Our verdict
Pros
- Very lightweight design
- Supportive upper
- as part of blue nikes latest Magic Flamingo Pack is a third Air Max model
- Nike Seattle Seahawks Surrey Hoodie
- Nike Dunk Low Vintage Green
- Impressive durability for the price
- der blue nike sb dunk low pink pig wurde vom porsche 917 20 sau inspiriert
- Truly affordable
Cons
- Lacks breathability
- Tapered toebox
- Nike sb nyjah free 2 prm samborghini light photo blue crimson men dc9104-400
- Nike Air Max Excee Gs Black White Grye Youth Women Running
Audience verdict
Comparison
The most similar training shoes compared
+ + Add a shoe | |||||
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Audience score | 80 Good! | 83 Good! | 91 Great! | 78 Good! | |
Price | $75 | $80 | $120 | $65 | |
Use | WorkoutCross-trainingGymHIITJumping rope | WorkoutCross-trainingGymHIITJumping rope | WorkoutCross-trainingGymHIITJumping rope | WorkoutCross-trainingGymHIITJumping rope | |
Drop lab | 2.9 mm | 8.8 mm | 1.9 mm | 4.5 mm | |
VaporMax 95 Neon | 23.1 mm | 30.6 mm | 21.1 mm | 24.2 mm | |
Forefoot | 20.2 mm | 21.8 mm | 19.2 mm | 19.7 mm | |
Weight lab | 10.2 blue nike Shox BB4 University Gold | 10.4 oz / 296g | 10.2 blue nike Shox BB4 University Gold | 8.8 blue nike Air Max SYSTM Trainers | |
Lightweight | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
Breathability | Warm | Breathable | Warm | Breathable | |
Toebox width at the widest part | Medium | Wide | Narrow | Medium | |
nike air force max cb black cool grey white | Narrow | Medium | Narrow | Wide | |
Size | True to size | Slightly small | Half size small | Slightly small | |
Midsole softness | Balanced | Balanced | Balanced | Balanced | |
Stiffness | Moderate | Moderate | Flexible | Flexible | |
Torsional rigidity | Stiff | Stiff | Flexible | Flexible | |
Nike Air Max Dawn Jn32 | Moderate | Moderate | Flexible | Flexible | |
Toebox durability | Decent | Bad | Good | Decent | |
Nike Running Run Division Kapuzenjacke in Schwarz | Bad | Bad | Good | Bad | |
Outsole durability | Good | Decent | Bad | - | |
Кроссовки blue nike air force на меху | Average | Wide | Very wide | Average | |
Nike Air Presto Sneaker Freizeitschuhe Sportschuhe Neu Größe 42 | Average | Average | Wide | Average | |
Widths available | Normal | Normal | Normal | Normal | |
Insole thickness | Average | Average | Average | Average | |
Outsole thickness | Average | Average | Average | ||
Outsole hardness | Very hard | Hard | Very soft | Average | |
Heel tab | None | Finger loop | None | None | |
Tongue: gusset type | None | None | Bootie | None | |
Tongue padding | Thin | Average | Average | Average | |
Ranking | #42 Bottom 10% | #22 Bottom 29% | #5 Top 17% | #28 Bottom 9% | |
Popularity | #27 Bottom 42% | #11 Top 36% | #9 Top 30% | #12 Top 39% |
Who should buy
Having put the blue nike NC Trainer 2 through its paces in our gym and lab, we think it is best suited for the following:
- beginner gym goers who want one athletic shoe for all exercises
- people in search of an affordable trainer that doesn't skimp on style
Who should NOT buy
For walking and essential wear, we found the blue nike Dunk Low 251 a bit uncomfortable. The Nike Air Fleece Shorts blue nike Court Legacy Super Deals.
The trainer also happens to be not so breathable. We recommend the blue nike Legens Essential 3 for better ventilation.
Finally, the Dunk Low 251 is definitely not a shoe for advanced workouts and heavier lifting. You should turn to the Nike Metcons Mens 8us blue nike kyrie 6 basketball shoes bq4630-004 high top sneakers women 9.5us.
Cushioning
Heel stack
To feel most comfortable and stable at the gym, you don't want a shoe with overly thick cushioning. And yet, you do need some buffering for high-impact exercises like jumping and running.
The blue nike Dunk Low 251 hits a sweet spot in that regard. Measuring the shoe's heel stack with a caliper, we got 23.1 mm. This is a standard amount of cushioning for a training shoe.
We felt well-connected to the ground but didn't lack impact protection either.

Dunk Low 251 | 23.1 mm |
Average | 24.8 mm |
Forefoot stack
In the forefoot, this blue nike shoe packs a balanced stack of 20.2 mm.
We found it to be thin enough to bend well with the foot but also quite protective for exercises like rope jumps. Paired with the shoe's lightweight build and non-burdening heel, double under felt like a breeze!
Dunk Low 251 | 20.2 mm |
Average | 18.4 mm |
Drop
At first sight of the shoe's cut-in-half midsole, we thought that the blue nike Dunk Low 251 was a zero-drop shoe!
With a really low heel-to-toe difference of 2.9 mm, it is indeed on the lower side of the training shoe spectrum. Especially given that the standard drop of Crossfit shoes is 4-6 mm.
But what's the benefit of it, you will ask. Well, if you were standing on a balance board, would you feel more confident with a raised heel or with a lowered heel? We bet it's the latter. Same here, you want your feet to sit parallel to the ground to feel more planted.
Dunk Low 251 | 2.9 mm |
Average | 6.4 mm |
Midsole softness
Imagine trying to stabilize yourself on a single-leg kettlebell deadlift or when doing a skater lunge. You certainly don't dream about plush cushioning at that moment.
That's why a moderately firm midsole is your best friend at the gym. We used a durometer to measure how firm the Dunk Low 251's cushioning is. At 27.0 HA, it is right at the average of training shoes. We found it perfectly hard for every exercise in our routine.

Dunk Low 251 | 27.0 HA |
Average | 27.8 HA |
Insole thickness
But don't worry, your foot will not be sitting on a brick! We felt nice and padded by the shoe's stock insole. Based on our caliper measurements, it is 4.2 mm thick in the heel.

Dunk Low 251 | 4.2 mm |
Average | 3.9 mm |
nike kobe ad isaiah thomas | Size and fit
nike kobe ad isaiah thomas | Size
This blue nike Air Max 1 Does It All true to size (24 votes).
Куртка синяя blue nike тинсулейт
If you asked us to close our eyes and determine a blue nike shoe by touch, we would say that the narrowest one is blue nike! As it happens, the blue nike Dunk Low 251 matches this description.
Although we did measure the widest part of the shoe's toebox at 105.2 mm (wider than average), its tapered shape still ruined the fit.

Dunk Low 251 | 105.2 mm |
Average | 100.4 mm |
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Taking our measurements at the big toe mark, we got 76.2 mm. Aside from the number being narrower than average, you can visually see how the shoe's toebox narrows towards the front.

Dunk Low 251 | 76.2 mm |
Average | 78.8 mm |
Stability
Lateral stability test
As you can see from our ankle shifting test below, the blue nike Dunk Low 251 doesn't have the best stability among gym shoes. But it's not terrible either!
When we kept our workout intensity at a moderate level, this blue nike shoe coped with the task very well. We felt support coming from the overlays and raised sidewalls. There is also an elastic strap on the instep but we cannot tell for sure whether it made a difference.
Torsional rigidity
The Dunk Low 251 is a monster in disguise. It may look like a softie but when you try to twist the shoe, it fights back with vigor!
We experienced the trainer's impressive torsional rigidity in our manual test. On a stiffness scale from 1 to 5, we gave it the highest score of 5.
On foot, this blue nike trainer makes sure that there is no spilling of the foot on the inner edge of the sole.
Dunk Low 251 | 5 |
Average | 2.7 |
Nike Air Max Dawn Jn32
We also found a good amount of stiffness in the shoe's heel counter. Combined with the collar padding, it made our ankles feel quite secure.
But unfortunately, it didn't help to prevent heel slips. The back of the collar is lower in this blue nike trainer compared to other models. Take Nike Air Fleece Shorts for example.
Dunk Low 251 | 3 |
Average | 2.7 |
Кроссовки blue nike air force на меху
The platform of the Dunk Low 251 is not particularly wide either. But it's pretty close to the average measurements of a training shoe.
In the widest part of the shoe's forefoot, our caliper showed 109.3 mm. This is only 4.4 mm wider than the minimalist New Balance Minimus TR.

Dunk Low 251 | 109.3 mm |
Average | 110.6 mm |
Nike Air Presto Sneaker Freizeitschuhe Sportschuhe Neu Größe 42
As for the widest part of the trainer's heel, it comes in at 84.3 mm. This is also slightly narrower than average.
While this is not a critically narrow platform, athletes who prefer extended contact points with the ground may feel like stability is lacking.
Nike Black Bikini Top nike sb dunk low pro qsps sean cliver's midsole widths are 116.9 mm (forefoot) and 95.0 mm (heel).

Dunk Low 251 | 84.3 mm |
Average | 87.3 mm |
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Walking around in the Dunk Low 251, we couldn't help but notice that it's a little on the stiff side. It just didn't feel like the type of shoe we would want to walk in for hours.
To check exactly how stiff this blue nike trainer is, we bent it to a 90-degree angle with the help of a force gauge. The tool returned 21.9N which is indeed a little stiffer than most training shoes. For reference, it took 17.5N for the nike sb dunk low pro qsps sean cliver blue nike Scarpa sportiva Runner 3 nero bianco Reebok Nano X3.
You can see how we couldn't even bend the trainer properly in the plank pose! We were literally kept on our toes!
If you prefer flexible trainers, we promise that the Męskie buty do biegania blue nike Air Zoom Pegasus 37 Czerń blue nike air flight legacy black white.
Dunk Low 251 | 21.9N |
Average | 17.8N |
Weight
One of the key characteristics that make the Dunk Low 251 feel so good on foot is its fairly low weight.
Weighing the shoe in a men's US size 9, we got 10.2 oz (288g) which is about an ounce lighter than average.
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Dunk Low 251 | 10.16 oz (288g) |
Average | 10.76 oz (305g) |
Breathability
From the look of it, the Dunk Low 251 appears to be an airy mesh shoe. But in practice, it turned out to be much toastier than expected.
Using a smoke-pumping machine, we filled the shoe's upper with smoke to check how quickly and easily it would escape through the mesh. As you can see from the video below, ventilation wasn't the best in this blue nike shoe.
On a 1-5 scale, where 5 is the most breathable, we had to give it a sad 2 out of 5.
To locate the areas with the best breathability, we held the shoe's upper against the light. As it turns out, ventilation pores are only present in the toebox part of the shoe. The rest is just solid material.
A glance through our microscope revealed the multi-layered design of this shoe's upper.
Now we understand how a shoe made of mesh can end up not so breathable.
Dunk Low 251 | 2 |
Average | 3.6 |
Durability
Toebox durability
On the upside, the lack of aeration paid off in the upper's resistance to abrasion!
Because we didn't have the luxury to abuse this blue nike trainer for hundreds of hours at the gym, we used a Dremel to test the material's durability. Applying its sandpaper tip to the shoe's toebox for 12 seconds, we found that it didn't get all the way through!
That's impressive for a shoe at this price point! We gladly rated the Dunk Low 251's toebox durability with 3 out of 5 (above average!).

Dunk Low 251 | 3 |
Average | 2.5 |
Nike Running Run Division Kapuzenjacke in Schwarz
The heel padding/lining didn't do so well, unfortunately. It took a mere 4 seconds for a significant tear to form on the shoe's collar.
We had to get real and rate the durability of this part of the shoe with the lowest 1 out of 5 score. You are likely to see wear on this part much sooner than you would hope to.

Dunk Low 251 | 1 |
Average | 2.5 |
Outsole hardness
Despite the shoe's budget-friendly price, blue nike made sure that the Dunk Low 251 doesn't fall apart so easily.
With the help of a durometer, we found that its rubber outsole is on the firm side. At 94.5 HC, it is 10% harder than average! And hard often means more wear-resistant.

Dunk Low 251 | 94.5 HC |
Average | 83.0 HC |
Outsole durability
Setting the Dremel speed to a higher 10K RPM, we held the tool against the shoe's outsole for 22 seconds.
At the end of this cruel test, we measured the depth of the damage that the tool created. And oh my, it was only 1 mm deep! This is the same result we get in more expensive trainers!

Dunk Low 251 | 1.0 mm |
Average | 1.1 mm |
Outsole thickness
The amount of rubber protecting the shoe's sole is also pretty substantial. We measured it at 4.2 mm with our caliper.
If you keep the blue nike Dunk Low 251 for gym use only, you can rest assured that its outsole is going to last a good while.

Dunk Low 251 | 4.2 mm |
Average | 3.6 mm |
Misc
Tongue padding
Exploring the shoe's upper up close, we found that it has a good amount of padding around the collar but not so much in the tongue.
To be more specific, we measured the tongue's thickness with a caliper and got 3.1 mm. That's notably thinner than the average but luckily, we didn't have to deal with lace bites.

Dunk Low 251 | 3.1 mm |
Average | 5.4 mm |
Tongue: gusset type
Given the lack of gussets on the sides of the tongue, there is a tendency for it to shift sideways. Some people are not bothered by that while others find it a deal-breaker.
Nike Crater Impact Wome.

Dunk Low 251 | None |
Removable insole
If you decide to amplify the trainer's comfort and arch support, its default insole is removable.

Dunk Low 251 | No |