ASICS GEL-DS Trainer 23

Name: ASICS GEL-DS Trainer 23
Brand: ASICS
Rating: 4.4 (8 reviews)

Daily trainer · Stability · Road · 7.8 oz · 24/14mm stack · 10mm drop

Discontinued — we no longer see this shoe in stock. The ASICS GEL-DS Trainer 24 replaced it

How it ranks

The ASICS GEL-DS Trainer 23 trails most daily trainers in our data. Value and durability are its strongest sub-ratings. The rating is based on 9 runner reviews and 8 other rated shoes in the GEL-DS Trainer product line.

Bottom-tier

Overall

Bottom-tier 59

Value

Decent 70

Durability

Bottom-tier 58

Appearance

Bottom-tier 57

Comfort

Bottom-tier 53

Cushioning

Bottom-tier 53

Confidence

How settled the rating is against every other rated shoe. A shoe can rate high on confidence with relatively few reviews of its own when its product line has a long record and external ratings from retailer sites agree. Confidence is low when we have few ratings or when runners disagree.

See the product line's history

Confidence

88 High

High 88

Based on

The bars show roughly how much each source contributes to this shoe’s rating. Their influence depends on how many reviews we’ve collected, how many earlier versions are in the product line, and the external ratings available.

Product line track record
Our ratings
External ratings

What runners say

“Light and responsive, probably best suited to racing and interval/tempo”

4/5 Full review 40 mpw training for a marathon came from the ASICS GEL-DS Trainer 22

“Running in the shoe on easy days caused pain in my calves”

4/5 Full review 50 mpw training for a marathon came from the Mizuno Wave Rider 18

“It seems to make my feet hotter and I get a bit more calf soreness the next day”

4/5 Full review 40 mpw training for a marathon came from the ASICS GEL-DS Trainer 22

“Although the shoe is light, it is very firm and takes awhile to get used to”

4/5 Full review 50 mpw training for a marathon came from the Mizuno Wave Rider 18

“The mid foot lasts a lot longer than the 20-22 versions”

4/5 Full review 70 mpw training for a half marathon came from the ASICS GEL-DS Trainer 22

“They run slightly narrow”

5/5 Full review 20 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Brooks Ravenna 8

“Wears out more quickly”

4/5 Full review 75 mpw 2,607 miles in this shoe training for a half marathon

“Cushioning is good enough to stop me suffering from joint problems”

4/5 Full review 40 mpw training for a marathon came from the ASICS GEL-DS Trainer 22

“They are a very supportive shoe all around, and wrap the foot well”

5/5 Full review 20 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Brooks Ravenna 8

“Does work well for tempo runs and track work-outs”

4/5 Full review 50 mpw training for a marathon came from the Mizuno Wave Rider 18

“I felt like I got more miles out of them back in the day”

5/5 Full review 60 mpw training for a marathon came from the Brooks Transcend 5

“It's lightweight and it has enough stock and heel to be used as a daily trainer”

4/5 Full review 70 mpw training for a half marathon came from the ASICS GEL-DS Trainer 22

“Lightweight, good grip, does not hurt my feet”

5/5 Full review 60 mpw training for a marathon came from the Brooks Transcend 5

“The shoe feels stiffer than previous models”

4/5 Full review 75 mpw 2,607 miles in this shoe training for a half marathon

“This was a great shoe for shorter runs 5-8 miles”

4/5 Full review 50 mpw came from the New Balance Fresh Foam Zante v4

“Light enough to do faster stuff if wanted”

4/5 Full review 50 mpw came from the New Balance Fresh Foam Zante v4

“Excel at trail running”

5/5 Full review 20 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Brooks Ravenna 8

Prefer this shoe over another

29% 2/7

Where to buy

No offers available

Affiliate links included. They never affect our ratings.

Prices updated daily. Last checked Oct 22.

Pros

Averaging 7.8 oz across the men's and women's builds, it is lighter than the 8.9 oz median for daily trainers for sale, and four reviewers use it for tempo and track work.
One of nine reviewers so far reports good grip across road, trail, grass and packed sand.

Cons

Two reviewers find the firm ride leaves their calves sore after easy runs.
Two reviewers say it wears out faster than the DS Trainers they had before.
The GEL-DS Trainer 20, 21 and 22 before it score 64, 59 and 64, against this version's 53.

GEL-DS Trainer 23 rates 59. This shoe has high confidence. See how we rate shoes.

Better Shoes Rating of prior versions of the ASICS GEL-DS Trainer

Each dot is one version of the GEL-DS Trainer, placed by its rating and release year. The gold dot is this shoe.

Rating

40 60 80 100

50 2014 55 2014 63 2016 60 2016 62 2017 59 2018 58 2019 66 2020 77 2021

Release year

We use the reviews of past versions to inform this shoe’s rating. See why.

GEL-DS Trainer 26

2021 · 10 reviews

77 Decent

78 Confidence
GEL-DS Trainer 25

2020 · 3 reviews

66 Below average

71 Confidence
GEL-DS Trainer 24

2019 · 4 reviews

58 Bottom-tier

81 Confidence
GEL-DS Trainer 23 This shoe

2018 · 9 reviews

59 Bottom-tier

88 Confidence
GEL-DS Trainer 22

2017 · 7 reviews

62 Below average

85 Confidence
GEL-DS Trainer 21

2016 · 3 reviews

60 Below average

79 Confidence
GEL-DS Trainer 20

2016 · 9 reviews

63 Below average

89 Confidence
GEL-DS Trainer 19

2014 · 45 reviews

55 Bottom-tier

96 Confidence
GEL-DS Trainer 18

2014 · 37 reviews

50 Bottom-tier

94 Confidence

Runner Ratings

9 ratings

5/5 4

4/5 5

3/5 0

2/5 0

1/5 0

See written reviews Write a review

Specs & fit

Sizing and ride details at a glance.

Weight: 7.8 oz
Men's / women's: Men's 8.4 oz · Women's 7.1 oz
Release: 2018 Q1
MSRP: $120
Stack: 24/14mm
Drop: 10mm

Runner reviews

Write a review

Still a great lightweight support option but not as good as the previous 19-22

4/5

Overall

I'm not a fan of the more traditional, overly-cushioned, built-up, detached road shoe, so had settled nicely into the DS trainer for all of my training and the DS racer for when the safety pins came out. The level of support is fine for someone who over-pronates and cushioning is good enough to stop me suffering from joint problems. They're light and responsive, probably best suited to racing and interval/tempo for someone looking for options and transitioning away from shoes for heavier folk (I'm 5'11'' and approx 150lbs btw). One negative on the 23 compared to the previous incarnations is it seems to make my feet hotter and I get a bit more calf soreness the next day. Might be slightly firmer ride?

Anonymous runner · Aug 14, 2019

40 mpw training for a marathon came from the ASICS GEL-DS Trainer 22

Comfort: 4/5
Cushioning: 4/5
Durability: 5/5
Appearance: 5/5
Value: 5/5

with achilles pain

5/5

Overall

Overall it was very good for all my trainings - long run, fartlek, tempos, race. But with my Haglund deformity I cut out the heels from shoes. Now I use them again. I have two pairs of them.

Anonymous runner · Jul 18, 2019

99 mpw training for a marathon

Comfort: 5/5
Cushioning: 4/5
Durability: 5/5
Appearance: 4/5
Value: 5/5

Fast and firm shoe

4/5

Overall

The DS-Trainer required a few miles of break in time before feeling comfortable. Although the shoe is light, it is very firm and takes awhile to get used to. Running in the shoe on easy days caused pain in my calves. However, the DS-Trainer does work well for tempo runs and track work-outs. I also wore these shoes for my last marathon (and PR'd by nearly 30 minutes).

ultimatemissy · Jul 11, 2019

50 mpw training for a marathon came from the Mizuno Wave Rider 18

Comfort: 3/5
Cushioning: 4/5
Durability: 5/5
Appearance: 5/5
Value: 4/5

Back to basics, I love this shoe.

5/5

Overall

My College was sponsored by Asics so this was my go to shoe, but I have gotten away from them in the last few years. ogt back to them recently on sale and reminded why I loved these shoes. Lightweight, good grip, does not hurt my feet. Only issue was durability, I felt like I got more miles out of them back in the day.

Anonymous runner · Jul 3, 2019

60 mpw training for a marathon came from the Brooks Transcend 5

Comfort: 5/5
Cushioning: 4/5
Durability: 4/5
Appearance: 3/5
Value: 5/5

Light multipurpose trainer

5/5

Overall

These, alongside my Brooks Ravenna 9’s, are the current running shoes in my rotation. These shoes are less cushioned, but still comfortable enough for running on hard surfaces. Simply put, these shoes have a light feel compared to other neutral shoes. These are great on roads, but excel at trail running. I’ve also ran in these on hard packed sand at the beach and they were very comfortable. They are a very supportive shoe all around, and wrap the foot well. I would say they run slightly narrow. If you are purely a road runner, there might be a better shoe out there for you. If you run on trails, beaches, roads, grass, etc, this shoe will perform very well for you.

Anonymous runner · Aug 21, 2018

20 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Brooks Ravenna 8