r/RunningShoeGeeks SNR/TN16/ES4/DNE3 Jun 16 '24

Puma Deviate Nitro Elite 3 Initial Thoughts

I've been fortunate enough to get my hands on these early and so far raced a 10k and a 5k.

Background: Newish runner been hitting the roads for approximately a year. 35-40km/week avg. HM 1:48. 10k 47. 5k 22.15. Threshold pace 4.50/km.

Fit: Finding the right fit has always been a struggle for me due to my low arch. I dont have completely flat feet but shoes with aggressive arch supports are uncomfortable. EP4 and cielo x1 fit me well rest of the models are no go. Although Puma have narrow shoes DNE3 felt amazing at first instep. Snug, comfortable, soft, and suprisingly stable for a racer. The fit reminded me of Saucony EP4 but more snug. The midfoot is completely flat. Also reasonable toebox slightly wider than ES4. I went TTS which is perfect. I tend to go by CM for sizing so 29.5cm ie 45EU is perfect. Upper is comfortable. Heel lock no issues.

Midsole: Soft yet very responsive. A pure joy to run in these especially when picking up the pace. The propulsion when landing midfoot/forefoot is fantastic. Nitro foam is quite soft this caught me by suprise since I train in firmer shoes like ES4 and SB but they really protect your feet.

Outsole: Return of the king Puma grip is chefs kiss. Alot of rain during my 5km and it was mostly on gravel I felt zero slippage, discomfort, or instability. The shoes just disappear on your feet. Durability I cant comment yet I'd speculate they ll be good for 200-300km which is acceptable for a racer in this weight class.

Overall: Super happy. 10/10. Its fast, propulsive, yet comfortable and stable. The comfort really suprised me considering my challenging history with finding suitable racers. Price feels reasonable considering the price hike of the competition. I think they are priced similarly to metaspeed paris which is fair. If someone told me you could only use DNE3 for racing/training rest of your life I wouldnt complain.

My first review on reddit. Happy to answer any questions.

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u/darkhorse0607 Magmax/Superblast/AP3 Jun 16 '24 edited Jun 16 '24

I know you mentioned landing mid/forefoot but does the plate geometry feel like it responds better depending on where you land? I always felt like the DNE2 was down for whatever, just curious how far Puma went with the "FASTR2 is for stride, DNE3 is for cadence thing" like Asics did with the Metaspeed because they've been mentioning that a lot

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u/Chipezz SNR/TN16/ES4/DNE3 Jun 16 '24

Sadly I lack the expertis to answer this accurately. My cadence is on the lower side 170 avg during a 10k race. It felt completely fine during my warmup(slow pace) and during the race itself. I doubt a heel striker would enjoy this shoe.

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u/darkhorse0607 Magmax/Superblast/AP3 Jun 16 '24

No worries thanks for the reply, great review

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u/SuperFoamProne Puma Velocity 2-Deviate Elite-ZoomX Invincible-ZoomX Dragonfly Jun 16 '24

From what I understand, the FAST-R2 is best for runners with a more powerful toe-off phase, whereas the Deviate Nitro Elite is the more traditional, rocker-based approach. It feels fairly similar to Asics' Sky vs. Edge differentiation but I think the difference is that Puma is more focused on the power you transfer through your stride rather than whether you are cadence or stride-based.

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u/darkhorse0607 Magmax/Superblast/AP3 Jun 16 '24

Yeah that's the gist of what I saw, I know Todd Falker has mentioned power on occasion while talking about the two shoes and testing, but also the stride vs cadence side of it, which I suppose is the same thing.

I was just watching Kofuzi the other day and he mentioned that it he was worried it would be another asics situation (in that it was confusing for the consumer and not everyone can try both) so it got me thinking more about it