Under Armour HOVR Guardian 2 test & review - A shoe for running beginners
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Unboxing the Under Armour HOVR Guardian 2, I was not impressed. It seemed to me like a standard running shoe, nothing fancy about it.
What is something special is the sensor pod in the right shoe that you can connect to the Under Armour app, MapMyRun, that is downloadable for Apple and android system.
Under Armour positions the shoe in the "high mileage" section and recommends to use it on long runs. But, doing my first runs, it quickly became obvious to me that I have to distinguish two types of runners here.
First runners, I named "running beginners "or those doing one or max two runs a week and possesses only one running shoe. Second is the "running intermediate or running expert "who therefore is doing 3+ runs a week and owns more than three shoes (Friends of mine have up to 10 in parallel).
A running beginner needs a very versatile and stable shoe as the muscles and tendons usually are not used to the stress running will put on the foot. So, stability is something that comes in handy.
It should be an allrounder as well as the shoe will be run on different terrain.
The price for the Guardian 2 is highly competitive, coming in at $130.
I can safely say that the Guardian 2 can be run on nearly all terrain except heavy trails.
The Guardian is a lot like the company's Infinite, a plush neutral trainer. It uses a thick layer of HOVR foam to take out the sting from running on hard surfaces.
But, the Guardian 2 dials up stability by using two densities of foam in the surrounding frame, essentially adding a medial post under the arch.
There's also a "TPU chassis," a plastic insert into the medial post to further add support in that area. This should be good for any running beginner, and there is not much lacking here.
It is pretty straightforward to install the MapMyRun App on your cellphone and connect your shoe. Then, you just have to start the recording and move.
The data stored can be viewed on the app or the Internet, and it is for FREE!! Big thumbs up for Under Armour here.
If I look at the shoe out of my perspective, considering myself at least an intermediate runner, I come to a completely different conclusion.
I simply can't find an environment where I would prefer the Guardian 2 to any shoe I own.
On gravel, the Guardian 2 is doing okay but not standing out.
I guess most of the expert runners will have a cupboard of shoes as well and will have the same thoughts.
The shoe is solid—that's for sure—but not standing out in any section.
In conclusion, I can recommend running beginners to consider buying the Under Armour Guardian 2, after having a look at all the different aspects. But, intermediate to expert runners should look elsewhere.
Michael Plendl
RunRepeat Expert