Altra Escalante 3

Summary

Weight: Men's 263g / Women's 219g
Heel-to-toe drop: 0mm

A lightweight, flexible, zero-drop shoe for road running. It features an anatomical fit with plenty of room for your toes. 100% vegan.

Men's Altra Escalante 3
Men's Zero-Drop Running Shoes
£130

Women's Altra Escalante 3
Women's Zero-Drop Running Shoes
£130

Features

Ego midsole offers responsive but soft cushioning
Lightweight upper provides breathability
Refined shape for improved versatile fit
Flex grooves for flexible ride
Fully vegan

Pros

Lovely soft, bouncy cushioning that still feels good after a lot of wear
Very flexible – not at all restrictive to any part of the foot
Soft heel counter – comfortable if you have sensitive heels
Footshaped so your toes can spread. Also great if you have a wide forefoot, Morton's neuroma or bunions
Zero drop so your heel and forefoot are on the same level - not tilted forward - to align your body correctly and encourages midfoot striking

Cons

Due to the zero drop midsole this trainer might not be suitable for heavy heel strikers

In Testing

I'm on my second pair of Escalante now and I absolutely love them. I use them for running, walking and wearing to work. I have a wide forefoot and normally use a D width running shoe so the broad shape of the Altra forefoot suits me perfectly. As soon as I put my foot in the Escalante, it feels comfortable – It's great (and rare for me) to have a shoe that doesn't feel like it's squeezing any part of my foot. They hold my midfoot securely and I love having room to wiggle my toes.

I like to mix up my running shoes to reduce the strain of repeated motion on my legs so I use the Escalante for short runs. I have a high arch, hyper mobile ankles and I pronate a lot so I need a bit more stability than it gives for longer runs (I tend to use the Brooks GTS D or the New Balance W860 D for those). It's flexible enough to do some faster running in and I really appreciate the unrestricted feeling and the nice cushioning that the Altra Ego midsole gives.

Verdict

I've had zero drop shoes in the past. I've noticed my running posture is better in a low drop shoe, but I found the truly barefoot shoes a bit too harsh underfoot. Having a zero drop shoe with some shock absorption is ideal for me.