current shoe design, competing with the likes of the New Balance Rebel and Asics Novablast for the title of best up-tempo daily trainer. Thankfully for Puma, the Deviate Pure positions itself well with a featherweight feel that makes the shoe disappear on your foot during the run. Even with the light weight, a 38mm stack of Puma’s outstanding Nitro foam ensures that you’ll be comfortable for any distance of run you choose to put the Puma through. At an easy pace, the foam feels soft and springy enough to cushion any amount of pavement-pounding. Pushing the pace is too easy to ask of the Deviate Pure, that same soft cushion transforms into a spring to launch you forward with ease. That combination of cushion, light weight, and versatility makes the Puma Deviate Pure Nitro a no-brainer for any distance your heart desires.

THE FIT 

Jacob: Puma has always been a brand that fits on the slim side, but the Pure is one of their more forgiving fits in their lineup. It's a good mix between lock down and roomy that has my foot feeling supported. Still, if you have a more narrow foot, this will be a great shoe for you! The upper's use of engineered mesh gives a flexible feeling to my toes. One of my favorite qualities about any Puma shoe, however, is the best grip in the industry, that being Puma Grip. I feel like my shoes are glued to the ground with every step and she shoe won't betray me by slipping or sliding with the traction this shoe gives.

Kaden: Puma chose to keep the fit of the Deviate Pure in line with their other performance trainers, leading to a locked in heel, tapered toe box, and a tongue soft enough to question if it was originally made to be a blanket. The toe box shape makes sense for the intended purpose of the shoe as an uptempo daily trainer, but wider foot runners may find the fit to be on the narrow side. If you’ve liked the way other shoes in the Deviate Nitro series have felt, you’ll feel right at home with the Pure.

THE FEEL

Jacob: The cushion to this shoe is nothing new to Puma, that being their Nitro foam. Nitro foam is a PEBA-based foam that gives a firmer yet springy feel under foot. Think of a good firm mattress. The best mattresses, at least to me, are the firmer ones that you don't sink into. It keeps you in place and you wake up fresh with no pain. I find that in the max cushion, max stack world of shoes, the lower stack and firmer feel of the Pure Nitro is refreshing!

Kaden: The Deviate Pure Nitro comes off as slightly firmer underfoot than its competition, helping carve out its own niche as the most stable of the non-plated race foam trainers. While soft, high stacks of foam can be squirrely and unforgiving to runners prone to ankle sprains, the Deviate Pure keeps things more grounded and opens up a whole new world of possibility for the shoe: cross training. Puma already dominates the performance oriented cross trainer space, with the Hyrox edition of their flagship Deviate Nitro Elite being one of the most popular do-it-all shoes on the world stage. The Deviate Pure offers much of the same capability, with the best in class Puma Grip rubber outsole giving you a level of traction you wish your car could match. Combine that with a firmer, but still flexible stack of Nitro foam and you’re left with a shoe that can handle any pace, any lift, or any challenge no matter the sport.

THE NITTY GRITTY

Jacob: If you are going on vacation and have room for only one shoe, the Pure is one of the best to pack. I have been using it as a multi-purpose shoe. It's main purpose has been running, but I have also worn it for walking, and even a gym/lifting shoe. This is a shoe that can wear many hats. I'd recommend this shoe for shorter distance just due to the firmer feel, but it will be a great training shoe for that upcoming road race/cross country shoe. This is a shoe that falls in line with the Novablast 6, Neo Zen 2, and Rebel v5 as that lightweight peppy trainer, with a firmer twist.

Kaden: I put the Deviate Pure Nitro through its paces everywhere from easy recovery jogs to workout-level strides that would humble even marathon racing shoes. I was very impressed by just how good the Pure felt no matter the pace. Some shoes feel unstable at slow speeds, or too clunky to feel fast in, but that was not the case with the Pure Nitro. This shoe has a toned down rocker compared to some of the other shoes in its segment, a feature that helps its versatility to feel great at any pace, not just a tempo threshold. Short runs, long runs, Hyrox events and PR attempts are all on the table here. This is the most versatile shoe Puma has ever made, and one of the best all around performers I’ve ever run in.

THE RUNDOWN

Jacob: The name "Pure" fits this shoe very well. It feels like a breath of fresh air, a mix of the past and the present into one great shoe. Not too much of anything, just a solid shoe that I will be logging miles onto during my training.

Kaden: If you asked me to pick out one shoe from the Running Lab catalogue that I would be forced to use for every single run the rest of the year, it would be the Puma Deviate Pure Nitro without a doubt. No other shoe on the market can match the “pure” versatility that it offers, or feel so great while doing it. The Pure is not a shoe that will hold you back, it’ll only push you forward. Every single time I walk out the door ready for a run, if the Deviate Pure Nitro isn’t on my feet, it’s definitely on my mind as an option for the day’s exercise. For runner’s looking for an exciting, stable, all around training option, look no further; the Puma Deviate Pure Nitro is the shoe you’ve been waiting for.