When Nike first announced its Mind series of sports shoes and promised they would alter your mind, I was sceptical. The shoes, developed with Kobe Bryant and teams of neuroscientists, are designed to help you feel calmer and more relaxed. They’re also great for recovery. They’ve got bright orange rubber nodes on the bottom that you walk on.
There are two shoes to pick from in the range: the Nike Mind 001 sliders and Mind 002 trainers. I’ve had my feet in both to see what they’re really like, and what I found was surprising.
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Underfoot, each of the shoes has 22 rubbery foam nodes that prod at your soles like a tiny army of well-meaning masseuses. The idea is to stimulate specific sensory areas in the brain, nudging your mind into a more grounded, focused state. Whether that happens or not… well, the jury’s still out. But the physical sensation? That’s very real – and surprisingly pleasant once you get past the initial stage of wondering what’s poking your feet.
The effect is more pronounced in the Mind 002 trainers, especially when striding over hard flooring. The structure anchors your foot in place, letting the nodes work their magic with every step. I wore them with socks, which dulled the sensation slightly. But they’re ideal to wear before as a pregame shoe any sort of exercise.
Then there’s the Mind 001 sliders, which are far more chill. They’re closed-toe, comfy as anything, and blissfully sock-optional – a rarity for me when it comes to sliders. After the initial weirdness of the foot nodes, the sensation become second nature. Honestly, I preferred wearing these day to day. After walking roughly 30k steps a day at CES, my feet were crying out for some sort of intervention, and this felt like a decent response.
Did I feel a noticeable calm descend over me? Not quite. But there was definitely a stronger connection with the ground, which made each step feel a bit more intentional. I must say that both shoes, but particularly the sliders, made my feet feel extremely supported. At home, I’ll probably switch to these instead of my usual pair of slippers – at least for a while longer.
If you want a pair of these for yourself, there’s good news. The Nike Mind 001 are available as of today for $95/£80 from Nike directly, while the Mind 002 will be out later this month for $145/£130.
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