Running shoes have gotten wild. We have enormous stacks of foam, carbon plates , increasingly elaborate rocker geometries, and enough proprietary materials to make a chemistry professor scratch their heads. (Serves them right—a B?!) And while all of that technology has produced some truly epic trainers, sometimes you just want to put on a pair of running shoes and get your butt out the dang door.

That’s where the Mizuno Wave Rider 30 comes in clutch. It’s a decidedly normal daily running shoe, and I love that about it. There’s no break-in period, you aren’t bouncing on a plate trying to beat a land speed course record, and it’s not forcing your feet with rails.…