A Post Dedicated to My Personal Favorite Summer Running Sh*t

It’s Memorial Day, and Summer is officially unofficially here! This spring race season has been essentially less eventful than last year’s, which is more than okay. It was chock full of racing- I did some larger Winter Series events (8 miler, 15K, half) in Tyler Park again this year, a few 5Ks, the chilly NYC Half Marathon, the rainy Asbury Park Half Marathon, and naturally; the Broad Street Run in a goddamn monsoon. Despite a nagging hip/IT issue, some health issues, and laparoscopic surgery, I’m still trucking along- just not as fast as I was last year. So, I’d like to take my few weeks of spring ‘off-season’ to talk about my favorite summer running gear. FYI, I don’t get any perks from shouting out my favorite branded items, just happy to tell you what I’ve tried and what has/hasn’t worked.

Hydration/Nutrition

A lot of running-specifically distances over a 10k- is figuring out ‘nutrition’ (funny term for shotgunning straight honey, but here we are) works best for your body. I have found that for a 5k, I need absolutely nothing beforehand or during. A 10K during the summer, I may carry water in this puppy or some nuun hydration tablets. For any runs 10 miles plus, I like to get in a Honey Stinger waffle– it’s light and gives my energy right off the bat. I have friends who do a whole bagel and peanut butter, or a bowl of oatmeal and as always- you do you, boo.

During runs over 10 miles, I generally opt to use gummies or jelly beans and Honey Stinger Gels after about 40-50 minutes of running. I have tried Clif gels and Gu, and they just don’t seem to sit as well with my stomach, but that’s personal preference. I also don’t like cake-flavored stuff during runs. Important to note- practice using these things during training runs, don’t wait until race day to find out that a product makes you want to take a sh*t at mile 5 of a half marathon.

For training runs over a half marathon in the summer

Finally, I sweat a LOT. Adding salt tablets and magnesium has helped me with muscle cramping significantly.

Shorts

I’ve worn and tested several types of shorts during my several years as a thick-thighed runner.

• Under Armour Fly By Shorts– These are… OK for the price. My main gripe is that I’m a size small in the waist for a lot of bottoms, but my thighs aren’t; and these shorts don’t give me as much room as I’d like. 5/10 stars, can wear them for 5 miles as long as I’ve Glided.
• Xersion Bike Shorts– another ‘bang for your buck’ purchase. I’ve run a full marathon in these with little to no chafing, and I like the pockets- but I wouldn’t put my phone in there for more than 8-9 miles or I chafe where the phone rests. 8/10 stars.
• Oiselle Roga Shorts– Oiselle is a female-owned brand that I adore, but I only shop their sales because they’re a bit pricey. That being said, the quality is excellent, they wick sweat well and they have cute patterns. They also have varying lengths, and they come in traditional women’s pants sizes. I do use glide with them, and I sometimes chafe depending on the day, but still give them 9.5/10 stars.
• Mizuno Men’s Shorts– I found these at my local running store and tried them on because at that point, I’d never run in real shorts and I wanted a cute pair to wear for a July 4th race. I was so pleasantly surprised that men’s shorts have more room than women’s! They are lightweight with an under liner. They dry super quickly. 10/10 stars.
• Lily Pulitzer’s Luxletic Ocean Trail Shorts– I’m almost embarrassed to list these, but I was surprised by how well they worked as a mid-distance running short. I bought these at Lily’s end-of-season sale, (which is late August or early September or so) thinking they’d be cute for the gym. I don’t think I realized they came with an under liner. They are also super light and sweat wicking; so I decided to try them as a running short. They held up well and were dry after about 10 minutes.

Tops

I’m not particularly picky about summer tops, but I don’t love running in short sleeves cotton. I like Oiselle’s Flyte tank because they have a lot of colors that match their shorts.

Other Stuff.

• Nathan Belt
• Goodr Sunglasses
• Hydration Vest