adidas' Adistar Cushion 3 running sneaker is back. Thought that elderly running shoes' day in the sun might be fading soon?

Clearly not so, at least according to atmos creative director Hirofumi Kojima, whose inimitable Japanese sneaker store is releasing its own spin on the elderly adidas classic.

And by its own spin, I mean that atmos' adidas Adistar Cushion 3 collab is barely different from the OG, in terms of design details.

So, though atmos Adistar sneaker seems basically unchanged, atmos' muted “Twilight” colorway is pretty fresh and sleek. With a black mesh base and details in reflective bright blues, the sneaker looks just as good off the running trails as it does on them and that’s clearly the point. Why fix what isn’t broken? 

It's funny how times change, though.

The adidas Adistar Cushion running shoe line dates back to the '90s, with the third iteration dropping by the early aughts as a straight running shoe that anyone who claimed to have a sense of style would've walked right past while sneaker-shopping at the mall.

But all that’s changed in the past couple of years as regular, everyday running sneakers and unconventionally beautiful trail shoes have become popular as daily footwear, even if they do look like something your high school math teacher wore to work.

In recent years, adidas resurrected the Adistar Cushion to tap the rising demand for dad shoes with new colorways (and a $150 price tag) that speak to the ongoing demand for basic running sneakers once worn mainly by actual athletes and suburban dads. 

If you thought that dadcore running sneakers as fashion would be on its last, mesh-uppered and tech-soled breath come Summer 2024, we’re happy to report that the trend doesn’t seem to be waning one bit.

Luckily, normcore dad sneakers seem to be as common as classic daily driver shoes of the ordinary variety.

With sleek colorways like this black and blue adidas x atmos pair, it's become clear that dad sneakers don’t have to look like dad sneakers anymore.

You’re just gonna need a little early aughts swagger (or be Bradley Cooper [or, really, Bella Hadid]) to properly pull them off.