Hoka Cielo X1 Carbon Fiber Plate Shoe: Love It or Leave It? (Road Running Review)

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HOKA Cielo X1: A Comprehensive Review
In the world of road running, the choice of footwear can significantly influence performance and comfort, especially over 26.2 miles. The HOKA Cielo X1 is a new and notable entrant in this competitive field of CFP shoes, promising a solid blend of support, durability, and energy return. This review delves into the intricate details of the shoe’s upper, midsole, and outsole, offering a thorough analysis for discerning road runners in 2024. Now is it CELLO, or CIIIEEELLLLLOOOOO?
Upper Knit Thoughts
The upper of the HOKA Cielo X1 is a testament to the brand's commitment to quality and comfort. Engineered with a knit throughout the upper, it ensures a comfortable feel on top of the foot. However, beware in hot conditions. I foresee the upper getting a little toasty in races that rise above 65 degrees Fahrenheit. On the breathability scale, it is not the most breathable on the marketplace. Last critique is the heel counter padding, or lack thereof, it would be nice in future iterations to add a little more padding on the lateral and medial sides of that heel counter. Listen in the video for the knock knock knock on that heel counter test.
Midsole Dual Density
At the heart of the HOKA Cielo X1’s performance is its meticulously crafted midsole. The shoe features dual-density PEBA midsole foam (41 and 36 durometer scores), ready for some solid energy return under step. This translates into a smooth transition from heel strike to toe-off, a feature that marathon runners, in particular, will appreciate. The midsole's geometry is definitely in the classic Hoka rocker category, which strives to support the runner's biomechanics. This is complemented by the Meta-Rocker technology, which encourages a more efficient stride cycle, making the Cielo X1 suitable for both training runs and competitive events. In fact, if I bought this shoe, it would land in my rotation as a threshold training shoe, the 10-13 mile range especially.
Outsole Uniqueness
Durability and traction are paramount when it comes to the outsole, and the HOKA Cielo X1 excels in these aspects. Crafted with Hoka's rubber and strategically placed in areas prone to wear, the shoe offers longevity and value. The tread pattern is designed to provide grip on various surfaces, ensuring good grip during fast training runs. The cutouts on the outsole and decoupled groove are designed to reduce the weight of the shoe, not sure that goal is accomplished though with an 8.0 oz in my size. That's heavy for a road racing shoe in my size.
In conclusion, the HOKA Cielo X1 stands out as a solid option for road runners seeking a unique blend of durability, support, and innovation (outsole/plate combo). From its knit upper to its resilient rubber outsole, every aspect of the shoe is crafted with the runner's needs in mind. Whether you’re embarking on a marathon training block or a challenging fartlek workout on the roads, the HOKA Cielo X1 is a solid option for energy return in 2024.
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[@tieloo8842]

one thing i love about Seth, is he aint really shying away from “trashing” shoes in the most respectful way in his reviews! more power Seth!

[@didoma73]

being unsponsored allows him to do that

[@user-pz6vc3gx9b]

Your reviews are always spot on, no BS type of review just to please the manufacturer. Everybody wins, customers gets informed and manufacturer gets to improve their product.

[@SethJamesDeMoor]

🔹 HOKA CIELO X1 (unisex), now available: www.runningwarehouse.com/HOKA_Cielo_X1/descpage-HO1FLU3.html?from=demoor

[@thomasbraun6603]

QD: Takumi Sen 9 for workouts. Adidas Adios Pro 3 for long runs with faster paces.

[@dicksnail]

It seems weird to have two shoes at this price point. Why should someone get the $275 Cielo X1 over the $250 Rocket X2?

[@ronrunsworld]

I was waiting for this one!

[@ghoch393]

Good to see you on here! Hope all is well Seth

[@Wildbrooker4304]

Endorphin pro 3, perfect mix between softness and energy return. They’re pretty cheap now too if you look hard enough.

[@ricardoreis3844]

Nice video as always! For long faster training I am using Asics Superblast and Adidas Boston 12. I love both!

[@ilovejesusdude]

Thanks for the review

[@brianburmaster8902]

Seth: Cielo is Spanish for heaven or sky. It is pronunced: Cee El O. Go to a Spanish Mass: "Padre Nuestro que está en cielo..."

[@Becomeawritertoday]

Another great review

[@BassTonix]

Wow! Good to know I’ll be avoiding this one. Big cheers Seth! ❤

[@marcosgarcia7321]

Good quality review as always

[@andycleary]

It seems to be like a new model of a car. You are usually better off wait for the facelift model, to give the manufacture time to work out the kinks in the first mode in this case such as the laces and weight.

[@mrgq2000]

I am guessing it is Cielo (syeh-loh), which is sky in spanish.

[@moreybrown870]

QD: Fast training day shoe_ Either the Hoka Mach X or Saucony Endorphin Speed 3. I find I'm enjoying the Speed 3's more these days.

[@mattbeier]

QD: My go to speed day shoe was the Adidas Takumi Sen 8, but I’m getting close to retiring them. My new shoe to replace the Sen 8 is the ASICS Magic Speed 3. The Magic Speed 3 is basically a race day shoe except with a more durable training foam. The MS3 is also excellent at a variety of paces, and easy to hold a quicker paces.

[@KoIhara]

QD: Altra Vanish Tempo. It has a pretty aggressive toe spring

[@johnvore]

My go to hard training shoe is Asics speed 3s.

[@m.topfer]

QD: Noosa Tri 14. I bought second hand Endorphin Speed 2 for hard training days but I'm so used to the Asics Guidsole rolling that Noosa Tri feels better on my feet. I'm looking for some good deals on Asics Magic Speed 3 as that seems like an ideal hard training shoe for me.

[@locomike102]

Hey Seth, do you have a go-to brand or style of laces that you prefer?

[@Aldinequeen]

I got this shoe and love it! Not a racing shoe for me because of the weight but will definitely use it for long runs and tempo days! If they take the weight down, it would be perfect!

[@mkdesu]

That is true. I had a 10.5 Hoka Speedgoat but I fit on a 9.5 Cielo X1 perfectly.

[@Steamcs3]

3:24 Where did you get this Nike team USA jacket from?? Thanks! Huge fan!

[@airbromez]

QD: I like to use old racing shoes. Currently using Alphafly 1s. However I do have a pair of Brooks Hyperions that I like to throw in the mix since it isn’t plated

[@pushtherun]

Talk about forcing you to launch off your toes with awesome responsiveness!!! This is definitely a contender for Most Responsive up there with the Saucony Elite. I have 20 miles on them already and will push the pace at the Orlando Magic 5K day after the Olympic Marathon Trials wearing this shoe.

[@MattRunsColorado]

I don't understand the point of this shoe with the rocket X2 out. Strange, especially at 275

[@Elway_5]

These shoes are amazing.

[@hufemeve]

I don't understand how HOKA having one of the best uppers in the Mach 4 & 5 cannot simply replicate that into their other shoes.....

[@KoIhara]

Wait, can someone please elaborate on the badness of these laces? How bad could they be, that they actually start messing with the fit?

[@SaschaRobitzki]

@@KoIhara They feel very plasticky, stiff and simply cheap. Not the kind of laces for a premium racing shoe. You can replace them but a $275 shoe should come with appropriate laces.

[@user-fs1uc8yv8i]

Hi Seth, what do you think sets this appart from the rocket x2?

[@georgesoto5436]

ASICS Evo Ride all day for faster paces…I purchased these shoes after your review Seth…It’s one of my favorites. I also use Speed 3 from Saucony

[@SalientAnimal]

So if not the HOKA Cielo X1 for Marathon to Ultra Distance races, which shoe would you rate at the top? And thoughts on this shoe vs HOKA Carbon X3 & HOKA Rocket X2?

[@MJGuswiler]

Liking the Superblast for longer runs with workouts in them. More often though, it's an old pair of racers, AF1's, have a few pair that are mid mileage that are great for this.

[@joshuashields8512]

I can’t think of anything bad with the rocket x 2 I think hoka should focus on a rocket x 3 to rival the vaporfly

[@matthiassventoest6800]

Yowana said the shoelaces were trash as well.., that’s wild that they over looked the laces for a premium race shoe

[@nilsma1417]

Was waiting for this one, because it looked awesome, really disappointed that it's not really competitive in Case of Supershoes e.g. Weight

[@belltheTACO]

That is a beautiful shoe

[@justinjordaens7864]

QOD: For long run cut downs the Vaporfly next % 2 haven't done me wrong. Last year my coach would have the distance crew hit 15 milers broken up like this, up tempo on the way out, and cutdown on the way back. We'd go from 6:40-6:20, then cut down to as fast as 5:40-5:30 on avg. My fastest last 3 miles of any of those LR got me into the 5:18 range. Good stuff.

[@mkdesu]

I had an opportunity to try this shoe out myself. It felt great. I wish to do a longer run. A proper Long run with this shoe. I did a 3k all out effort or what felt like 3k pace during that time. And covered pretty much all the paces i can do. And it felt great in all of em. But perhaps its also because all my other shoes are beat up and overused.

[@davidernst5708]

SuperBlast or Mach X.

[@IvanJosephValdez]

QD: Normally my fast day is shoe is my older racing shoe, whatever it may be at that time. But currently, I was able to get the ASICS S4 from Japan, which works great in tandem with the Metaspeed Sky + as my racing shoe.

[@michaeldominic2070]

Boston 12 and Superblast!

[@Silverwood085]

On specs it looks comparable to the Kinvara Pro at 170$ 180$ dual dense with the carbon plate? Oh and QD : Speed2 both on special last year

[@steveilg6134]

so...Saucony Endorphin Pro or this guy!??! we might need a battle dance between the two! great seeing you back online! Dewa is crushing on the Jr. Natz Nordic Circuit and her ol' man has 2 Overall Podiums at 61 this winter racing season so far!

[@nilsma1417]

Pretty Sure the Pro wins, the Cielo is so much heavier

[@adambuckle4513]

They just needed to put the X2 upper on the X1... surely a no brainer

[@merlinmilan5992]

QD : Adidas Takumi Sen 9, wasn't really a fan of Adidas running shoes (love their casual shoes 🙂) but after checking out recommendations tried it out and it's amazing for short, hard workouts. It also isn't a marathon racer so you still get the benefit of that "special" feeling when you put on your racing shoes come race day!

[@jorgengeesink2538]

Which trainers have the hardest and highest soles?

[@ericwhite80five]

Instagram story said Rebel V4 full review live on KZbin…come to KZbin and was slapped with a Hoka review…touché Seth, touché😂

[@IK99999]

He posted that review 4 weeks ago

[@ericwhite80five]

@@IK99999 I know I watch every vlog, but he posted on his instagram yesterday the V4 shoe had just went live on his KZbin, so I thought maybe there was an updated vlog until I saw the Hoka review instead. Hence the humor of my comment to Seth.

[@IK99999]

@@ericwhite80five Sure thing, Eric!

[@SoundScoutOne]

QD: Easily the Adidas Bosten 12. It feels best with threshold runs but does tempo also realy well.

[@jeffsapida4838]

QD: Endorphin Speed or Tempo Next% for speed work. Between the two I’m a little faster in the Tempos.

[@gregprevite8548]

Qod: hard road workouts it’s still endorphin speed 1. I have a fresh pair I bring out for these workouts. It’s perfect for me as I don’t like to train in racing shoes much.

[@melihbalaban]

my go to speed day shoe varies between saucony endorphin speed 3 or puma deviate nitro 2

[@melidalopez8646]

Would this shoe perform on a hilly marathon, I’ll be running Big Sur this spring and looking for a marathon shoe

[@astolzy]

Shoelaces are a BIG thing!

[@simonrunc8067]

QD: Prime X strung for longer marathon paces.

[@danielclark7960]

Idk what it is. I've worn Hoka's 2 times - each time left me w/ a right leg calf strain. Rincons on the road Challengers on the trail. Same thing. I run in EVERY OTHER BRAND. No issues.

[@gusgilfillan9033]

For road the Takumi sen 9 for speed work and Adios Pro 2 for longer fast runs. For trail Hoka torrent 2 or Saucony Peregrine for shorter fast efforts and Speed Goat 5 for longer efforts

[@runhanrunnl]

Kewhl shoe! But damn expensive. Can't wait to run on it - if I can afford it.

[@Babayaga08122]

So if I’m a 8.5 should I get an 8?

[@amazanto]

Cielo is the Italian word for sky!

[@arseniosantos7343]

For fast training I use Razor+

[@davebelcher8374]

QD: adidas Adios Pro 2, with Pro 3 for race day

[@chonejustinien4650]

This hoka or endorphin pro 3 for a marathon (3h) ???

[@Nahodnyokoloiduci]

Retired racing shoes - Vaporfly or Alphafly

[@BAJF93]

QD: Brooks Hyperion Max

[@harrymaurer7984]

Recently bought a pair of Carbon X3 for $119 and am very happy with them… much lighter than this shoe.

[@matwillox2849]

QOD: Takumi Sen 9, Endorphin Speed 2

[@jean-phil]

I like to do faster pace workouts, I rarely run slower than 4:00/km. For all-out intervals aka Strava Segments at 3:30/km and faster, I use Alphafly V1. For the rest, I use anything .. my favourite is the Nike Tempo Next but pretty much all my shoes do the job just fine .. I even enjoy running fast in NB More V4 ;p the only shoes I would not use to run fast are low stack shoes that are not protective enough like Rebel v1 ... while its a shoe designed to go fast in theory ... I'm not a high cadence type but rather a long stride type so these are not the best for me .. I feel I'll just destroy my body if I run in these shoes like I do in super shoes

[@BamainMn]

The cut outs look like the Mizuno wave rebellion

[@antic4312]

I’ve really been digging the Streakfly for hard, short workouts, and for longer workouts I got the Puma Deviate Nitro 2, but I will also use my race shoes for that sometimes.

[@BAJF93]

You can clearly see they are a couple of years behind in the super shoe category.

[@michaelkeegan3631]

Tempo Next % for fast training

[@TrailJogger]

Maybe you should sell laces on the store

[@pietercoucke3855]

QD: Hoka Carbon X2 for sessions

[@marcoverzicco3888]

: Nike Zoom Fly 4 or Vaporfly 3 🔥🔥🔥

[@benbauer7866]

QD: Well, it WAS the Ride 15, but I’m getting clearance Rebel v3’s in the mail so that will be it probably

[@alancooper59]

I'll stick to my Rocket X2's then 😁

[@user-xp9sb6xu3q]

James hello, a I'm from Russian! Respect for your. I'm it's Ukytia, Lensk

[@user-xp9sb6xu3q]

Yakutia

[@Freedomone153]

Hoka Clifton 9

[@garyleem2000]

$275… WOW! Why would anyone buy this shoe when there are other great shoes available in this price range?

[@abdulhabbi]

True everyone will buy nike in this price

[@OneTouch1980]

Or shoes that are half the price.

[@harrymaurer7984]

@@OneTouch1980Carbon X3 is $119 at the moment.

[@nanezferrer3565]

puma fast r elite 2 better i think

[@NicoI]

Just try them and you will see why

[@robbristle5642]

Adizero SL.

[@B1gC4st]

The weight of a shoe really only matters if you're under 160 lbs. Us big guys will have no idea unless it is like 14 oz. Seth are we really complaining about an 8 oz racer? There are 10 oz racers haha.

[@marcosgarcia7321]

Novablast 3.

[@dextersuarez9948]

Cielo means sky in spanish

[@TheScottyLincoln]

My KZbin feed was just flooded with this shoe! Haha $275 for a Hoka? Easy pass for me. QD: King of em all, Vaporfly V2 but I’m off the Nike boat. Thinking the metaspeed edge or the new Endorphin pro 4

[@irritablearchitect]

9+ oz. racing shoe...that's an oxymoron. I will say that I've a rather high praise for another shoe that was originally billed as a racing shoe with similar stats as this, the Puma Deviate Nitro, and despite its weight, I really enjoy that shoe, just not as a racer. To each their own.

[@meredithjones8593]

The look of that large notch is kind of throwing me.

[@TheHutchRuns]

Sounds like a waste of £250, I'll stick to the Alphafly 3 for longer races and Hoka Rocket X2 for shorter. I use Vaporfly Next% 2 for hard training runs on the road.

[@Shevock]

Looks bouncy.

[@gtromble]

Cielo - Spanish or Italian pronunciation? I'm leaning toward Spanish. Or we English speakers could just call it the HOKA Sky.

[@rafaelgravito7782]

Espanhol

[@mkdesu]

Ah yeah the shoe laces came off 2 times during my 3k

[@tabe5686]

$275 for a training shoe.. Dang. That's brutal. No thanks! QOD: I like the Superblast, baby!

[@jordanrundell9962]

Lets be completely honest here.... Who in their right mind would buy this for $275 when the Alphflay 3 just came out, and is about 26.1 miles ahead of this Hoka.

[@doctordentistesquire]

❤😊👍👍💪💪

[@ewanski0848]

I live in Scotland and won't ever buy an knitted shoe again. It rains here and they wool soaks up water like a sponge. That and we are tight with money.

[@doyouknowwhothehelli]

For that price that shoe should be a 9 or 10

[@trainwellracewell]

Cielo (see-ay-lo) is the Spanish word for cloud

[@rafaelgravito7782]

Errado, cielo significa sky e cloud é nube

[@trainwellracewell]

My bad, sky, not cloud. Thanks

[@nevidljivicovek2751]

Adidas Boston 10 for fast training

[@sizzlechestmcmurphy4365]

8:29 When a doctor tells you to "shut it down", do yourself a favor... Shut it down. Speaking from experience.