running: the dawn

I have gotten quite a few questions about the skirt I wore in the marathon (pics here) and why I switched from shorts to skirts.  Well, first of all I LOVED my first skirted experience.

I’ve always had a hate-hate relationship with running in the summertime.  Mainly because it meant that I had to wear shorts.  I have always had a problem with my shorts riding up between my thighs.  I would spend  so much time either adjusting said shorts or feeling self-conscious about what I looked like.  Yes, I tried all the different kinds of shorts: nike, adidas, mizuno.  Loose fitting, spandex, booty shorts.  No matter what I tried I would obsess over how I looked and how I felt.   And…don’t even get me started with race pictures.  While most people see the expression on the face I would only see how ridiculous my thighs look like…

Shorts...

Gross!  So, what’s a girl to do?  Skirts baby!

Skirts=chic

I was first introduced to the idea of skirts by my running BFF Andi.  She had found a nike skirt a couple years ago and kept telling me how much more comfortable it was and that she never felt self conscious.  Since then I’ve been on the search for the perfect skirt.

Enter runningskirts.com.  Yes, I found their website first by googling “running skirts.”  At first I was more than skeptical of the idea of “briefs” under the skirt as opposed to compression shorts.  I was pretty sure that I would rather have the coverage of shorts.  I kept researching and reading reviews online, became a fan of runningskirts.com on facebook so I could look through pictures of real people wearing the skirts.  Eventually became convinced that I should at least give them a try.

It’s hard though.  Running apparel in general is fairly expensive and skirts in particular seem to range between $50-$60.  Which is a lot to me.  But then. . . .my AMAZING sister-in-law suggested that she and my brother gift me a skirt for my birthday!  Even though my birthday was the day after the marathon they made sure that it got to me in time to take it for a spin before the big day.  I got my adorable pink-dot skirt Wednesday before the race and took it for a little three mile run.

Now, yes, I do know that you’re not supposed to try anything at a marathon that you haven’t first tested out on a long run…but…I did anyway.  And seriously, I’m sure that I could not have been happier.  I loved wearing the skirt every step of the way.  I never once had to adjust anything.  Every time I passed by the medical stations I’d ask myself if I needed any more chafing protection and never needed it.  And as horrifying as the “incident” was after mile 20, I was so thankful that I was wearing a skirt.  The idea of having shorts on to stick to my skin and rub me raw make me cringe even now a week later.  At the end of the race I had poured so much water on myself I was literally dripping wet.  The skirt stayed in place perfectly.

This was a complete trial by fire of a new product and I am happy to say that the running skirt passed with FLYING colors!  Speaking of colors…check out the skirts that I got while I was at the runningskirts.com store:

Yes, I when I left for California I was skirt-less.  Now,thanks to Ann, Jeremy, Sis, and me, I own 5!!!!  Basically I can’t wait for my two weeks of not running to be over so I can rock all my new skirts .  I no longer dread hot summer days.

I know that there are skeptics out there…feel free to ask questions, disagree, or share your skirt-tastic experiences!

Oh, and PS…The running skirts are having a HUGE sale.  Check it out here!  Some of there skirts are $10 and $20!