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I handed the Saucony Triumph 24 to our guest tester with one basic assignment: wear them for the kind of running most of us actually do.
Not race day. Not a carefully staged tempo session where every split gets analyzed afterward. I wanted everyday miles. Easy mornings. Slower long runs. The tired-leg shuffle you do when the training plan says “recovery,” but your body says “maybe we sit on the couch instead.”
Her first reaction after stepping into them was pretty much what you’d expect from a shoe with this much cushioning. “Oh. These are soft.” A few seconds later, after walking around the room, she added, “No, these are really soft.” That became the theme of the test.
The Triumph 24 feels plush from the moment your foot lands inside it. There’s no break-in period where you have to convince yourself the shoe will improve after 20 miles. The comfort is right there from the start. The upper wraps the foot without squeezing it, the interior feels smooth, and she didn’t run into any rubbing, pressure points, or hotspots during testing.
That comfort never wore off. A shoe can have the most advanced foam in the world, but none of that helps when a seam starts chewing on your little toe six miles from home. The Triumph just disappeared on foot. No pinching. No sliding. No mid-run lace adjustments. She put them on, headed out, and mostly forgot about them. That’s a compliment.
The Kind of Softness that Makes Easy Days Easier
Saucony replaced the previous midsole setup with its new incrediLUX foam, an ATPU-based material the company says provides 11 percent more cushioning while cutting roughly 0.4 ounces from the shoe’s weight. The Triumph 24 also uses an XT-900 carbon-rubber outsole and a breathable comfort-mesh upper.
You can feel that lighter construction once you start moving. This isn’t one of those max-cushion shoes that feels like you’ve strapped two memory-foam mattresses to your feet. There’s a lot underfoot, no question, but the shoe doesn’t feel clumsy.
Instead, the foam compresses and springs back with a soft, rolling sensation. Think less “sinking into a beanbag” and more “landing on one of those thick gym mats that gives under you, then gently pushes back.”
Our tester found that especially pleasant on easy runs, where comfort mattered more than snapping through a fast turnover. The Triumph 24 seemed happiest when the pace settled down and the stride loosened up. It took some of the sting out of pavement, especially later in the run when her legs started feeling the accumulated miles.
On slower long runs, that cushioning became even more useful. There’s a certain point in a longer outing when your form gets a little less tidy. You’re still moving, but the feet get louder and the knees stop finding everything funny. The Triumph gives you some forgiveness there.
It doesn’t turn tired legs into fresh ones. No shoe does. But it softens the conversation between your feet and the road.
Recovery runs were another natural fit. On days when she didn’t want a firm platform telling her to pick up the pace, the Triumph let her shuffle along without feeling beaten up. There’s enough bounce to keep the shoe from feeling flat, but the overall personality is calm and comfortable.
This is not a shoe that nags you.
The Saucony Triumph 24 is Breathable and Secure
The mesh upper also did its job. Her feet stayed comfortable, and she found the material breathable enough for warmer runs without the shoe feeling loose or flimsy.
The fit felt secure through the midfoot, with enough softness around the foot to match the cushioning below. Some plush shoes get carried away with padding and start feeling puffy. The Triumph avoids that. It’s comfortable without turning the upper into a winter coat.
She also didn’t report heel movement or toe irritation, and there were no hotspots during her runs. Again, none of this sounds exciting until you’ve owned a shoe that starts creating problems at mile four. Then “nothing went wrong” becomes one of the best things you can say.
The Hoka Loyalist Test
The most telling part of the review didn’t happen on a run.
Our guest tester had her mother try the Triumph 24 and wear it around for a while. Her mother is a committed Hoka user, the kind of person who knows what she likes and usually sticks with it.
She came away impressed. More than impressed, actually. She said the Triumph 24 felt more comfortable than her Hokas.
Now, footwear comfort is personal. Foot shape, stride, body weight, and years of habit all play a role, so that doesn’t mean every Hoka wearer is about to abandon ship. Still, coming from someone loyal to the brand, it says plenty.
She wasn’t studying foam compounds or debating heel-to-toe geometry. She simply put the shoe on, walked around, and preferred how it felt.
Sometimes that simple test tells you more than a page full of technical language.
Runners Aren’t the Only People Who Should Look at the Saucony Triumph 24
The Triumph 24 makes sense for easy everyday running, relaxed long runs, and recovery days. That’s its sweet spot.
But I also think walkers should pay attention.
The soft platform, smooth transition, breathable upper, and generous cushioning all translate well to walking. I could see this working for someone logging neighborhood miles, spending hours on their feet, traveling through airports, or choosing incline walking over running at the gym.
There’s plenty of protection underfoot, and the shoe doesn’t require you to run fast before it starts feeling useful. You get the comfort at walking pace too.
For someone who wants one shoe for daily steps, treadmill sessions, and the occasional easy jog, the Triumph could be a home run.
There Is Such a Thing as Too Soft
The only real caution involves runners coming from firmer shoes.
The combination of the thick incrediLUX cushioning and the reduced weight gives the Triumph 24 a soft, lively feel. For people accustomed to max-cushion trainers, that will probably feel familiar. Maybe even addictive.
But if you’ve spent the last few years in firm, low-stack shoes, the first run might feel strange. There’s more movement beneath the foot. More compression. More rebound.
It can feel like you’ve traded a wooden kitchen chair for a giant couch. Most people would call that an improvement, but some will miss the stable, direct sensation of the chair.
Runners who prefer a firm platform may find the Triumph too soft or bouncy, especially at first. The high-stack, marshmallow-underfoot character won’t suit everyone, and it’s worth being clear about that.
This also isn’t the shoe I’d reach for when the goal is aggressive speedwork. You can pick up the pace in it, but its personality leans toward comfort and protection rather than sharp, fast transitions. It would rather carry you through an easy ten miles than argue over your 5K split. And that’s fine. A shoe doesn’t need to do everything.
The Triumph knows what kind of day it wants.
Final Thoughts on the Saucony Triumph 24
The Saucony Triumph 24 is one of those shoes that makes heading out the door feel easier. It’s soft without feeling like dead weight. It breathes well. It didn’t create hotspots, rubbing, or distractions. It handled easy runs, longer relaxed efforts, and recovery miles with the kind of comfort that lets you stop thinking about your feet.
Our guest tester enjoyed every run in it, and the unexpected endorsement from her Hoka-faithful mother only reinforced the point. This shoe feels good. Not in a flashy, look-at-me way. More like your favorite chair at the end of a long day.
Runners who prefer firm, grounded shoes may find the incrediLUX foam too soft and springy, which is not a bad thing, just something to know going in.
For everyone else, especially runners and walkers looking for a plush daily option, the Triumph 24 does not disappoint. For more info or to pickup a pair for yourself, visit saucony.com.
