Tag Archives: running skirt

Running Shirt Dilemma

19 Apr

I got my new running duds in the mail last week. I absolutely love the skirt. It’s the perfect (modest) length, it’s nice fabric but not too heavy, the pocket on the back is big enough to actually be useful, and it’s pink.

I also really like the shirt – it’s soft and actually an extremely light teal, which makes it even cuter. Here’s my dilemma though – the medium I ordered is tighter than I’d like in the stomach. So I had the thought of exchanging it for a large. But the other issue is that the shirt is 50% polyester, 50% cotton (it says that on the website so I wasn’t surprised). I’ve never had a running-specific shirt involving cotton but Travis doesn’t think that would be good for running long distances. And since the whole point was buying a cute shirt for the marathon, I’m torn.

And I’m turning to my lovely readers. Do you have a 50/50 running shirt? Would you return the shirt for a bigger size or look for another cute, 100% polyester shirt to wear with my pink skirt?

I also just got some new sports bras. Doing a quick Google search for good running bras, I’m sure you’d come up lots of raves about Moving Comfort bras. I had ordered some last year when I was looking for a good bra to wear in my Olympic triathlon. I bought a couple of Moving Comfort bras but to be honest, I wasn’t all that impressed. Just recently, it dawned on me that I might have ordered the wrong size. And since I’m still wearing sports bras that I had in college (doubled up with others I bought more recently), I thought I’d test out my theory.

So I ordered the Fiona and Helena bras from Sierra Trading Post in one cup size smaller than I normally wear. My theory was correct. These bras actually did hold the girls down. I’m not a huge fan of the Helena (so I’m going to exchange it for another Fiona) because the band size is too small (even though it’s technically the same as the Fiona?) and is doing my underarm fat no favors. It also has very thin fabric across the front, which is not good news if you tend to get cold, ahem, after running.

But the Fiona is wonderful. It’s comfy, supportive and has thicker fabric to minimize the, ahem, coldness.

It’s also cute. That’s the main reason I have refused to try Enell bras – they look like something my grandma would wear. (Sorry, but it’s true). The other thing I like about both bras is that they fasten in the back like a regular bra. The other Moving Comfort bra I bought (the Juno) still goes over your head like a regular sports bra and fastens in the back – which is sometimes tricky to do when you’re already wearing it. I use my Juno bra for shorter distances – 10K or less – but I think that’s more because I didn’t buy the right size, than anything to do with the bra itself. I definitely plan to use my new Fiona bras for marathon training.

Short story long, if you’re looking for a supportive sports bra, Moving Comfort bras are great – you just might have to experiment with sizes.

Please give me advice about my running shirt dilemma! And if you have any ideas about where to find cute running shirts, you get bonus points!

My Marathon Outfit

10 Apr

I may have found my marathon racing outfit…

This shirt from Oiselle:

The bars represent the most common race distances, from 5K to Ultra:

And then this skirt (in the pink) from Skirt Sports (I bought it on Team Estrogen’s website):

I am LOVING that it has a place to attach your running bib, and a giant pocket on the back, to make my butt look even bigger store gels in:

I bought this particular skirt because it’s 15″ long and I like a more modest cut. I also liked that it is just a cover skirt and doesn’t come with built-in shorts. I feel like shorts are something that you need to try on in the store to make sure that they don’t ride up or fit weird. And I have 2 pairs of spandex shorts (one compression and one not) already, plus 3 pairs of tri shorts.

I was thinking about buying a Sparkle Skirt for the marathon but I think I’ve decided against it because I don’t think I’ll get enough use out of it to justify the money. (I mean, how often is it socially appropriate for an almost-30-year-old to wear a sparkly skirt in public?)

Anyway, I am crossing my fingers that the pink in the shirt is the same pink as the skirt. The pictures suggest otherwise but I’m staying optimistic.

I have also decided that my “blow money” for May (money that I can spend on whatever I want according to our budget) will be going toward a Garmin Forerunner 405. So long, Poor Man’s GPS.

Do you have a running skirt? Why or why not?