Getting a gift for Father’s Day doesn’t have to take too much thought or effort. Here are some suggestions on gift ideas for Father’s Day 2019.
As summer starts to heat up, you can’t go wrong with a pair of sunglasses. Check out these Classic Square Floating Sunglasses from Coopers. Ultralight TPX frame construction for extreme durability and 20% lighter than average frames for floating effect and long-term wear. Learn More.
“Disclaimer: I received an Addaday Pro Roller to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review, find, and write race reviews!”
One of the first running-related products I reviewed on my running blog was a massage roller called The Stick. It was a self-massaging tool that you can use on different parts of your body to help reduce muscle knots and increase blood flow to prevent soreness in the future. The Addaday Pro Massage Roller is very similar to The Stick with the basic design, but is much more advanced in terms of how it can be used. There are different rollers or gears along the stick that are purposely placed to address specific muscle needs. For example, if you have a sore shin, there is a smaller gear that you can roll to target that muscle. I have been able to use the Addaday Pro Massage Roller on my calves, achilles, quads, hamstrings. The compact design allows it to be easily packed in a suitcase so you can travel with it if needed.
When I joined cross country in high school, we followed a strict routine of warming up, stretching, going for a run, followed a cool down run and more stretching. As a working adult, it is hard enough to find time to just go out and run, let alone all of the other pre and post run activities. The Addaday Pro Massage Roller addresses the stretching component by allowing runners to stretch out their muscles at their own leisure, whether it’s while sitting on the couch watching TV or at your desk at work. It is just a matter of keeping it nearby and going for a quick massage roller session to keep those muscles loose and stretched.
Smartwatches and fitness trackers have become a very popular and trendy products these days. They all have their own unique features, but for the most part, they allow you to receive messages and notifications on your watch without needing to take your phone out (which the watch is almost always connected to). But the problem with smartwatches is that they’re just an accessory to your smartphone, the watch cannot function without the smartphone nearby. So how did Timex address that issue? Well, they added a cellular radio to their newest fitness watch, the Timex IRONMAN One GPS+ watch. They partnered with AT&T to provide cellular data to their new watch to allow you to communicate with others without needing to be connected to your phone. The fitness watch offers a variety of other useful features which I’ll go into detail below. Read the rest of this entry »
I had the opportunity to participate in the Color Me Rad run at the Marine Corps Air Station in San Diego, while testing out the new LG Tone Active bluetooth headset. I’ll provide a quick recap of the race with some photos, followed by a more in-depth post about my experience using the headset. Read the rest of this entry »
I still remember wearing my first pair of Puma shoes back in high school. I forget the model name, but I believe they were just a regular pair of sneakers that I wear to school almost every day. They were pretty comfortable, but definitely lacked enough support to use as running shoes (although, I do recall a few times where I did use them that way as I was running to class to avoid the tardy bell). I don’t even know if Puma made running shoes back then. But they do now, with this new Ignite collection. When I heard about it, I was skeptical since not all shoe companies can just up and be a running shoe company. There is a lot of research and testing involved to ensure you have a solid product that can last miles and miles of running that people put through their usual running shoes. But given their solid track record with soccer shoes and just regular sneakers, I thought that it wouldn’t hurt to give them a chance.
I went on an easy run with the Puma Ignite running shoes, along with their cool graphic t-shirt and mixed statement shorts. The first thing I noticed was that these shoes had much more support than I was used to in Puma shoes, which is really important for running shoes. I was able to get into a comfortable stride and go for 3 miles on the road without any issues. The shirt was light and also very comfortable and was able to wick my sweat quite easily. The shorts were the same as well, but the waistband took a while to get used to. It reminded me of a pair of boxing shorts! But they were light and included pockets which is a huge plus in my book. Read the rest of this entry »
After coming in to my local Road Runner Sports for their free gait test analysis, I was able to find a running shoe that accommodated my running form, providing just the right amount of support I needed in a shoe. You can read about the entire Shoe Dog process here, I highly recommend both beginning and new runners to try it out. As I mentioned in the post, I was previously recommended stability shoes, but when I came in this time, was told I should run in neutral running shoes. Had I not gone in and taken the gait analysis, I would have just picked another pair of stability shoes! Read the rest of this entry »
Although being part of the cross country team was one of my favorite things about high school, I did have more injuries while on the team compared to any other period in my life! Non-runners used to joke that cross country wasn’t a sport, that you ‘just run’. But there was so much more to it than what people saw on the surface. Although runners were running for personal improvements and PRs, it was still a team sport and if you were one of the top runners in your division, you had to work together as a team to defeat the opponents. I think I had my first running injury as early as one month into joining the team. Looking back now, I probably have my shoes to blame. But remember getting the early signs of shin splints in that summer. I would spend time everyday after practice icing my shins. The injury got so bad that I would have trouble putting pants on because it hurt so much to stand on the leg with shin splints! The thing is, I never rested like I probably should have (during practice or races). Since high school, I haven’t really had any major injuries, although I have gotten pretty beat up planing soccer in our adult league.
This has been an interesting time to be a running blogger. I have been getting a lot of holiday gift guide requests from relevant and completely random companies. I’ve definitely found some products more useful than others, but it was still fun to try new things that I’ve never heard of or would have using unless I was actually sent them. Hopefully some of these last minute gift ideas will be useful.
BackBeat FIT, wireless fitness-focused earbuds are ready for any workout fan, and the gift giver can be happy knowing that they offer safety features for outdoor athletes.
I’ve tested quite a few wireless, Bluetooth headsets before and these are hands down, the best ones I’ve used. There are a couple of criteria that make a good pair of wireless, Bluetooth headphones: weight, connectivity, usability, battery life, water/sweat resistance. These only weigh 24 grams, are very easy to connect to your device, wrap around the ear so they never fall off while in use and last up to 8 hours with constant audio status alerts of battery life. The most important feature for me is definitely weight and staying in my ears while in use. The Platntronics BackBeat FIT do all of that and more.
I still remember the first time I tried FRS, it was in early 2010 after I PRed in my half marathon and had run a near perfect race in Carlsbad. FRS was handing out samples of this energy drink at the vendor booths. I was able to try quite a few flavors and really liked each one. Unfortunately, I was never really able to find them sold in stores so haven’t had it much since then. So when I heard about this campaign, I was more than happy to participate in the Two-10 Discovery Challenge. Read the rest of this entry »
An important running accessory that I’ve started using in my daily routine is the Marathon Stick, a very simple and easy-to-use self-massaging tool to help alleviate sore muscles and speed recovery. There is actually a variety of different Sticks that vary in length and firmness depending on a person’s size, muscle density, and pressure preference. The Marathon Stick was the perfect one for me, a runner, and it is named appropriately. “Measuring 20 inches with 10 (1-inch) spindles, this model was made popular by world-class distance runners. Most flexible of the small models, it is preferred for those with lean muscle mass.”
One of the first running-related products I reviewed on my running blog was a massage roller called 
Leave Your Phone Behind.
After coming in to my local 
