Tag Archives: reviews

Water, Water Everywhere

At the end of July, when it was hot as all hell, I got an email from Camelbak, asking if I’d like to review some of their products.

Feeling chronically dehydrated in that heat, I gladly accepted their offer to help me stay hydrated.

You’ve seen me post some pictures with both the Arc Quick Grip Bottle and the Marathoner Vest, and I’ve been promising reviews, but I wanted to wait until I got a few good, really long runs in with the Marathoner.

Quick Grip Bottle


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Well, that’s an awkward angle.

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What I like most about this bottle is the size. I used to have a handheld water bottle that could hold my phone, but then the iPhone 5 had to come out and be all long and stuff and it didn’t fit. And duh, I need my phone with me so I can Instagram. /sarcasmfont

That little pocket is really useful. I can fit my phone/cash/a credit card/subway card in the open area where my phone is, and in the area with the flap, I’ve either been able to fit my headphones or a Gu / package of ShotBloks.

As far as the actual water, the bottle holds 10 ounces, which is fine for a short run on a hot day. (I don’t usually carry water for short runs if it’s not hot out.) My only complaint with this water bottle is the angle I have to hold the bottle at. In order to drink, I have to very dramatically throw my head back to get any water in. But honestly, the storage is worth it to me for it to be a little annoying to drink out of.

Marathoner Vest

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18 miles was a good distance to get an accurate feel for this bad boy.

Verdict? The first mile or so, it took some getting used to. It felt heavy, but obviously as I drank out of it, it got lighter. (Duh.) Once I was a few miles in, I didn’t really notice it moving around, and it was really easy to drink out of. I threw two Watermelon Nuun in the reservoir before I started my run and had some nice, tasty, electrolyte-y water. To be honest, I wasn’t a fan of Nuun until this year, but their flavors lately–especially watermelon!–have won me over, and I am now a convert.

Once again, I really like the storage options on this one. There are two pockets in the front, and I put my phone and a little changepurse in one and my gels in the other. After I took this picture and a gel and put my phone back in the pocket, the pack felt incredibly off-balance, but I got used to it again.

A bustier-than-me friend pointed out she didn’t think it would be a very comfy option for larger-chested women, and I can definitely see that. As a solidly in-betweenish-sized-chested lady, I didn’t find that part uncomfortable, but thought it was worth a mention.

The only place I deduct imaginary points on my imaginary hydration scorecard is for the chafing factor. I got some chafing in my cleavage that I’m pretty sure is from this pack, and I also have two smaller spots of chafing: one on my neck and one on the inside of my arm.

I was so glad to have the Camelbak with me on that long run; I’d taken the handheld on some other long runs and got really sick of filling it up so often.

What about you? How do you drink on the run?

If you are one of those people that can wear a fuel belt, please tell me how that is comfortable??

PRO Compression Review + Giveaway

Throughout this training cycle, my legs have felt abnormally fatigued. Jen and I were talking about this, and she’s going through the same thing, too. She said she’s had some great races despite fatigued legs, so I’m hoping for the same.

When my legs already feel like I’ve run a marathon before the actual marathon, there’s a few tools I turn to for help.

  • my trusty foam roller
  • Epsom salt baths
  • making sure I’m eating healthier and taking a calcium/magnesium/zinc supplement
  • compression

For the past few years, I’ve always turned to compression socks after my long runs. If you’re not familiar with compression socks, they supposedly compress your lower legs to increase blood flow to the region so that byproducts like lactic acid can be flushed out faster. (As you can see from this post, some of the information around compression socks is conflicting.)

Either way, I’ve definitely felt the benefit of compression socks, especially when I feel the beginning of shin splints coming on. I wear them as much as I can during the day after my long run (the dress and compression sock look is a hot one, let me tell you) and sleep in them the night after.

Some of the fast girls like Monica and SkinnyRunner swear by PRO Compression socks, so I’ve been eyeing the socks for a while. They’d make me faster, too, right??

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I present to you the craziest running outfit I wore last week. All of the crazies stopped to talk to me.

PRO Compression offered to send me a pair to try out in exchange for me sharing my thoughts on the socks with you.

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I have to start with the aesthetics. They’re adorable. I asked for the Marathon Retro socks to try because they were very Ron Burgundy.

They fit well throughout the foot and calf, but they’re too long for me. They go up over my knee, and they’re supposed to fall just under your knee. I’ve also tried out CEP compression socks, and these are definitely not as tight as those. (The CEP ones are almost uncomfortably tight.)

CEO Eric Smith started PRO Compression because he worked in the golf industry and saw a need for golfers to wear compression socks, so he created PRO Compression, with lines for both runners/triathletes and golfers. (Hey Dad, you can wear cool compression socks like me, too!)

So, the million dollar blog review question: would I buy these with my own money? Yes–if I could find ones that were a little shorter.

Want your own pair of PRO Compression socks?

Leave a comment telling me how you recover from your runs and what you do when you have fatigued legs to enter. You can also get extra entries by following PRO on Facebook or Twitter and by tweeting about this giveaway. They run a ton of specials, so following them on social media is a great way to find out when they’re running one. Should you not win, you can also use the code PCBLG for 40% off and free shipping.

I was compensated in socks and cash money for this review, but all opinions and short legs are my own.

 

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