Adventures in Health (Volume 14)

My Running Bag

It didn’t take long for me to get board running indoors and I feel so much more relaxed when I’m out in the fresh air.

Running on the roads makes me nervous, especially since I live on a main road that has a lot of truck traffic. One of my running fears is being hit by a car or kidnapped (yes, I know I’m crazy). I try to mitigate my fears by running in safer places, places with a lot less traffic.

So what does all that mean? It means I have to drive to get to where I can run. My parent’s live in a decent sized neighborhood that has very little traffic during the day. There are some days when I can count on one hand the number of cars I see.

I was just grabbing the things I needed for my run but it quickly became a pain and I was forgetting and dropping things. I needed a better way.

A Running Bag!

I picked up a great bag from Thirty-One that has lots of little pockets and the best part is when it gets a little stinky (and it does) I can use a Clorox wipe to kill those odor causing germs.

So what’s in the bag?

A pack of gum. I can’t run without gum in my mouth, it totally throws me off my game when I’m not chewing.

A bottle of ibuprofen. Ever since I messed up that cartilage and thought I was going to die on my run I don’t run without it. Doctor’s orders.

My headphones (and the adaptor for my LifeProof case). I don’t like to run without gum and I’m afraid to run without taking my ibuprofen but I will NOT run without music. Studies say that runners who listen to music while they run can actually run for longer lengths of time before becoming exhausted. Don’t believe me? Check out the March issue of Women’s Running (page 32).

Fitness watch. I keep my watch and heart rate transmitter in my bag so I never forget it. My fitness watch helps me train more efficiently.

Extra hair ties. I need to keep my locks in check and if I have a hair tie break I need a backup.

Sunscreen. Even in the winter it’s important to protect yourself from the harmful rays of the sun. Make sure you have something sweat proof because that stuff hurts when you get it in your eyes.

My LifeProof armband. For a while I was holding my phone in my hand to run but now I go hands free. I love that it locks so I don’t have to worry about my phone flying out while I’m on the move. I’ve never used an arm band before but this one is so comfortable it’s like I’m not wearing anything.

Gloves. Of course my tech gloves are in the bag, running with cold hands sucks.

Headband. The only thing that sucks worse than running with cold hands is having cold ears, so I make sure my UA headband is always in the bag.

An extra top. Even in these cold, winter months I tend to sweat…A LOT. Because I’m not going right home after my run and there is often a while before I’m able to hit the showers, I have an extra top on hand so I can at least put something dry on after my run. It also helps with the feeling that I’m freezing to death after I run. It’s always nice to get out of wet clothes and into something dry.

A sweat towel. For the days when I have to run inside on the treadmill…YUCK!

Hairbrush. My hair gets crazy knotty during my run and I need to get it back under control before I head back out into the world to get Logan from school or go to the store.

A travel size box of tissues. I always seem to have a runny nose.

Water. This one is last but certainly not least. Water is probably one of the most important things I can pack in my running bag.

Wow, that seems like a lot of stuff. I guess when the weather gets a little warmer I’ll be able to cut back on what’s in the bag but until then I have all my necessities.

Do you have a running/workout bag? What do you have in the bag?