Brooks Glycerin GTS 20 Introduction
The Glycerin GTS 20 faithfully follows the Glycerin GTS 19 which mixed the secure, smooth-ride custom of Brooks Transcend with the model’s long-running Glycerin title and more-trimmed design. (What would have been “Transcend 8” grew to become “Glycerin GTS 19.”)
Regardless of a brand new midsole within the 20 and the truth that the price is up $10 from final yr, the $160 USD price ticket nonetheless matches that of Transcend 4 from early 2017 (and the 5, 6 and seven). From that perspective, the price just isn’t that dangerous.
Does it come by way of for the price? It relies on what you need.
Within the give-and-take between plush consolation and a lightweight journey, Glycerin GTS 20, just like the GTS 19, chooses to strip some higher from the Transcend to loosen up, coming in at 10.5 oz. (298 g.) in a US M9 / 9.4 oz. (266 g.) in a US W7.
The shoe just isn’t as plush however is extra streamlined for a lighter journey.
Drop .7 oz. extra off the burden by selecting their StealthFit higher, a brand new adaptable, compression knit possibility.
Brooks permits runners to tailor their sneakers with out going to special-order mode. Their web site gives the Glycerin, with decisions for “StealthFit” or “Basic” for the higher and “Impartial” or “Help” for the midsole.
Since I just like the assist from the GuideRails® expertise, I may see myself getting a StealthFit mannequin for day by day put on but a Basic match for placing on miles.
The mix of “StealthFit” plus “Help” would create a cushty life-style shoe that can deal with just a few miles on the weekends, or a reasonably supportive shoe for low-stability wants.
Brooks Glycerin GTS 20 First Impressions
Opening the field I noticed a typical Lite-Brite higher—nice for nostalgia however nothing distinctive in a running-shoe type. It appears to be like higher on-foot than I anticipated, and I’ve really been selecting it for some informal put on along with my runs.
On my first steps round my kitchen I instantly seen the rocker base, very very like previous Transcend fashions however even more-so. Although some reviewers are saying it’s much less “rockered” than the 19, don’t have any worries. The 20 just isn’t off its rocker; it’s lots secure and strikes shortly into toe-off.
The primary run confirmed my option to go together with my most well-liked running-shoe dimension and never go up as I did in Brooks prior to those revamped GTS fashions of 2021/22. I’ve a med-narrow heel which widens a bit on the ball. The present Brooks uppers match extra like ASICS and fewer like HOKA in accommodating my foot form—which is, I discovered when researching the Lululemon Blissfeel, extra typical for a girls’s foot.
It nonetheless took me about 20-25 miles to interrupt the higher in, nevertheless it didn’t “pinch” as too-tight suits do. Broad ft, strive a half-size up out of your common working shoe, or see if the StealthFit possibility permits sufficient stretch.
Slender ft strive a StealthFit in your common working shoe dimension as some are discovering the match to be too huge. It’s undoubtedly not “huge” per se, simply wider than the 19. The forefoot is barely wider than previous Transcends.
Brooks Glycerin GTS 20 Higher
The Basic match possibility combines a regular, sturdy, double-layer engineered mesh higher with conventional lacing and a moderately-plush tongue.
Add a shorter but still-solid heel counter and enough ankle padding, greater than discovered within the Launch GTS 9, the model’s speed-stability shoe, and Adrenaline GTS 22, a stability shoe midway between speed-specific and extremely cushioned.
My heel didn’t slip, and the shoe has common breathability. It was not too scorching on heat days or too ethereal in runs beneath freezing.
The StealthFit higher possibility, obtainable in each Glycerin and Glycerin GTS, permits for extra stretch and a contemporary feel and appear but a less-stable resistance to movement.
The StealthFit is very like Nike’s Flyknit of their React Infinity Run FK 2—with out as many shade choices however a genuinely cool black/white/cream for the GTS. This higher can also be much like that in adidas Ultraboost sneakers for a cushty match (and a way more low-key look). The stretchy ankle opening jogs my memory of New Stability’s Contemporary Foam Vongo V4, which I actually like and simply pulled out for some miles yesterday.
Brooks has a historical past of caring for the surroundings with their BioMoGo DNA in previous fashions. The Glycerin 20 is made with 32.4% recycled supplies within the higher which equates to 4.66 plastic bottles reworked from landfills!
Brooks Glycerin GTS 20 Sole Unit
The large focus this yr is Brooks’ nitrogen-infused DNA LOFT v3 midsole which supplies a softer touchdown than a standard EVA mix and a lighter journey than the model’s DNA LOFT.
This nitrogen strategy brings a singular really feel: comfortable but resilient—not plush. Pushing on the aspect it has good “give” but looks like it desires to blow up, like a comfortable pillow so compressed that it received’t let the pounding over miles maintain it down.
This creates a kind of softness to the touchdown with sufficient resilience that it appears agency into toe-off.
Total the short journey makes it really feel lighter than it’s. Due to this I used to be positive working velocity intervals on this shoe; whereas the Saucony Information 14, solely .3 oz. heavier, appears like useless weight, and the 1.1 oz. heavier HOKA Gaviota 3 is a shoe I put on if I wish to “energy prepare” over the run.
Like previous Transcend/Glycerin GTS fashions, the 20 has a rocker really feel underfoot with a fast transition into toe-off. The drop is 10 mm.
The GuideRails® stay largely unchanged since their 2019 revamp in Transcend 6. When it’s not damaged don’t repair it! This distinctive strategy to counter extra movement and alleviate stress on knees and hips works along with the higher’s heel counter to rein in motion. Medially, the GuideRails® bolster the arch of the shoe to direct foot movement ahead fairly than inward.
The outsole has thinned significantly from Transcend 6, beginning with a scaled-down Transcend 7 into a skinny layer of carbon rubber within the Glycerin GTS fashions. The outsole would be the first side of the shoe to wear down for a lot of runners.
The deepest flex groves within the 20 now run vertically versus horizontally, which makes it much less versatile, even perhaps aids a fast journey very like the half carbon plate in ASICS Magic Pace in maintaining the shoe curved, although in fact not as intense.
Brooks Glycerin GTS 20 Conclusions
The Glycerin GTS 20 has superior with the instances from a heavier Transcend that was extra plush and had a extra sturdy outsole.
Glycerin GTS 19 into 20 brings a thinner but nonetheless padded ankle, tongue, and outsole and retains a bought heel counter.
The newest midsole is resilient-soft with a useful rebound within the toe-off from a {smooth} transition, making the shoe really feel quick (for its weight) at faster paces.
Brooks has heightened its user-friendliness with choices to decide on a Basic or StealthFit higher on both Glycerin or Glycerin GTS, although with extra shade choices within the impartial shoe.
Work by way of a stiff higher to interrupt the shoe in but have extra stability lengthy haul, or strive the StealthFit choice to skip that step.
