Wrong. Oh so wrong.
Sure, you need shoes. But the more you run, the more often you need to replace your shoes. And only the right shoes will prevent injury. And shoes range in price from $50 – $250. On average, let’s say a good pair of running shoes costs $110 and need replaced anywhere from 3-6 months. Yes, you CAN run with cheap shoes; but I don’t recommend it. Cheap shoes are cheap for a reason.
If you want to run outside — which is the most fun, am I right?? — you’ll likely want to carry your phone with you for music. So you invest in an armband, such as the NeoSleeve for the iPhone, for your smartphone. This particular sleeve, which is my personal favorite (and costs less than $15 on Amazon) because it’s fairly inexpensive, water resistant, and has a space for your car key. Others can cost upwards of $20.
Now that you’re running longer distances, you start to get aches and pains that come with the kind of wear and tear running puts on your body. Enter compression sleeves, KT Tape, and foam rollers.
And then you sign up for a race. Let’s say a 5k or a half marathon. A 5k will probably run you between $25 – $35. A half marathon is anywhere from $50 to $150. That’s JUST your race entry (which may come with some ‘swag’ such as a t-shirt and post-race food).
If you are running in a cold climate, a gym membership or a treadmill may be necessary for your training. A cheap gym membership would run someone about $20 (hey, Planet Fitness!) a month. So about $240 per year. And a treadmill is a one-time investment of anywhere from like $800 – $1700. It’s insane how much a treadmill or a gym membership can cost. This past winter was cold — like -20 degrees cold. But we cancelled our gym membership and I started running on a treadmill, which is saving us monthly.
Some runners (OK — MOST runners) choose to run with a GPS watch, whether it be a Garmin or Nike watch. I had a basic Garmin and I hated it; but now I have a much more user-friendly Garmin that I LOVE to use! The battery lasts for my long runs and it controls my pace better than any iPhone running app could possibly do. These run $100 to $500. Mine is middle-of-the-road and runs about $170; but I have to admit I wish it had Bluetooth so it would update to the internet/my iPhone app automatically. (I know — first world problems, right??)
I wanted to add up all of these costs, but my wallet told me that it would just depress me; so YOU do the math. It’s EXPEN$IVE to run — am I right!?
Basically, running is NOT cheap. In theory it should be just a “lace up and get out there!” kind of thing; but it isn’t. Not if you’re serious about it and doing it right. You don’t have to be a marathoner or even a half-marathoner to take running seriously; but I can tell you that once you put your mind to it and start running seriously, you’ll find a way to make these things a priority. And it’s totally worth it. <3
