The Good, the Bad, and the Headlamp: Our Fitness Gear Breakdown

Alex: Welcome to Practically Fit, Real Fitness Over 40. I'm Alex.

Abbie: And I'm Abbie. And today we're going to talk about our experiences with fitness gear.

Abbie: That's right. We'll discuss some of our favorite fitness gear purchases, and we're also going to admit to some of our fitness gear failures over the years. We'll also talk about where it's okay to buy something cheaper and where we really think you might want to splurge.

Alex: That's right. We'll even do our own tier list ranking on recovery gear and debate the ultimate running gear question: are carbon-plate shoes worth it? But first, let's hit the warm-up.

The Warm-Up: Deskercise for Better Blood Sugar

Alex: All right, welcome to the warm-up, Abbie. Are you ready to warm up with some fun fitness articles?

Abbie: Oh, always.

Alex: All right, well, let's go to our first article for the warm-up. It's from Women's Health, and the headline is "This Is How Often You Need to Walk During Your Workday to Lower Blood Pressure and Sugar, According to Science." I thought this was interesting. It looked at a small study — a really small one, to be honest — focused on the impacts of sitting at a desk job all day long. So if you're somebody who has a desk job and you're working on the computer all day, this study is for you. I'll boil it down simply: the group that got up and walked for five minutes every thirty minutes had lower blood sugar and lower blood pressure than the folks who just sat at the computer all day. Cool finding. Abbie, you work from home most of the time except when you're traveling — do you get up and move about frequently when you're at home?

Abbie: Yeah, this article is really interesting for me because I've been consciously trying to build in more movement during my day, but I tend to do it more like top-and-tailing, or maybe at lunchtime. So this was interesting to think about — just getting up for five minutes every thirty minutes. Sometimes that's hard if you're on back-to-back video meetings. But actually, I was on a call the other day — a bigger meeting — and I noticed one of the people was on their walking pad, which I thought was really cool, because it was one of those meetings where we were mostly listening to one person present, so you didn't need to come on and talk. I thought this was really interesting, just thinking about how you can build in these smaller "exercise snacks" throughout your day.

Alex: Yeah, I thought it was really cool too. I'm sort of prone to this already because I'm restless — I like to get up and move around between meetings, go get water, go to the bathroom, whatever, go talk to somebody next door. I work in an office, so I have that natural thing of talking to people who are around me. So I think I already pretty much do this, but I thought it was a cool concept. If you sit at the computer all day and maybe you're not the best at getting up and moving, maybe you're like Abbie — you have back-to-back meetings sometimes, and it's hard to even put dishes in the dishwasher. I'm getting a look now.

Abbie: Yeah, I don't think that's the topic for this podcast.

Alex: I'm joking — but no, I can always tell when Abbie's had a busy day because there's dishes piled up. She just ran in there, set them down, and didn't have time to clean up. That's how you know she had meetings all day long. But the article did share some creative tips for people who haven't been great at this, especially with an office job or a desk job. One idea was taking the long way to the bathroom and back when you have to go — though if you're working from home, that might mean a trip out to the backyard or the garden.

Abbie: No, that's a good point, because I have started going upstairs to the bathroom just so I get a flight of stairs in.

Alex: Yeah, that's great, because one of the tips was to take the stairs, which I personally do at work. At my old job I had fifteen to twenty flights of stairs I could go up, and I used to do that once or twice a day with one of my best friends at work — amazing for your fitness.

Abbie: Oh yeah, that's so good. I did that when I worked in an office too.

Alex: Yeah, I can't do that now, but it was sneaky good for your fitness — almost a fitness superpower, and we just did it once or twice a day. Another tip: if you're going into the office, park further away. And finally, take the longer route to fill up your water bottle — I do that sometimes too, since the water fountain is basically right outside my office. And to your point, Abbie, another tip was getting one of those walking pads you can use with your desk, which would be especially good if you're working from home and on calls all day. It was a small study, and probably more research is needed, but it seems pretty intuitive that if you get up and walk around more, you'd be healthier.

The Warm-Up: What's Really Behind the HYROX GI Scandal

Alex: Let's go to our next article, which is based on something that went viral this past week across social media. It's from HuffPost, and the headline is "There's a Reason Athletes Poop During Events Like HYROX, Says Dietitians." Abbie, do you already know what this is about?

Abbie: Yes, I do.

Alex: Yeah, we talked about it a little earlier in the week. This is a follow-up based on the viral photos that emerged last week of a HYROX competitor who suffered — well, we should say — gastrointestinal issues during a HYROX event. I'll explain what HYROX is for anyone unfamiliar: it's one of these newfangled fitness competitions where people alternate between a one-kilometer run and eight different fitness stations. Over the course of the race you're doing eight one-kilometer runs and eight stations, each requiring a certain number of reps or meters — sled pushes, sled pulls, rowing, that kind of thing. The finishing station is a hundred wall balls, where you mix squats with throwing a medicine ball against a wall. Abbie, would you like to do HYROX?

Abbie: No.

Alex: Yeah, me neither — doesn't sound like something I want to do. I'll stick with a normal race, thank you very much. But this competitor actually won the event, and that was part of the controversy, because the other competitors had to navigate around the mess she left behind. I saw a photo on Reddit of the rowing machine with fecal matter on it. So this was all over Reddit, and honestly, I feel somewhat bad for this person that it's all over the internet.

Abbie: Agreed.

Alex: And HYROX has since updated its policy, because apparently this scenario wasn't accounted for before, which was part of the problem. The policy now states that if a racer's blood, vomit, urine, or feces poses a welfare or contamination risk to the racer or other racers, a race director may withdraw that racer on medical grounds. So I guess in this case the race director didn't know what to do, because it had never come up before. Again, we're not going to weigh in on whether the event should've been stopped, or pass judgment on this person — like I said, I feel kind of bad that she's all over the internet now. But it is interesting to hear the science behind why this happens.

Abbie: And there have been other famous instances of this — I think it was one of the British Olympic marathoners who famously pulled off to the side of the road and went to the bathroom rather than use a porta-potty. She said it was about saving time — she made that race decision on the fly.

Alex: Yeah, and there was another book we'd read by an Olympic marathoner who talked about how one of the biggest stressors before a marathon was trying to go to the bathroom beforehand — if you weren't able to go before the race, it was pretty stressful. That's what we're referring to there. But the reason this happens, according to the article, is pretty straightforward: research has shown that gastrointestinal issues affect about thirty to fifty percent of athletes, with endurance athletes at extra risk. I know personally, I get GI issues sometimes after I run — the other night we went to the track and did some 400-meter repeats, and I did not feel well afterward, or the next morning. Intense exercise can definitely upset your GI system. Kirsten Jackson, a dietitian and founder of The IBS Dietitian, is quoted in the article saying, quote, "What happened at HYROX may sound extreme, but gastrointestinal symptoms during intense endurance exercise are surprisingly common. When you're exercising hard, blood flow is diverted away from the gut towards the working muscles. Combine that with the physical impact of running, dehydration, and race-day nerves, and you can experience cramping, nausea, diarrhea, and very sudden bowel urgency." She continues that pushing yourself too far for too long could lead to exercise-induced ischemic colitis, which is different from regular runner's diarrhea — in that case, reduced blood flow to the colon can cause inflammation and symptoms like significant abdominal pain and bloody diarrhea that need medical assessment. So for those wondering, that's probably why this happened. Abbie, I'm not aware of you ever having this issue, but I know I've been prone to GI trouble with running. I remember one time on a longer training run, back when I was doing half-marathon training — I did a big loop, about eight miles, and got to about mile four when it hit. I'd had a Coke beforehand, which I learned is maybe not a great idea before an eight-mile run. But I was already out on the loop, so those last four miles were a real battle of wills — I had to get home, and I really didn't want to walk four miles. Painful run, but at least I didn't end up like that HYROX competitor.

Abbie: Yeah, I haven't had that happen, but I've definitely had cases where, like you say, you're really pushing yourself, maybe you get a little dehydrated — the one I remember was a twenty-mile training run where I was testing certain gels that really didn't agree with me. What I ended up with was a lot of bloating and trapped gas, which was really painful.

Alex: Yeah, and that's a perfect segue — the article touches on how to mitigate this, and what it recommends is eating a low-FODMAP diet forty-eight hours before a race or competition. Especially if you're one of these HYROX types, that seems like good advice. I'm familiar with the low-FODMAP diet, having had my own GI issues — FODMAPs are carbohydrates that aren't well absorbed in the gut for a lot of people, including certain types of sugars. You'd be surprised how many foods contain FODMAPs, to the point where eating low-FODMAP, which I've tried, is really bland — think chicken and spinach, super plain. And to your point, a lot of running gels and nutrition products are high in FODMAPs. Makes you wonder — has anybody come up with a low-FODMAP running gel? We should look that up.

Abbie: Yeah, I know we're planning a future episode on fueling, so we could bring that in there. I will say I've found a brand that sits well with me from a digestive perspective, so now I'm curious — I might go Google whether that one is actually low-FODMAP.

Alex: Yeah, the other thing that made me think about is trail running — when you're out on those long trail runs, people have a variety of snacks, and I'd guess some of them are naturally lower-FODMAP compared to all the gels.

Abbie: Exactly.

Alex: There you go — the lowdown on what happened with HYROX last week. That'll do it for this week's warm-up.

Confessions of a Gear Head

Abbie: Okay, so let's jump into our fitness gear conversation, the subject of today's episode. We thought we'd start by sharing some of our own stories — some of our experiences with fitness gear over the years. But first, Alex, who would you say is the bigger gearhead out of the two of us?

Alex: Oh, that's a good question. If I'm being honest, I think we both have our moments.

Abbie: Yeah, I agree. When I was thinking about this, I felt like we lean toward different things in different places, but I think we both love a bit of gear.

Alex: Yeah — Abbie's very big on the online shopping.

Abbie: So is Alex. He has as many Amazon deliveries as me. Don't believe him when he says it's all mine.

Alex: No, but I just buy the thing I want, and mine's usually more like an electronic item, or if it is fitness gear, probably more along the lines of strength-training stuff. For you, it's apparel — like this week you ordered two running packs, trying to decide which one you liked so you could send the other back. Or a lot of times, you don't like either one and send them both back.

Abbie: I did send them both back. Well, I liked one, but it was too big, and I didn't like the other because the bottles sat too high.

Alex: You should get a frequent-flyer card for the UPS Store, that's all I'm saying. It's a running joke about Abbie's online shopping, but as she'll say, she sends most of it back. I always wonder at what point these companies just ban you from ordering things.

Abbie: No, because I do keep some stuff.

Alex: Yeah, well, anyway — I think we have different things we focus on when it comes to gear, and we've done this across the years with running, cycling, and strength training.

Favorite Purchases That Changed the Game

Alex: So let's talk about our favorite fitness gear purchases — things that actually changed how we train. Abbie, what's your favorite gear item, or items, from a fitness perspective?

Abbie: It's a really good question, and especially because, like you say, my fitness habits have changed over the years. Years ago it was horse riding — and that's expensive fitness gear. But in more recent years, I think my absolute favorite is Garmin products. They're expensive, so definitely an investment, and I did a lot of research before I bought my first Garmin watch. I bought — I can't even remember which version it was — it was bright purple, and it didn't have many features. I think it had run, cycle, walk, maybe five activities total.

Alex: Now it's got every activity you could think of.

Abbie: My current Garmin watch is without a doubt my favorite piece of gear. It was expensive, so I thought long and hard about it before buying, but I rationalized it because I use it literally every day, all the time.

Alex: You sleep with it.

Abbie: I sleep with it, I wear it all the time. The only day I haven't worn it in the five years I've had this particular watch — I've got a Fenix — was our wedding day, and I thought I ought to take it off then. I was a bit upset because I didn't track my steps that day.

Alex: There you go — gotta have the data.

Abbie: You've gotta have the data. But I do love my Garmin watch. We haven't been cycling as much lately, but I also had a Garmin bike computer, and that was a big game-changer too, because before that I was recording rides on my watch — but it's really hard, and not very safe, to look at your watch while cycling. So I loved having that little Garmin bike computer, where you can set the screen up to show different things, just like the watch. I genuinely do think those have changed how I train.

Alex: Yeah — you know what cracks me up about the bike computer? You had a Garmin and I had a Wahoo, which is also a really good bike-computer brand, but Garmin always gave you more elevation. Since I like climbing, Abbie would always show more elevation than me, and I'd be like, that's not right.

Abbie: I think the Wahoo was slightly off on elevation.

Alex: Underestimating it.

Abbie: Yeah. What about you, Alex? What's your favorite fitness gear purchase?

Alex: I thought about this one, and actually, even though I'm not doing weights much these days, if at all, the thing I thought of first was the squat rack and barbells I bought years and years ago — I think I've had them since around 2012, so about fourteen years. I think of it because it's served me so well. It's a really sturdy rack — I didn't get one of those cheapo ones. It's not gym-grade, but it's fully metal, solidly bolted together. A lot of home fitness equipment can be really rickety, but this one was very solidly built. I put it together myself, and fourteen years later it's seen a ton of use — our kids have used it, you've used it, the weights I bought have gotten used. So that's probably my favorite purchase, just because it's been so well used. I can still use it at home for pull-ups, which is great.

Abbie: Yeah, cost-per-use, that thing must be down to pennies. The boys use it every day — they're always doing a couple of pull-ups before they leave the house.

Alex: Yeah, that was probably mine. The other thing I thought we could throw out — what about yoga mats, for you?

Abbie: Oh yeah — I can't remember the brand of the yoga mats we have, but I used to have really cheap ones from a five-and-below type store, and they were super thin. Then I got this brand that was recommended by a yoga teacher I followed online, and I love those mats. They're not super expensive, but a little more than the cheap ones, and they're really thick — probably about an inch, right, Alex? They're so good to work out on, sturdy too.

Alex: Yeah, we'll talk about where you can go cheap in a minute — I don't think yoga mats is it, because the ones I've gotten from Target are super thin. I remember using those at my parents' house, which has old, solid hardwood floors, and it was like, I need two of these mats just to comfortably do yoga.

Abbie: Yeah, exactly — our downstairs flooring is on top of concrete, so it's a hard surface to work out on. So I think that was a really good purchase. And a bit like the squat rack, I've had mine for six or seven years now, and it's still in great condition — I use it all the time. We even take them with us when we travel so we can stretch out. Great buy.

Alex: Also, on the cheap yoga mats — for some reason my old dog, rest his soul, Austin, was very attracted to those and thought maybe that's where he should go to the bathroom. I don't know why he viewed the cheap yoga mat that way, but anyway — he thought it was a pee pad.

Abbie: There you go.

Skeptics Turned Converts

Abbie: Next topic — what gear were you skeptical about, Alex, but ended up becoming a convert on?

Alex: I'll go back to the one you just mentioned as your favorite, the Garmin watch. I resisted it for a long time because I have some anxiety, particularly around health — I've talked about that before on the podcast. I thought the data from the watch would make me more anxious, especially around heart rate, because I tend to run a higher heart rate when I exercise — it's always been like that, it goes very high during intense exercise but comes down quickly. I just thought, in general, this is going to stress me out, looking at my heart rate all the time. It's actually had the opposite effect — it's shown me that I have a really good resting heart rate. So that would probably be the one I was most skeptical about. I thought I didn't need all this data, that it would just make me ruminate on my health more, and it's actually done the opposite — it makes me feel like I'm in pretty good shape.

Abbie: Yeah, and I think there have been a couple of things you've had on there as data screens that you were concerned about, and then you researched them and realized — like HRV. You were like, actually, this is consistent for a lot of people, that it doesn't always show up correctly. And one thing I flagged to you early on is that it takes a few weeks for the watch to learn your data, so some things aren't quite accurate to start.

Alex: I have a lower HRV, and it's interesting, because I was seeing stuff online saying your HRV should be this or higher, or you're in a constant state of fight-or-flight — which I'm not. I started talking to more people I know, and they'd say, "Yeah, I have a low HRV too, even lower than you." So I did more research, and it turns out to be a very individual thing — we could probably do a whole episode on that. But yeah, I've really loved what the Garmin has brought to our lives — like we've talked about before, we start our day talking about our sleep scores.

Abbie: Yeah. I mean, we love Garmin, but there are other brands out there that people are equally big fans of. There's a really great website by somebody called DC Rainmaker — he's the OG of Garmin reviews, though he covers all brands, and he's so good. If you're thinking about a purchase like this and you're concerned because it's a big one, I highly recommend checking out his site and looking at the watches you're interested in. I had an Apple Watch years ago and found it difficult for exercising because the battery didn't last very long, though it had some nice features. So just go look and see what suits you and the kind of exercise you're doing.

Alex: Well, Abbie, was there something you were skeptical about that you got converted on?

Abbie: Yeah, actually — one of my good friends who I used to run with a lot had bone-conducting headphones, and I just thought that was weird. I didn't understand how they worked, and I thought it was strange to have — I figured the sound quality couldn't be that good since they sit away from your ears. I was really skeptical. But for safety reasons, especially as a woman running alone, I didn't love running with headphones in my ears. So I decided to try them, and I actually really love them — I think they're great for running. I did forget my AirPods on a recent work trip and only had my bone-conducting ones — they don't work great on a plane, you can hear a lot of background noise — but they work really well for exercising.

Alex: Yeah, you've converted me over to those too. Besides the safety factor — I see people running in noise-canceling headphones now, or even on a bike with noise-canceling headphones, which is just insane to me. If you're doing that, you need to reconsider some things — that's super dangerous. But yeah, I love that you can hear your surroundings, and for me, I've always had some ear issues with allergies, so running with earbuds in almost makes me feel pressure in my head, or like I can hear my heart beating. The bone-conducting ones are awesome — I can hear the music clearly, and they're pretty loud, but there's a good balance between being loud and staying aware of your surroundings.

Abbie: Yeah, I'd agree. I've got some over-ear headphones I use for strength training, and I tried running in them once — made me really disoriented and a little nauseous. Interesting, isn't it?

Worst Purchases and Biggest Regrets

Alex: Let's talk about our worst purchases — gear that's been a total miss and not worth the cost. Abbie, I think I know what yours is going to be.

Abbie: Yeah — before I met Alex, I had a treadmill, and I decided to get rid of it because I didn't use it much. I'd gotten it secondhand on a really good deal, and I actually managed to sell it for as much as I'd paid, so that felt pretty good. More recently, I wanted to get back into being able to walk inside when it's really hot, or just exercise indoors, so I bought a walking pad. The reason I still think walking pads are great as a concept is that this one just doesn't go very fast — the top speed is too slow for me. So that's the problem with it. The walking pad as a concept is great; I'd just prefer one where I could also do a gentle jog rather than just a leisurely stroll.

Alex: Yeah, it was cheap — I think it was manufactured in China, to be honest, one of those types of products. It has a remote and an app, and I remember thinking, is this app even good to have on my phone? It got me a little paranoid. It was very clunky — it just didn't work well, in my opinion.

Abbie: So you still have it — it's in the lab, just sitting there.

Alex: It's great — if anybody wants a cheap walking pad, let us know.

Abbie: The cat uses it as a bed. Alex at practically dot fit.

Alex: For me, I'd say — well, I didn't purchase this one, you actually got it for me as a gift — a headlamp for running in the dark, since I run at night.

Abbie: And we were training for a trail race.

Alex: Sometimes, yeah, trail race — but I really like running at night in general, it's just a weird thing I do. It gives me kind of a rush, I don't know. Also, it's really hot in Texas, so sometimes it's just nice to run at night. I wouldn't do it the night before I go to work the next morning, but sometimes on a weekend I will. Abbie bought me this headlamp so I could be safer, and as I've gotten older my vision has gone downhill — in low light I don't do very well anymore. But I would still rather be almost blind than wear that stupid headlamp. I can tell you why: number one, I hate the way it feels on my head — it's bulky.

Abbie: I think it's a bit heavy too.

Alex: It's got a lot of lumens — I don't think I needed that many, babe.

Abbie: Yeah, he could probably bring down a helicopter if he had it on the full setting.

Alex: Also, especially in the summer around here, all those lumens attract weird little bugs flying in front of my face while I run — I end up ingesting bugs. Although there was one time I did like it — I was on a trail that's completely wooded, maybe around 9 p.m., might've been winter, actually. It was kind of cool, because as I looked around with the headlamp I could see all these different bugs and animals — I'm surrounded by wildlife and insects right now. That's the only time I've really appreciated it.

Abbie: Well, I like the headlamp, so all good.

Where to Go Cheap, and Where to Splurge

Alex: Let's talk about the cost of gear, Abbie. Where do you think the cheap version is just as good as the expensive one — something besides the Garmin you mentioned earlier?

Abbie: Yeah, I think there are quite a few things in this category. One for me is dumbbells — I think the ones we've got from Target are just as good as the way more expensive versions you'd find in a professional gym. Especially if you just want to buy a set to try out, I'd always go cheaper first and start there.

Alex: Yeah, that makes sense, and they're pretty durable. You have to be careful about dropping the cheaper ones hard on the ground, because they may split over time, but otherwise I think you get good value. Actually, going a little old-school — they used to make dumbbells that were completely metal. I haven't seen those as much lately, but they may still be out there, and they're extremely durable and cost less than some of the pricier ones.

Abbie: Yeah, and another one for me is tank tops, especially for running, since you go through them so often. I think you can get pretty decent ones fairly cheaply — Amazon, Target, any of the major stores. Old Navy has some good workout gear too, not expensive. Also, if you sign up for races, you get a free one, and they're often pretty good compared to some of the major brands, whose tank tops are ridiculously expensive.

Alex: That's what I'm always hoping for from a race in Texas — the tank top, because we wear them so often in summer. Occasionally they'll give you a regular tech shirt with sleeves, or even a long sleeve, and I'm like, could you not have just done the tank top? I don't need a jacket.

Abbie: I do love a long-sleeve thin hoodie though — we've gotten those from a couple of races.

Alex: Those are good, yeah — I just meant some of those regular shirts, or even that one that gave us a weird jacket thing.

Abbie: That was the Hot Chocolate race, right? Yeah, it's got these weird lines on it.

Alex: I guess it's because it's winter, but just give us the tank top.

Abbie: Or the chocolate.

Alex: Yeah, exactly. For me, I think it's shoes — buying last season's shoes, or even from a couple years back, on Amazon. If I find a specific running shoe I like — I used to run in Hokas, and now I run in Saucony — I'll just keep buying the same shoe model from a few years back until they stop selling them, because you can get them on Amazon for a huge discount. Running shoes are getting expensive.

Abbie: Yeah, Running Warehouse does that too — I've done that hack for years. If you're wearing Saucony Rides, buy the Ride 15 or 16 rather than the 18.

Alex: Yeah, and another one is running hats, because I have no hair at this point — well, I have some, but it's on the sides, and it doesn't help when it's sunny. I buy these inexpensive hats on Amazon called TrailHeads that have UV protection, which you need if you're bald like me. They're washable, fairly inexpensive, whereas some of those hats can get pretty pricey. Same for running shorts — we've found ones on Amazon that aren't as expensive as the major brands and are actually awesome, especially the ones with built-in liners so you don't need underwear. You can find great running shorts on Amazon for much cheaper than, say, Nike or Adidas, or even Dick's Sporting Goods, where there's a lot of markup.

Abbie: Yeah, running shorts is one I'd actually put in the splurge category.

Alex: Yeah — the other one I'd flag, from a strength perspective, is weight benches. I've had good luck finding a couple on Amazon that are actually pretty solidly made, without paying gym-level prices. This used to be something where, if you bought a weight bench from a local retail store — back in the day, you'd see people's strength equipment at home and it would be the cheapest, worst-quality stuff, full of holes with the foam showing through. Quality has gotten better over the years, and you can get a solid one for a reasonable price on Amazon now. That was the last one I'd flag.

Abbie: Yeah, no, that makes sense.

Alex: Abbie, what about stuff that's worth splurging on?

Abbie: Yeah, well, like I said, running shorts for sure, because I've found a couple of brands that really work for me. The cheaper ones tend to have too much compression, or feel too tight, or cause chafing, so that's one thing I'll splurge on. I generally like three brands — Lululemon, Athleta, and OCL, so I'll buy from there. The other one is sports bras — I have a decent amount up top, so it's not fun to run without support.

Alex: Yeah, I wouldn't think that's something you'd want to cheap out on.

Abbie: I think it's worth investing in a decent, well-supported sports bra, especially for running — for yoga or Pilates you can go for the cuter design version, but for running I like to feel very held together. So that's one I'll always spend time, attention, and money on.

Alex: What about you — I've flagged a couple of things on this one too. We talked about watches earlier — definitely splurge on that, and the bike computer, same thing. Especially if you're very active, these are things you use a lot, you sleep in them — worth splurging on. I'd tried one of the less expensive Garmin watches before — not that I have the most expensive one now, but even upgrading to a mid-level Garmin gets you better, more accurate data, especially with running paces. The one I had before this one — I think it was called a Venu — was a lower-priced model. It had a touchscreen, but the pace tracking was rough — I'd try to hit specific pace bands, and if I went anywhere near a tree, the pacing would go all over the place, to the point where I'd end up running faster than I needed because I thought I'd slowed down, when it was just the watch losing the signal. Definitely worth splurging on. A fun one, though — socks for running, or cycling too. Cheap socks wear down quickly, and you put a lot of strain on them with running and friction. The brand I like is Balega — you first got me some, and now I've bought a bunch, and they've lasted a long time. They don't get holes like a lot of running socks do — even some of the "good" brands get holes. So I think socks are worth splurging on — be kind to your feet when you run.

Abbie: Yeah, no, definitely — I agree, socks are worth it, just like shoes. I wouldn't go cheap on shoes. Not that you have to go super expensive, but buy a decent brand.

Alex: Yeah — other than, like we talked about, buying shoes from years past as a hack for saving money, because the cost of running shoes is ridiculous now.

Abbie: Oh yeah, no, definitely — but like I said, I wouldn't run in something that isn't made for running.

Gear We Disagree On

Alex: Is there a piece of gear that I love that you don't like?

Abbie: Well, one of your recent purchases was a bit of a running joke, because Alex decided he was going to buy a plyo box. I'd actually been looking at one of these myself for ages, so on the surface I thought, oh great, that sounds good. But the plyo box Alex got — I think it's for kindergartners. It's tiny.

Alex: I didn't really think about the dimensions when I looked at it — which sounds like the dumbest thing I've ever said, since it has three different height sides. I didn't want to get a super-tall one, because the days of me doing plyo work on a tall box are gone — that's a recipe for a pulled groin.

Abbie: And it's not very wide either, so I wouldn't feel confident jumping up onto it.

Alex: I primarily bought it to practice pistol squats — with a one-legged squat, if you're building up strength, it helps to be elevated, and it's also good for practicing balance. That's why I bought it, not really for a lot of plyo work, since the older I get, the less safe that probably is. But yeah, to Abbie's point, it's a very tiny plyo box.

Abbie: It's very much for children, I think. And another one — it's not that I don't rate them, because I think they make a lot of sense for you, Alex — but I cannot get on with running hats. I've tried visors, I've tried caps, I just don't like something on my head, it really annoys me during a run. I don't wear hats much anyway. Same with gloves — even on a really cold day, my hands get hot, or they annoy me, and I end up taking them off and stuffing them in the back of my vest. I've just never gotten on with those.

Alex: Well, aside from being balding, I just like hats — I've always worn them, ball caps my whole life. On the gloves, I usually take them off about halfway through the run too, once my hands warm up, but I find them really helpful for that first cold part of the run, especially since I tend to run cold in my hands and feet. What about the weighted vest — I love mine, and I know you don't.

Abbie: I've only tried it a couple of times — it hurt my back. I tried it on a walk a couple of times and just felt uncomfortable. I know so many people rave about it, and you really love yours, but I haven't fallen in love with mine yet.

Alex: Yeah, I use mine more for calisthenics, like weighted pull-ups, so it's a bit different. The other one I'd flag — we've already covered the headlamp, you love it —

Abbie: I love a headlamp.

Alex: — what about the handheld water bottle that straps onto your hand while running? I've seen you use that a lot, especially this past summer. I don't know how you do it — I used one for a half marathon once, and it drove me insane. It became a mental thing halfway into the race — I just wanted to chuck it to the side of the road, but I didn't want to litter. I kept switching it back and forth between hands because it would start bugging me, and it felt like it was throwing off my running gait. Not a good device, in my opinion.

Abbie: Well, I've certainly never run a half marathon with one. Sometimes I struggle in the heat and need hydration, and if I'm going for a shorter run I don't really want to wear my hydration vest — that's another piece of gear I love. So that's why I use the hand bottle, if I'm doing a shorter run in the heat and don't want to go without fluids but also don't want to take the pack. It's fine for a three-, four-, or five-mile run — anything longer than that, I'd take the pack anyway. I wouldn't want to do a half marathon with it, though. My first half marathon I actually used one of those waist belts with bottles — those were more popular back in the day — and I didn't like that at all. It bounced, no matter how sturdy they are, and threw off my gait, like you said.

Alex: Yeah, the only thing that's worked well for me is a hydration vest. Even then — today I wore mine for a run that wasn't very long, about four miles, but it was hot and humid, so I brought it. Halfway through I stopped to order some DoorDash, and I ended up taking off the vest, then my tank top, then putting the vest back on because I was getting so hot and sweaty with it on over the tank top. There's not a great solution for hydrating during a run. If you're doing a race, one option is just to trust the aid stations, if there are a good number of them.

Abbie: Oh no, no, no, my friend — I've been at races where the aid stations ran out.

Alex: Well, I did that once during a half marathon and ran my best time — it is kind of hard, though, grabbing the cup as you go by and flinging it to the side.

Abbie: I like to be self-sufficient. I also like that a hydration vest lets you carry your phone and snacks if you're doing a longer run. If it's a 5K, no issue — but for a longer run, I like having my vest.

Recovery Gear Tier List

Alex: All right, Abbie — let's switch to the next part of this fitness gear discussion and talk about recovery gear. We're going to do a ranking — the classic tier list, S tier down through F tier. This ranking system is popular on social media now; I think it originally came from gaming. I'll run down the tiers, and then Abbie's going to tell us the different pieces of recovery gear we're ranking. S tier — "superb" or "special" — actually comes from Japanese grading and gaming culture, where it stands for a word meaning exemplary or superior. It's reserved for rare, standout, meta-defining choices. A tier is excellent — great, but just a notch below S — top-tier choices that perform exceptionally well with very few flaws. B tier is good — solid, reliable, fully competent, but lacking the specialized polish of the higher tiers. C tier is average — like a C in school, middle of the pack, functional, gets the job done, but not a high performer. D tier is below average — weak options you'd avoid if better choices are available. And F tier is a complete fail — the worst, broken, or failing at its core purpose. So, Abbie, tell us the pieces of recovery gear we're ranking.

Abbie: Okay, we'll go one at a time and put them into the tiers. So first up is foam rollers.

Alex: What do you mean, you think we'd put these in a different place?

Abbie: I think I'd rank it differently than you.

Alex: Interesting — so where would you rank a foam roller?

Abbie: I don't know — you asked the question first, buddy.

Alex: I think a foam roller — I'd go A tier. It's excellent, but you do have to make sure you get a good one. There are levels to foam rollers. I remember buying one when I was younger from Target, and it was so soft that I'd just sink into it — it didn't do anything. You have to get one of the really firm ones.

Abbie: Yeah, I'd put it at B — just because you need to be taught how to use it. There are techniques to it, and it's not necessarily completely intuitive. If you're not using it correctly, you could do some harm.

Alex: Yeah, go on YouTube and boom, it's A tier. You can even use it for stretching — I've been using mine recently not just for foam rolling, but for some tightness in my upper back, and there are stretches you can do on it that are amazing. We need to decide on this — we can't have different rankings.

Abbie: Well, we can.

Alex: Okay, but I think we need a final verdict, and I feel pretty strongly it should be A tier.

Abbie: Okay, you're willing to die on that hill. Fine — A tier, you can move on.

Alex: Okay, what's next?

Abbie: Massage guns. This is a good one — they're still expensive, but you don't have to go get the super expensive Theragun, for example. When we were researching this, we bought a different brand that's just as good — you're just not paying for the name and the marketing, little plug on the side there. Where would you put massage guns, Alex?

Alex: I think massage guns are S tier.

Abbie: No, I don't think they're the absolute best of the best — I think going to a professional massage therapist is better than a massage gun. I'd put them in A tier, not S.

Alex: Okay. So we've got two things in A tier so far — it can't fully replace a massage therapist, obviously, but it can really take out some soreness the next day if you use it when you're tight or sore.

Abbie: Yeah, and what I also love is that they're not too cumbersome, so you can pack them easily and take them traveling, or to a race. Pretty good.

Alex: Yeah. What about lacrosse balls?

Abbie: I love a lacrosse ball. I think it's a super easy tool to have for pressure release. Where would you put it, Alex?

Alex: We've put two things in A so far — I think I'd put it at B tier.

Abbie: Yeah, I mean, it's good — you can use it for a lot of purposes, and I use it a lot for sore spots, especially in my glutes. It's just not very precise.

Alex: No, but it's good — solid and reliable, and I still use it more than a lot of other things for self-massage.

Abbie: So do I. And it's fairly cheap — you can get it at any sports store, and they last forever. The dogs even tried to chew ours and had no success.

Alex: Yeah, I think it's a good product — B tier for sure.

Abbie: What about ice and heat treatments — obviously ice baths are trending these days, but let's go back to the old school, like a pack you put in the freezer or the microwave.

Alex: Yeah, it's old school, but functional — I'd say C tier, average, middle of the pack, gets the job done. With the back tightness I was having last week, I used a cold pack and it helped — not mind-blowing, but it definitely helped. C tier for sure.

Abbie: Yeah, because generally they warm up after about fifteen minutes if iced, or cool down in a similar time if heated — they don't last very long. But it's good for a sprain, and there's a reason it's still recommended as a form of treatment all the time.

Alex: Yeah — we didn't have this on the list, but a corollary: what about the old-school heating pad, the square one you put in a chair or on your lower back if you had a sore back? Did your grandparents, or your parents, have one?

Abbie: No, not for — see, we're having a cultural moment here.

Alex: Like a heating pad, one that could go in a chair, on your lower back if you had a sore back.

Abbie: I've had the kind you stick to your skin, like from Walgreens — when I hurt my neck and didn't know what I'd done. I had the Tiger Balm ones too, which also smell.

Alex: No, my dad had a heating pad I swear he'd had since 1972 — that thing, you thought it was going to catch fire any minute.

Abbie: That sounds like a heated blanket or a heated mattress layer, which I always thought seemed dangerous.

Alex: I'd put those below average — they'd also get so hot you'd start to feel like it was burning you and have to turn it off. Anyway, just thought I'd throw that in since we were on the topic.

Abbie: Yeah, no, that's a good one. What about other self-massage tools — scrapers, like Graston, or cupping kits, or the various other stuff you see these days for self-massage?

Alex: Yeah, I've had this thing coming up in my feed constantly — a self-massage tool for either around your spine or into your psoas. Some of these, in the wrong hands, could be dangerous. You mentioned Graston and cupping — I don't know how much damage you could do with self-cupping, or having your partner do it; that's probably fine. But the scraping tools are pretty serious metal instruments. Having had both cupping and scraping done on me today, for my sore back — not by me, by a professional — those need to be in the right hands. That psoas tool I keep seeing come up in my feed — if you know what you're doing, that's probably okay, but the idea of somebody seeing it on social media and thinking, "I need that, maybe that's what's wrong with me," and jamming this thing into their stomach — the psoas is deep down in your hips — seems dangerous if you don't know what you're doing. I'd rank these as a fail for at-home use; I think they need to be done by a professional.

Abbie: I'd put them at D tier — if better choices are available, I'd recommend going to a professional therapist rather than using this yourself. I've got one of those scrapers, and I've also got a jade roller for massaging your face, and that works great — I just think, like you said, the ones where you could actually harm yourself probably aren't a good thing to do at home.

Alex: And I'm saying this having bought you a scraping kit for Christmas.

Abbie: Yeah, and that scraping kit's been good — I guess that one's fine.

Alex: I just think some of the others could be — okay, we'll stick with D tier on that. Let's go to the next one, one of your favorites.

Abbie: No, one of your favorites — Alex, these last two weeks have required recovery creams on his back every night, a mixture of different things.

Alex: I have a specific one I like — well, a special concoction. Although I discovered one of the recovery creams I like is no longer on Amazon.

Abbie: Oh dear.

Alex: Yeah, it just says it's no longer available.

Abbie: I think that's the one you first discovered when we were in Colorado.

Alex: Yeah, that's the one — has arnica in it.

Abbie: Well, maybe we'll have to go to Copper Mountain to get some more.

Alex: I combine that with a CBD cream that has menthol in it, and then there's the one you got — I don't know where you got this — but you called it —

Abbie: Charlie Horse — no, it's not Charlie Horse, it's called Charlie Cream. I thought it had magnesium in it. Yeah.

Alex: Yeah. Yeah.

Abbie: Which just smells like a locker room, let's be honest.

Alex: Yeah — where do you rank recovery creams?

Abbie: I think they're pretty decent — they've been around forever for a reason. If you go into a locker room at school, it always used to smell like Deep Heat or Tiger Balm. I'd say C tier.

Alex: I think I could go B on this — I've found a lot of relief with these creams. I think they do genuinely relieve pain, or at least give temporary relief — better than a heating pad. What do you think, C or B?

Abbie: I think they get the job done, so I'd put it at C — maybe you've just had more luck with them than I have.

Alex: Yeah, I've had good luck with these.

Abbie: I'd go B, but we'll call it B-slash-C.

Alex: Okay.

Abbie: Okay, last one — oh wait, we've actually got two more. Compression socks is next.

Alex: I know those are a recovery thing — I think they can be really good, especially for people flying, if they have circulation issues.

Abbie: My mum's used them flying.

Alex: I've actually run races in them — half marathons, and I found them good for that.

Abbie: So have I, and I also really like them for trail races — the debris isn't brushing against your legs. I think they work really well for that. The only thing is they can be quite thin, so they feel different, and you need to train in them before you're used to them. But I think they're fairly decent — you just have to try out different brands and levels of compression, because they do vary.

Alex: Right — so what do you think, C tier?

Abbie: Yeah, I think C tier.

Alex: Okay, cool.

Abbie: So the last one is a good old-fashioned hot bath, or a cold blast in the shower.

Alex: Ooh — I would go... okay, I may surprise you here. S tier.

Abbie: No — as much as you like a bath, you're not going S tier?

Alex: I put some salts in there, and I think it's decent, and if you enjoy doing it — I love having a bath, so I think it's great. But do I think it significantly improves my recovery? I think it helps, but I don't think it's better than, say, a massage gun. The cold shower or cold blast is awesome too, good on your muscles, and it has the added benefit of pulling you out of an anxious state.

Abbie: Yeah, I'd still put it at B — I don't think it's... you know what I'd put as S tier?

Alex: A massage therapist.

Abbie: A professional massage.

Alex: Okay, there you go — that's not really something you can do at home, unless you happen to be a professional massage therapist, or have one in your household. So, to recap, the highest-ranked things were the massage gun and the foam roller, both at A tier, and it went down from there.

Abbie: Yes — that's right.

The Big Debate: Do Carbon-Plate Shoes Actually Matter?

Alex: Let's close out this gear talk with a controversial subject in the running community — a big debate. Abbie, from a running-shoe perspective: do carbon-plate shoes actually matter? And I'd add the subtext — do they matter for your average recreational runner, like us?

Abbie: No, I don't think they do. Unless you're in the elite or semi-pro category, you're probably not running fast enough for it to make a real difference. And I actually think this falls into a category where, if you're not careful, you could do harm to yourself, because they don't cushion the same way other shoes do.

Alex: Depends on the shoe.

Abbie: Do I have some? Yes. Does Alex have some? Yes. So we've definitely fallen victim to the carbon-plate shoe thing, but I don't think they make a significant difference for the average recreational runner.

Alex: Yeah, and there are different versions — I tend to like the ones that are more like a normal training shoe with the plate built in, rather than pure speed shoes. I have a couple pairs of speed shoes with a carbon plate that I've worn in races a few times, but the most recent one I got felt very stiff — I wore them on the track, and it didn't feel good, in my opinion. I think people should be careful with that. Studies have found that they do offer some modicum of speed improvement, but like Abbie said, unless you're a professional marathoner, it's probably not going to make a big difference. There's also a running joke on Reddit about a particular pair of carbon-plated speed shoes made by Nike that are super expensive — recreational runners wearing these four-hundred-dollar shoes.

Abbie: I know, that's the other thing.

Alex: Vaporfly, is that it?

Abbie: Something like that — they're super expensive, the most expensive version of shoe for that brand. So for the cost, you could probably buy something else that would make a bigger difference to your running overall than carbon-plated shoes. If you are going to get a pair, I'd research and make sure you're picking ones that make sense for you, and not run every run in them.

Alex: Actually, looking now, you can find some for around a hundred — here's one discounted to about a hundred and ten — but most of them new are around two hundred and seventy.

Abbie: Yeah, exactly — they're normally about fifty to seventy percent more expensive than the regular shoe from that brand.

Alex: And they're oddly shaped too — looks kind of uncomfortable to me. So I think our consensus is that it's not something that's really going to make a difference for the average runner. If you like them and they're comfortable, fine, but I doubt it's going to improve your times drastically.

Abbie: Yeah, and I read something about being careful especially over a long distance — if you're not in that sub-three-and-a-half-hour marathon range, using them for that long might actually start tipping over into being less helpful, for the amount of time you're out there.

Alex: Interesting. So there you go — the big running debate. We don't think carbon-plate shoes are going to make much of a difference, even though we own a couple of pairs ourselves.

Abbie: Yeah, we do. Like I said, if you want to try them, go ahead, but I don't think they're a priority.

Wrap-Up

Abbie: Well, that's it for today's episode. We hope you enjoyed our discussion and debates about fitness gear. Stay tuned for the next episode, where we're going to talk about ultra-processed foods — a big subject right now, certainly in the US and the UK, across the health community. We'll be exploring what they actually are, their potential harmful health effects, and how you can seek to avoid or minimize them in your daily diet — because we don't manage to totally avoid them, do we, Alex?

Alex: I foresee us discussing our favorite ultra-processed foods as part of this — you've got to have some cheating, or you won't enjoy life. So thanks for listening. If you enjoyed this episode, please head to your favorite podcast platform and leave a review or a rating. If you've got comments or stories you want to share, send them our way at alex@practically.fit. We look forward to seeing you on the next episode. And remember — when it comes to fitness, you don't have to be perfect, you just have to be practical.