The cost of running...

I was having a bad day yesterday. The planned 21km training run was hard. I struggled and my legs felt tired. I started using tactics to keep going, watching Running Buddy get further away. She did a couple of loops to get back to me but not even my music or my negotiations helped much.

So my mind wandered to lots of places, one of which was the amount of money I have spent on this sport. It was partly prompted by a conversation I had had at work about the total cost of getting to this marathon in July. I don't really want to add up the money spent on races and events in the lead up as well as our flights and accommodation on the Gold Coast and it doesn't need to be said out loud.

Running is meant to be a relatively cheap sport, you can do it anywhere, solo or with others, you just need to go, you don't even need shoes if you prescribe to the barefoot running style.

But...

the right equipment makes all the difference and to get money out of the increasingly growing running community the 'must have' items are also growing. We 'need' to have all the things to make us better runners, to prevent injury and stay out on course.

this was a happy day of running

Just yesterday my outfit looked pretty much like this.

This just to get out the door.

I haven't added in the multiple pants/shorts/tops/socks I have purchased.  Or the yoga DVD & foam roller. Or the headphones.   I also ran yesterday with a fuel belt with water bottles (another $30).
















I am very thankful to be able to run and feel fit and healthy and shouldn't expect every run to feel glorious, a fact I was reminded of when I loaded the run onto Strava. My running community was as always very supportive and buoyed me with their comments.

I'll just put this one down to a bad run and a bad day and go out again today and tomorrow and the next day, only 9 weeks til the marathon.