ASICS GT-4000 4 Review
By Matthew Klein
ASICS GT-4000 4Price: $140 at ASICS
Weight: 10.9 oz, 307 g (men's size 9), 9.6 oz, 272 g (women's size 8)
Stack Height: 39 mm heel / 31 mm forefoot
Drop: 8 mm
Shoe Purpose: Maximal Stability Daily Training Shoe
Pros: Great medial stability, comfortable fit, great for longer standing/walking
Cons: A bit heavy, slightly clunky heel
RUNNING SHOE SUMMARY
The ASICS GT-4000 4 is a maximal stability/motion control shoe for those who want a traditional medially posted trainer with a slightly wider fit and a comfortable, high stack, new age ride. The sandwich mesh upper provides a slightly wider and breathable fit that is comfortable for all-day wear. A large Lite Truss medial post that also wraps around to the lateral side sits in the midsole to provide a high level of support. The full-length FF Blast midsole and rearfoot Puregel provide a slightly softer ride that offsets the firm post, keeping a higher level of cushioning throughout the length of the shoe. The lightest, softest motion control shoe on the market right now, the ASICS GT-4000 4 is a rare trainer that provides full-length stability for those want the best of traditional and newer footwear technology.
SIMILAR SHOES: Brooks Addiction GTS 14, New Balance 1540v4
PAST MODEL: ASICS GT-4000 3
FIT
(To learn how a shoe should fit, check out our full podcast on fit by Matt Klein.)
Matt: The ASICS GT-4000 4 fits me true to size in my normal men's US size 10. The upper is a full-length sandwich engineered mesh that is soft and comfortable. It fits normal to slightly wider throughout the length of the shoe but I had no difficulty keeping the upper secure. The forefoot is a bit wide with only a slight toe box taper. This transitions into a slightly wider midfoot with a well-gusseted moderate to thin tongue. The tongue stayed secure on my feet and I did not experience any lace bite with the flat laces. The instep is fairly normal in height. The mesh of the upper has some flexibility and does stretch slightly to accommodate a few different foot types. This continues into the heel, which fits normally in width, has moderate heel collar padding and a thick/stiff heel counter. My insertional Achilles tendinopathy is doing better as this shoe did not bother my heel, which the rounded nature also helps with. Those with sensitive heels (irritable haglund deformity or insertional Achilles tendinopathy) may not do well with this shoe. The security in this shoe is good thanks to strategic overlays, a well-gusseted tongue and moderate heel collar padding. I have not experienced any sliding or slippage in this shoe. Additionally, the tongue and laces are easy to lock down without pinching the top of the foot. The inner liner of the upper is quite comfortable. Some people may be able to wear this shoe sockless and I have been able to done so for shorter runs. For longer runs, the mild toe guard may cause some rubbing, so socks are still suggested with this upper.
Typical Size: Men's US Size 10
Shoes that have fit Matt well: On Cloudboom Strike, Asics Gel-Nimbus 27, Xero HFS, Topo Cyclone 3, Adidas Adizero Evo SL
Shoes that have fit snug: Hoka Arahi 7, Brooks Launch 11, Diadora Mythos Vigore 3
Shoes that have fit large: Salomon S/Lab Phantasm 2, Adidas Agravic Speed Ultra
Doctors of Running Checklist
Is This a Good Shoe for Walking: Yes
Is This a Good Shoe for Standing: Yes
Is the Forefoot Flexible: Moderately
How Flexible is the Shoe: Not Flexible
Is This a Good Heel Bevel: Somewhat
Recommended for Haglunds: No
Is This Shoe Orthotic Friendly: No
Recommended for Sockless: Somewhat
Durability Expectation: Above Average
PERFORMANCE
Matt: The ASICS GT-4000 4 is a daily training shoe. It features full-length FF Blast, a rearfoot (heel) PureGel insert and a large Lite Truss post that runs most of the length of the medial side of the shoe, crosses at the midfoot and sits at the lateral midfoot. This creates a unique contrast of both soft and firm underfoot sensations. The weight is on the heavier side but the small bounce from the FF Blast helps make the shoe feel a little lighter than its listed weight. There is an 8 mm heel drop and that is what it feels like. There is a small bevel in the rearfoot, which initially felt clunky, but then the softer FF Blast and PureGel help smooth out the landing as the shoe broke in. The heel has slight clunkiness but is also somewhat soft. This transitions into a firmer midfoot due to the stiffness provided by the Lite Truss. This does break in after 15-20 miles, and it creates a smooth but highly stable transition.
The forefoot is the smoothest part of the shoe as it has the least amount of Lite Truss. The softer FF Blast is more prevalent and the smooth forefoot rocker easily rolls you forward. Despite most of the shoe being stiff, the forefoot has moderate flexibility once it breaks in. For those wanting a smooth transition off the front, this is great. Those with toe mobility deficits will not find enough stiffness here.
Pace-wise, the ASICS GT-4000 4 is meant for easy runs, recovery runs and slower long runs. The large and heavier nature of the shoe prevents it from even uptempo efforts. At slower and normal paces it feels best. I have used this shoe for short recovery runs to long runs and it has done well across those distances. I definitely noticed the weight on the long runs but the high medial stability was fantastic for my medial arch. Any attempt at picking up the pace felt heavy and slow. So for easier efforts, this shoe is consistent.
Despite the extensive outsole, the ASICS GT-4000 4 has average traction. On dry road and even mild dirt it was fine. On wet road I noticed a little bit of slipping. It wasn't terrible but I also was not completely sure-footed. This is offset by insane durability. I have 50 miles on my pair of GT-4000 4, which is far more than I expected to get for this review. I have ended up really liking this shoe for recovery runs, walking and running. I probably have another 10-15 miles of running and days of all-day standing/working in them. Despite this amount of use and my weird mechanics, the outsole has no wear at all and has continued to soft slightly without losing any cushioning. For those reasons, I expect this tank of a shoe to last a long time.
STABILITY
(Learn more about stability in our full guide)
Matt: The ASICS GT-4000 4 is a high-level stability/motion control shoe. It features a large, traditional medial post that runs from the heel into the forefoot. The same post extends into the midfoot to the lateral side only in the forefoot. This creates a noticeably stable and stiff midfoot, but the medial post is the most significant source of stability. I thought this would be overbearing, but as someone who needs a decent about of stability, it was actually quite comfortable. It may be that some of this aggressive stability is tamed by the softer FF Blast. However, this has provided noticeable medial support that has felt great on my irritated posterior tibialis. This is further stabilized by a wide midsole and large sidewalls on both the medial and lateral sides of the foot.
The medial post and sidewalls travel the full-length of the medial side, providing stability from heel to toe. The lateral side has stability most in the lateral midfoot, with the heel sidewalls keeping the foot from completely tipping off the lateral side. Despite the guidance elements, this shoe is truly best for those with medial stability needs and those with lateral stability will be pushed too far laterally. The lateral guidance line in the outsole may also direct the movement path to the lateral side from heel to forefoot. Therefore, those with high levels of heel and midfoot medial stability needs will do best, while those with moderate stability needs in the forefoot will also do well.
Editor's Note: What is the difference between the GT 1000, 2000, and 4000?
ASICS shoes when labeled GT are all stability related. The 1000 model is their budget friendly version and tends to be fairly mild stability. The 2000 is their more cushioned, high end offering that is both more premium than the 1000 and suited for those who have a moderate level of stability needs. The 4000 series is the highest stability level of shoes, featuring stability for those who have maximal stability needs.
Thoughts as a DPT: Do Motion Control Shoes Alter Mechanics and Are They Necessary?
By Matthew Klein
Stability shoes have died out recently for a variety of reasons. Some research and beliefs came about that stability shoes may not do what we thought they did. The concept of "motion control" was thought to be a bit extreme, given that some research suggested that people would continue to pronate/collapse regardless of the amount of posting. Conflicting research made this worse, with some studies suggesting that motion would change with stability methods while others said it didn't. Then came the realization that pronation was not the source of all injuries, pronation described a motion and not a pathology and things started to change.
This dramatic change came with assumptions and misunderstandings. While it is true that pronation describes a triplanar (3 part) motion, it does not mean stability shoes are useless. We know that those with a history of pronation-related injuries have reduced injury risk in motion control or stability shoes (Malisoux et al., 2016). Some of the most common running related injuries including Achilles tendinopathy, patellofemoral syndrome, ankle dorsiflexor tendinopathy, medial tibial stress syndrome, plantar fasciopathy, trochanteric bursitis, etc can be related to excessive foot/ankle pronation (Lopes et al., 2012). You can certainly have people that pronate heavily that don't have those injuries, but those who do and the modification of their pronation reduces symptoms, then they may have a pronation influenced or related injury.
The final piece of this was the believe that stability shoes do not change mechanics. A recent systematic review and meta-analysis by Esmaeili et al., (2025) found the opposite, that motion control shoes do influence mechanics. It may not be on the massive scale that we though, influencing motion at joints by 2-5 degrees. However, in those with injury or pathology, that can be a great way to modulate and reduce symptoms at both the foot/ankle and knee. The challenge with the data is that this research has only been done in the short term and longitudinal studies are scarce/almost non-existent. While motion control shoes can influence motion, we don't know what that means over the long-term. We know that they may reduce future risk of pronation-related injury but are not foolproof.
Transitioning to one of the most important current day concepts in footwear, comfort is still key. Many individuals, both walkers and runners, may still find supportive, stable shoes to be more comfortable. There is of course a sliding scale of perception and stable preference, but there are many that still want a stable shoe. While the neutral group should not be ignored, neither should the stability group. Most shoes are moving to being stable neutral instead of truly supportive. This is not a completely bad thing but this should not occur and induce the elimination of all stability shoes. Variety is key thanks to variation in human responses and needs, so the motion control shoe group, while not for everyone, is still important to part of the population.
Lopes, A. D., Hespanhol Jr, L. C., Yeung, S. S., & Costa, L. O. P. (2012). What are the main running-related musculoskeletal injuries? A systematic review. Sports Medicine, 42(10), 891-905.
Malisoux, L., Chambon, N., Delattre, N., Gueguen, N., Urhausen, A., & Theisen, D. (2016). Injury risk in runners using standard or motion control shoes: a randomised controlled trial with participant and assessor blinding. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 50(8), 481-487.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Matt: I have really enjoyed the ASICS GT-4000 4 as a stability shoe. It has been nice to have a more traditionally posted shoe combined with the newer cushioning and guidance concepts of today's age. I know stability isn't the hot topic right now but this is a great shoe. Stability still has a market in today's world and I am happy that ASICS seems to still put effort into this shoe. While I would of course like a slightly larger bevel, there isn't a ton I would recommend changing. The post is great, the extension into the lateral side helps keep some degree of centeredness, the upper is comfortable and the weight is low for how large of a medial post sits in this shoe. I would love to see more weight drop off but not at the sacrifice of the stability and guidance found in this shoe.
I would advocate for newer foams, like FF Blast+, but only if that doesn't increase the fantastic $140 price and doesn't offset the stability too much. This shoe balances many things well and is appropriate for what it sets out to do.
So all I ask is that ASICS continue with this shoe. Don't discontinue it, just refine it. Don't remove the post, because many people in this world still do well with them.
WHO IS THIS SHOE FOR?
Matt: The ASICS GT-4000 4 is a high stability/motion control shoe for those who want a highly medially stable shoe for slower running, walking and standing. It is an orthopedic shoe without the excessive weight and clunkiness, running far lighter and smoother than any of the others in its class. The upper will work for those with normal to slightly wider feet and a wide version will work for those that want more room. The ride will work best for those who don't mind a little extra weight, a slightly softer ride, a stiffer midfoot and a smooth forefoot transition. The stability will work for those with heel-to-forefoot medial stability needs, with the highest levels in the midfoot and heel.
The GT-4000 differentiates itself from the Kayano series by having a true medial post, being firmer and more medially stable compared to the highly centered and bouncy 4D medial guidance system in the Kayano 32. It is one of the few shoes left with a true medial post and also one of the only motion control shoes. It is a fantastic deal at $140 with its uniqueness and high durability. Many motion control shoes were not comfortable in the past and the GT-4000 4 shows you can have a highly medially stable, posted, comfortable shoe.
As I mentioned in the recommendations section, while this shoe isn't for everyone, I really hope ASICS continues this series and updates it appropriately. These shoes, like the Brooks Beasts/Ariels and New Balance 1240s, still fit some people quite well. Just because not everyone needs stability doesn't mean you should eliminate the high ones completely. Many people still do well in these shoes and have a need for them. Variety is good.
GRADES
Matt
Fit: A- (Comfortable and secure slightly wider fit. Stiffer counter, moderate padding, strategic overlays and good tongue gusseting keep a secure fit)
Performance: B (Heavier but smooth shoe for easy and slower long runs. Light for how much shoe and post is there)
Stability: A [Motion Control] (Massive medial post that extends to lateral midfoot along with sidewalls, wider sole, lateral guidance line make for a high stability and guidance shoe)
Value: A ($140 for an insanely durable shoe that also is the lightest motion control shoe is a great deal)
Personal: A- (I enjoyed this shoe way more than I expected. It is now my go to walking shoe. I of course wish this was lighter but not sure if it can be without sacrificing the stability. I love that this shoe type still exists and doesn't suck. It is far better than prior motion control shoes. I just wish the rest of the industry had evolved their shoes like this instead of discontinuing them)
Overall Design: A-
SHOP | SUPPORT DORASICS GT-4000 4Price: $140 at ASICS
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FURTHER READING
A highly rockered max cushion ride.
Their premium max cushion shoe.
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