Asics Gel Cumulus 23 vs Cumulus 22 Comparison Shoe Review

Josh reviews the mid to high mileage Asics Gel Cumulus 23 running shoes that deliver consistent comfort for neutral runners and weighs in on the updates from the Asics Gel Cumulus 22.

Cushioning in a weight-saving package makes the new Cumulus ideal for runners seeking a lighter shoe on their longer runs, or a touch more protection during your interval training when you’re shifting the pace up a gear.

Full ground contact creates a smooth and consistent purchase with the road with hard-wearing rubber in strategic zones for heel striker-friendly engineering and flex grooves running the entire length of the shoe. Fractionally thicker rubber underfoot provides a softer feel and improved protection of the FlyteFoam midsole.

This cushioning technology provides a forgiving yet lightweight sensation for your daily training. Gender-specific engineering caters to the variations in biomechanics between female and male runners, with the compression rate of the foam more precisely accommodating the different angle of footstrike.

It features a more tightly woven engineered mesh upper compared to the earlier generation without compromise to breathability. Recycled materials are put into play to reduce your carbon footprint while boosting your enjoyment on the road.

The reflective panelling illuminates in vehicle headlights, keeping you safe and seen in the low light hours so you don’t have to press pause on your training when the sun goes down.

Check out the review with full transcript below.

Hey guys, Josh here from Sportitude Running and in my hand I hold the new Asics Gel Cumulus 23. In today's review we'll be talking about what this shoe is all about. We’ll talk about the outsole, the midsole and the upper, and compare the Asics Gel Cumulus 22 and the 23.

We’ll talk about the foot type that could be considering this shoe and give you all the information you need at home to maybe throw this into your shoe rotation. Without further ado let's get stuck in.

Runner Profile

First things first, let's talk about what runner should be considering the Cumulus 23. It is a neutral running shoe so we're talking about a foot type that has a slightly higher arch. When this foot is in a static position on the ground there's a bit of real estate between the arch and the ground.

When they come through and transition from heel to midfoot then midfoot to toe-off, the central part of the foot will take most of the pressure and maybe there will be a little bit of bias towards the outside for that under pronated or supinated foot type before they get ready to toe-off out of the gait.

However, there are stable neutral runners out that have a static position with more splayed arches. When this person comes through their transition from midstance, pressure is still through the central part of the foot and they don't have too much tendency to favour the medial side. They'll continually transition through the central part of their foot, with a second to third metatarsal toe-off through the end of their gait cycle.

The Cumulus 23 is a mid to high mileage running shoe. The Asics Gel Nimbus 23 which is their max cushioned high mileage neutral running shoe sits above this shoe, but the Cumulus franchise for a number of years has been such an honest contributor to the Asics running range.

The main reason being is it still has plenty of cushioning underneath the heel and through the forefoot, but you're reducing the weight ever so slightly underneath the foot.

When I say honest, I mean it because stable neutral shoes like this provide a smooth and consistent transition. It's not too dissimilar from the Brooks Ghost 13 or the New Balance Fresh Foam 880v11. They're good, reliable and honest running shoes.

Outsole

Let's get into the engineering of this shoe, starting from the ground and working our way up. We have full ground contact the whole way through the shoe. There is a few different decoupling lines or flex grooves strategically placed to provide ample flexibility for the runner underneath the foot, being not too dissimilar to what they achieved last year with the Cumulus 22. 

The main difference is the actual flexibility or the cutaway into the midsole. Asics have come into the midsole just a fraction more and the thickness of rubber is marginally thicker underneath the Cumulus 23.

That is potentially providing a little bit more protection for the midsole and because they've cut deeper into the midsole both through the forefoot and the vertical decoupled line, it’ll provide a slightly softer ride underneath the foot.

As we touched on before, being full ground contact in both the Cumulus 22 and 23, there is rubber that's been strategically placed in those hard-wearing areas. Often heel strikers will require a slightly more durable rubber underneath the heel and same goes for the Cumulus 22 from last year.

Midsole

Moving onto the midsole, with the Cumulus 23 we have a slightly different heel-to-toe drop in the men's and women’s model. We have a 23mm heel and a 13mm forefoot for a variance of 10mm heel-to-toe drop in the men’s model. In the women’s model it's marginally different. We have 22mm heel and 12mm forefoot, still offering that 10mm heel-to-toe drop.

While we're talking about changes from the men's to women's model, Asics in their lab have done something that they've played around with before in some of the other running shoes. Through all their data collection they have obviously found a pattern with where men strike the ground and what angle they strike the ground in comparison to women.

Inside the midsole they've provided a slightly different angle of compression rate through the foam. This is not the case for every single person but when they collected their data from their cohort of runners of men and women, the women tended to strike on more of a lateral component of the heel. The angle which they compress the foam needs to be marginally different to the men’s model.

It's clever for a brand to identify that there are gender specific requirements, not only in the heel-to-toe drop but also the compression rate of foam. That's just one subtle difference between the men's and the women's model as well as the widths that we’ll get to in two ticks.

Back to the midsole, as I touched on before it is neutral so there's no arch support or additional dynamic support system on the medial side. The density of foam on the inside of this shoe is the same as the outside. Asics have their patented Gel technology which is strategically placed underneath the heel.

The FlyteFoam cushioning system sits on the top layer of this midsole to provide a little bit of softness underneath the foot for your transition through your gait cycle.

While we're talking about the Gel, we also have a Twist Gel pod which is placed underneath the first metatarsal or your big toe. That is there not to provide cushioning, it's to provide that joint with a bit of support to assist in that load before you then get ready to toe-off out of your gait cycle.

Upper

Let's dial into the upper of the Cumulus 23. We have an engineered mesh up top, and we had an engineered mesh in the Cumulus 22 from last year.

To the naked eye there is a subtle variance. There's a slightly closer woven mesh upper in the Cumulus 23 and we had a slightly more open weave in the Cumulus 22. You're probably thinking you're going to get more ventilation in the Cumulus 22 versus the Cumulus 23. However, I can certainly say this shoe provided plenty of airflow for my wear testing and I was really satisfied with the amount of ventilation I had with the Cumulus 23.

The upper of the Cumulus 23 is made from 20% recycled materials. That’s a good thing, I like when brands are doing all they can to reintroduce recycled materials into their production of running shoes. Let’s hope to see it get to 30%, 40% or 50% in the coming years. Well done to Asics.

When we're talking about the function and features of the upper, we have at the back an internal heel counter which is no different than the Cumulus 22. The internal heel counter is that plastic system which sits around the back of your heel which provides ample support to keep you on top of the midsole, so you won't be moving around. It’s a really supportive structure at the back.

I'd probably say the collar on the inside is a little bit thicker than the Cumulus 22 but that's my opinion. The other runners who work with us and did some wear testing last month said that it was almost identical.

The arch area has a nice amount of depth. I personally find this shoe fits identical to the Cumulus 22 from the tongue forward. I didn't find this to be too tight or too loose. It was a really comfortable fit in my preferred width, being D width and it was the same thing with the Cumulus 23. I really like how it fits and feels on top of the shoe.

When we're talking about the structure and integrity of the tongue, we essentially have a tongue that's a little thicker. You want comfort on top of your arch, but it is sewn in. When I pull the tongue up it stays nice and secure.

There's no gusseted system on the medial or the lateral side. That’s probably one thing I'd love to see added to this shoe in the future. I didn't find the tongue to fall to the outside or the medial side, so it did still stay in position which is a good thing.

As we come through to the forefoot, as I touched on earlier it is a slightly tighter, woven construction. The light grey areas in and around the black mesh almost looks like a camouflage setup. They are reflective panelling, so it does aid in the early morning or late at night if you happen to be running when the sun has gone to sleep. If someone has their headlights on you, you should light up like a Christmas tree.

That’s a good thing because you want to make sure that you're seen out on the road, whether you're wearing reflective gear up top, a hat, headlight or your shoes do light up. Obviously, safety first so it's a good add-on from Asics, well done.

Widths

While we're talking about the upper let's touch on the widths. We have had a subtle change with the widths in the Cumulus 23 from the Cumulus 22. In the men’s model we have a D standard and a 2E width on offer which is slightly wider. The same thing goes for the women’s model with a B standard and a D width on offer.

Last year we had the 2A in the women’s model which was a narrower width and then we had an additional wider width in the men's model in Australia which was a 4E. That doesn't seem to be the case this season.

Who knows it may return in the back half of 2021 but at this point in time for the middle six months of the year that’s the two widths of the men's and women's model on offer.

The Wrap Up

Wrapping up the Asics Gel Cumulus 23, in my opinion it is a slight improvement on the Cumulus 22. It’s slightly softer underneath the foot which is a good thing. You’re getting a little bit more cushioning and the shoe hasn't really changed in weight.

Being a mid to high mileage running shoe it's slightly lighter than the Asics Gel Nimbus which is its older brother and sister. The weight of this shoe is 280 grams in the men’s size 9 and 230 grams in the women's size 7.

By no means are they heavy – they feel nice and light underneath the foot. You're certainly getting plenty of protection.

It's a good shoe for someone who wants a lighter mileage shoe and for someone who wants to have a shoe to do tempo sets or interval running with a bit more protection. It's going to do it for you which is fantastic.

If you have any questions, concerns, queries or theories on the Asics Gel Cumulus 23 please contact our Sportitude shoe experts. If you've been a Cumulus wearer before I’d love to hear your feedback and what you thought about that shoe.

Please subscribe to the Sportitude YouTube channel by hitting the red button. Stay notified and we'll keep pumping out shoe reviews for you at home to give you all the information that we can on your running shoe selections.

Until next time stay safe and be kind to each other. Happy running and we’ll see you on the road. Take care.

FEATURES

• Support: Neutral
• Upper: Mesh
• Midsole: Asics FlyteFoam

Men

• Heel Height: 23mm
• Forefoot Height: 13mm
• Offset / Drop: 10mm
• Weight: 280g / 9.87oz (US 9)
• Width: D (standard), 2E (wide)

Women

• Heel Height: 22mm
• Forefoot Height: 12mm
• Offset / Drop: 10mm
• Weight: 230g / 8.11oz (US 7)
• Width: B (standard), D (wide)