You can keep your bouncy foam. For the best road running shoes, 2018 is the year of the Wave, at least as far as Mizuno is concerned. Mizuno designs the soles of its running shoes around the thermal plastic Wave plate that stores the energy of impact and returns the energy back into your stride—and also adds stability that no foam can match on its own. The Paradox 4 puts a full 32 mm of sole between your heel and the pavement, a full half centimeter more than any other shoe on this list, which gives the Paradox highly effective and reliable cushioning.