Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Running at Night

First of all, thank you to everyone for all of your positive and encouraging comments about my back injury....they made me feel so much better and motivated and inspired me...you guys rock!!!!

I ran 5 miles on Sunday with little to no back pain....yeah!

This summer has been CRAZY trying to fit everything in. There are so many things I want to do with the kids and only so many hours in the day. Tonight by the time I was able to get for a run it was getting dark.

Luckily....I was just down in NYC to visit my sis and picked this up at a running store:


An Amphipod light! The light I had been wearing around my arm was not very bright. I got it for free at a race and knew I needed something brighter. This light looked great in the store and when I got home and compared the 2 side by side the amphipod was clearly MUCH brighter. I wore it around my ankle and it was very comfortable.

My neighborhood is very residential so I am comfortable running at night. My only issue is making myself as visible as possible to drivers. I wore the amphipod light, carried a flashlight and wore a reflective vest. My only issues with the vest is there is very little reflective surface on the back and although I run on the left side of the road, I still worry about the cars coming up behind me.

Anyone else run at night??? Any helpful tips for me???

11 comments:

Christina said...

I don't run in the dark because I lived out in the country and I have seen foxes and wild hogs around before. I don't think I am ready to outrun either one of them.

Do run against the traffic, so you can anticipate what's coming. Some shops may carry reflective tape, maybe you can reinforce your reflective vest's reflectiveness with more of that tape. And wear light colored clothing, make sure your shoes and shorts have reflective strips?

That being said, try doing a search on Runner's World Web site. I know they did some articles a few months ago about safe running when it is dark outside.

Wilma Lee said...

Had to laugh at Christina's comment. One of my mom's sayings as we were growing up was if we asked where one of the other kids' were, she would say, "She went out to s*it and the hogs ate her." (We had an outhouse til I was 7.)LOL.

Cheri said...

I agree with Christina, get some reflective tape and use that too. I am so glad to hear that your back is better, but for someone that could probably be your mom, I am going to tell you not to over do just because you are feeling better. Trust me, I have constant back pain because I didn't take care of myself and I just live with it.

racing dawn said...

You're brave! If I run at night I head to the gym. It would be fun to get some cool headgear and try though! I'm running a 180 mile relay this fall with a team and we'll be running through the night. That head lamp would come in handy!

Julie said...

Hi Sarah,
I would love to purchase a running head lamp. I usually run when it is light outside but with hotter days it just makes sense to run either later at night or really early in the morning:)

I am glad to hear that your back is feeling better and that you are back in action! Take care!

Christine said...

I bought a little head lamp and it's actually very comfortable and bright!! But I'm too much of a chicken to run in the dark and only used it once - while walking the dog :)

Molly said...

Glad to hear your back is better!! I'm not a night runner, I'm so clumsy I'm afraid I'd wipe out.

You should defintely think about the Boilermaker for next year, it's such a great time!

joyRuN said...

WOOHOO for pain-free run!!!!

Lace Up And Run said...

Glad to hear your back is better. I agree with someone who said ease back into it gently. Don't overdo it.

I love to run at night. I also live in a residential neighborhood and will not run on the sidewalks. It's so peaceful when it's dark out.

In the winter I use a headlamp on my morning runs since it's so dark out and a blinking red light on my back. People in town know it's me out there because I'm the only one with the red light.

Anonymous said...

Just passing through and your blog post caught my eye. Amphipod also makes a running "strap" that X's across your back and front. It's the night-light yellow, balanced with plenty of reflective tape. I don't notice that I'm wearing it when running... I bought mine several years ago, but I'm sure you can still find it in running stores/online. I don't run at night without it.

marmot ski said...

that was great!it would be very helpful for you!