Life as a Wife in the City: Happy National Running Day!

That's right, today is a National Running Day! How did you celebrate? I took a nice little jaunt through my neighborhood and it was great! The sun was starting to set, there were neighbors taking out garbage and watering their lawns and a couple other folks like myself getting their run on. And on top of that, I had a great run - felt energetic and had it not been getting dark I think I would have put a few more miles in. While I was running I was thinking about how I run and what makes a good run for me. Thought it might make a good blog post so here goes.

First and foremost are the shoes. A good pair of running shoes is critical to having a good run, enjoying your run and preventing injury. My current pair of shoes are the Brooks PureFlow shoes and I'm a big fan! These are a neutral running shoe that offer a slight cushion. I like to have athletic socks on too to minimize moisture and blisters. These Nike performance socks have treated my toesies quite well on long runs.

Keeping with the apparel I use for running, let's talk tops and bottoms. I like to wear form-fitting pants to keep everything nice and tight and to avoid any distractions when hitting the pavement. I have a variety of crops and shorts and am not really partial to any pair over another. Tonight I was running in my Lululemon Athletica crops. They are mucho-mucho comfy and fantastic but also mucho moola so I don't have a whole drawer of these babies ;) As for shirts, I am all about moisture wicking! I can't even express what a difference it has made to switch from a traditional cotton t-shirt to a moisture wicking shirt! No sticking, no bunching, no distractions. Again, I'm not partial to any brand or style but recently picked up one from Target that comes in a variety of colors and is a great price too.

On to the accessories. Or equipment? Either way, it's the stuff that completes the run ensemble for me. I always bring my phone on a run for two purposes - music and tracking my run. For the tunes, I turn to the Pandora app and I'm not ashamed to say I tune into pop music for a run. Usually it's Britney Spears, Lady Gaga or Flo Rida for some high energy music to keep me pumped up on those long runs. And for tracking I love the MapMyRun app. Been using it a few years now and love the capabilities. I can see my average pace/mile, my total distance and time and all kinds of other stats to mull over. I also like the community and the weekly emails with my totals for the week.

Now to keep my phone on my bod while I run, I use the SPIbelt and LOVE it!! When I got my HTC Evo there wasn't a case that would fit on my arm without being a major drag so I trolled some chatboards and came upon the SPIbelt. For $20 buckeroos I definitely got my moneys worth. I can fit my phone comfortably into it and then its snugly around my waist and not bopping around on my arm. I have stuffed in my ID and credit card for a run to the grocery store too.

Those are some of my goods for an enjoyable summer run. In addition to the goods I like to put a little thought into fuel as well. Pre-run I like to make sure I'm well hydrated (duh.) and have a little nosh for energy. Not too much or I get cramps or an upset stomach but enough so that I have the energy to burn. I'm kind of obsessed with Luna bars and love the minis which could seriously win an award for cutest and tastiest nutrition bar. The S'mores/Nutz over Chocolate are the best hands down.

Post-run I like to reach for a little protein and am a big fan of either hard-boiled egg whites or Chobani greek yogurt. I also like to toss back some coconut water (chalked full of natural electrolytes and more potassium than a banana!) and have heard great things about chocolate milk for runners though I don't usually stock up on it personally.