The Strategist happens to be full of runners, so this week, we hit the ground running (literally), testing tons of running gear and interviewing experts to give every kind of runner all the intel they might need. Welcome to Running Week.
The staff of the Strategist is clearly obsessive, and it turns out a significant subset of us is obsessed with running. Whether we’ve been running for two years or ten, we’ve thought a lot about what gear works best for the sport, and you can be sure that everything we publish this week has been put through its — actual, literal — paces and has been thoroughly vetted by us. To get a sense of how serious we are about running and the collective experience we bring to the subject, we’d like to introduce you to the runners on staff. For some of us, every week is Running Week. (To see all of our Running Week stories, go to our hub.)
Years I’ve been running: Two.
Road or trail: Road.
Races I’ve run: A handful of 5Ks, one ten-mile race, and one half-marathon.
Current favorite running shoes after being a strong Hoka loyalist: The Brooks Glycerin StealthFit 21. I did the last three months of my half-marathon training and ran the race in these!
Years I’ve been running: 17. I started running track in elementary school and joined my high-school cross-country team in eighth grade.
Road or trail: Both!
Races I’ve run: I’ve likely run close to 100 races during my lifetime. In college, I competed in three seasons — cross-country, indoor track, and outdoor track. I qualified for the NCAA Women’s Division I Cross Country Championships as an individual in 2016, and I was crowned the Big 12 Conference Champion in the indoor 5,000-meter race in 2017.
Favorite running shoe: The Hoka Arahi. This is my favorite stability shoe because my feet pronate quite a bit. It has helped to keep my plantar fasciitis at bay.
Years I’ve been running: 15.
Road or trail: Both, but I prefer road running here in New York.
Races I’ve run: Dozens of 5Ks, five 10Ks, four half-marathons, one marathon.
Favorite energy gel: Huma Blackberry and Banana with extra electrolytes. I could go on a whole rant about this, but most energy gels out there don’t offer enough electrolytes, especially for endurance athletes, who need to replenish a ton of electrolytes lost through sweat. This one from Huma is the only gel I’ve found that offers more electrolytes than a typical gel — and actually tastes good.
Favorite race-day shoes: Saucony Endorphin Elite. I haven’t done the math, but I imagine the Elites make me run about 400 percent faster.
Years I’ve been running: 17.
Road or trail: Road.
Races I’ve run: Nine total races since 2013 (including six half-marathons, plus one coming up).
Favorite running jacket: I recently bought this jacket from Brooks and love it so much. It’s lightweight, water- and wind-resistant, and very well designed. For example, it has a couple of snaps under the zipper so when you get hot, you can unzip the jacket for ventilation but also keep it closed so it’s not flapping around everywhere. The hood actually stays on when you’re running. I recently wore it on a lakeside run in Vermont when it was 31 degrees out (felt like 23) and was very comfortable. It was the first made-for-running jacket I’ve ever bought and made me realize that having the right gear makes all the difference.
Years I’ve been running: 14. I started in high school and just never stopped.
Road or trail: Road.
Races I’ve run: Four marathons (and two more coming up) and a handful of half-marathons.
My favorite running shoes: Hoka Cliftons and Mach 5s. I tried the Cliftons on a whim three years ago and have been wearing Hoka since. (I’m wearing the Mach 5s in my race photo here.) But I just tried Tracksmith’s bougie and fairly new Eliot Runner, and … I didn’t want to like them because why are they so expensive? But so far I really do.
Years I’ve been running: Five. For years I thought I hated running, but after joining a run with a local run club (shout-out North Brooklyn Runners!) in spring 2019, I fell in love and quickly descended into a full-on obsession.
Road or trail: Road.
Races I’ve run: One marathon (the Chicago Marathon will be my second this fall), three half-marathons, five 10K races, and ten 5Ks.
My favorite running shirt: I love Tracksmith’s Harrier Long Sleeve one. Its aesthetic makes me long for New England cross-country days (despite the fact that I neither ran in high school nor college nor lived in New England). It’s supersoft, warm, and dries quickly after being caught in the rain (or getting soaked from excess sweat). I own it in three colors and plan on buying more!
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