Clifton 11 vs Velocity Nitro 4

The Clifton 11 is Hoka's everyday workhorse: a neutral, cushioned daily training shoe built to soak up easy miles and keep your legs fresh. With a tall 42mm heel and an 8mm drop it sits firmly in the plush-but-usable camp, softer underfoot than the Clifton 10 it replaces. This is a running shoe for base miles, recovery days and long steady efforts, not for chasing splits. At 283g it is not the featherweight the Clifton name once implied, so if you want pop you will look elsewhere. What you get instead is comfort and predictability. It is a sensible first proper trainer and an easy shoe to build a training week around. If your running is mostly relaxed and you want cushioning that lasts the distance, the Clifton 11 is one of the safest picks in the daily category. Just do not expect it to feel fast.

The Velocity Nitro 4 is Puma at its most sensible: a do-everything daily training shoe built to soak up mile after mile without asking much of your legs or your wallet. At 245g with a 9.7mm drop it sits in the sweet spot for a road workhorse, light enough to pick up the pace but cushioned enough for a two-hour long run. Nitro foam gives it a lively, slightly springy feel that flatters easy running, and at an RRP of £110 it undercuts most of the daily trainers it competes with. This is not a carbon racer and it does not pretend to be. It is the shoe you reach for on ordinary days, the one that quietly logs most of your weekly volume. If you want a single, honest running shoe that handles easy runs, steady miles and the occasional tempo without fuss, the Velocity Nitro 4 is one of the safest picks in its class. Runners who want the extra pop of a plate should look at the Deviate Nitro 4 instead.