Now that the Jersey Shore is somewhat closed for the season, most of the water fountains on the boardwalk are turned off and most rest rooms are boarded up. (Yes I will without hesitation use boardwalk bathroom sink water to refill my bottles.) No fair for runners...
I considered buying a device like this:
(That is NOT my arm, by the way. I just found this photo online...)
I rigged my own very inexpensive version which I have used about 3 times now on long runs:
(That is my hand with a giant tattoo on it. This tattoo covers a smaller tattoo I impulsively decided to get in Hawaii when I was 19 years old. No, I am not/was not in a gang. I have very mixed feeling about being the mom with the tattooed hand... anyway, back to our subject...)
I made this out of four hair elastics. It actually works- I held a bottle for a good part of 15 miles and was able to just stuff the hair elastics in my pocket during the last mile of my run. It prevents the need for a tight sweaty grip on the bottle. My hand is loose and sometimes open with this makeshift bottle holder. It's easy to switch from one hand to another, too.
And if I lose or drop the hair elastics, it's not the end of the world. This device probably costs about 30 cents or less if you buy hair elastics in bulk...
You're thinking, well, that's nice... but what about gels or sport beans or any other edibles that aren't transportable via multiple hair elastics? And you're probably wondering if I wear an armband for my music, right? (I know you probably aren't but I have a solution for that too...)
I turned these shorts inside out so that you could see the pockets I sewed on the inside. These are currently my favorite running shorts. I sewed these pockets on by hand in a hotel the night before my first marathon. While I have a whole room in my house devoted to sewing that has 3 machines in it, I can't seem to find it in my heart to remove the hand stitching. It's sentimental, I guess. Anyway, I had to carefully size the pockets so that they weren't too big (I measured my blackberry and added .25 inches on each side.)and place them so that they weren't right on my hips or too close together. The pockets are made of spandex materials- the gold pocket was made from scrap fabric from my Wonder Woman marathon relay costume. I string my headphones up through my shirt and it's like it's all meant to happen. I have one other pair of shorts that I sewed pockets into. I do have a few pairs of running shorts that came with pockets (and a $30+ price tag) but the pockets are all too small. I also keep money in one of the pockets at all times because it would be out of the question to run with a wallet.
These are cheap easy ways to make your life more running friendly. I hope someone finds them useful!
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