What is running

1. The activity

Running is practiced by more and more people and it has a minimum requirement of equipment. Nevertheless, it requires an excellent pair of shoes.  Whether one is a beginner or an ultra marathonian, practicing the trail running or running on the road, it is generally an activity with high intensity.

Trail running has this in particular: the roads taken are mostly craggy and full of obstacles (Rocks, roots, mud) which explains the importance of having a good shoe to avoid injuries, for example to the ankle.

In all the cases, the equipment and clothes will affect the comfort of the runner and the quality of the experience. Due to the intensity of a race and depending on the weather, the multilayer system can be a good option (base layers, second layer and outside layer).

2. Clothes

	Advantages	Disadvantage	Use
Synthetic Fiber	Dries fast Light	Retains odors When it’s humid it does not keep its thermal capacity	Especially in summer.
Natural Fiber	Keeps its thermal capacity even when wet. Does not keep or keeps to the minimum the odors.	Dries slower	Specially during winter thanks to its thermal capacity

2.1 Running in summer

Thanks to it’s capacity to dry faster, synthetic clothes will be prefered for running during the summer.  

Item	Specifications	Woman	Men
Running shoes	Running shoes can be neutral or with support depending on the morphology and the stride of a client. It is important to properly choose it’s shoe to avoid injuries. Some models can also be worn with crampons for the trail running.	Women's Wave Sayonara 3 (soulier neutre)	Men's Speedcross 3 CS (trail running)
Running socks		Unisex Merino Ridge Runner Pro Socks (24% de mérino)	Unisex Merino Ridge Runner Pro Socks
Shorts	Some shorts have an integrated net which serves as underwear to avoid friction. The shorts (near the body) may be preferred for the same reasons.	Women's UA Perfect Pace Short	Men's Trail Shorts 2-in-1
Underwear	For women, an excellent support will be needed to have an agreeable experience. For men, close to the body underwear may be prefered to avoid friction and irritation.	Women's Just Right Racer	Men's UA Original Series 6 inch Boxerjock Boxer Briefs
T-shirt (Short sleves)		Women's HeatGear Armour Short Sleeve	Men's WickedCool Short Sleeve T-Shirt
Run Tank		Women's UA Fly-By Solid 2.0 Run Tank	Men's UA Tech Graphic Tank
T-Shirt (Long sleeves)	By colder times, more breathability.	Women's Aeon Long Sleeve Tee	Men's Agile 1/2 Zip Midlayer
Sunglasses	This sunglasses are essentials; they protect better the eyes, offer a better visibility and slow the appearance of wrinkles!	Parallel Max - Sugar Plum - Carbonic TLT Platinum Lens	Turbine in Matte Black - Warm Grey Lens
Compression socks or compression sleeves	Compression clothes can be worn both before or after the race. They improve the blood circulation, bringing more oxygen towards the muscles and in consequence less muscular tiredness and/or a faster recovery.	Women's Ultra 2.0 CRx Sock	Unisex Ultra 2.0 CRx Calf Sleeve
Compression leggings	Compression clothes can be worn both before or after the race. They improve the blood circulation, bringing more oxygen towards the muscles and in consequence less muscular tiredness and/or a faster recovery.	Women's Ultra 2.0 CRx Tight	Men's UA Heatgear Compression Legging

2.2 Running in the rain

Since it’s an intense activity, the breathability of the coat will be prefered over it’s waterproofness. Waterproof coats will keep the body dry but the sweat will replace the rain. The runner will be wet from the inside which will cause discomfort. The running coat will be mainly breathable, water and wind resistant without being a 100% waterproof.  

Item	Specifications	Woman	Men
Running Shoes	Can use old shoes to avoid premature use of the shoes.	Women's Wave Sayonara 3 (Neutral shoes)	Men's Speedcross 3 CS (trail running)
Running Socks	Merino wool socks here will be used to keep the heat of the foot despite the rain.	Unisex Merino Ridge Runner Pro Socks (24% of Merino)	Unisex Merino Ridge Runner Pro Socks
Cap or Buff	A Cap can be useful to avoid the rain falling directly on the face.	Unisex FASTCap Century	Original Buff
Coat	It is suggested a Softshell to have the best possible breathability while offering a certain protection against the rain.	Women's UA Qualifier Woven Jacket	Men's Ignite Shelter Jacket
Visibility	The visibility is very important in this conditions, the clothes will often have reflecting details on them. There is also some lights that can be worn.	Light Spur	Strobe Light

2.3 Running during the winter

During winter, one must wear light clothes. It might seem strange but that way we avoid sweating and having wet clothes that due to the cold, will increase the risks of hypothermia. Also, cotton must be avoided since it absorbs humidity and does not keep the body dry.

A multi-layer system must be used. This way of dressing will keep the body dry while transferring the transpiration from one layer to another­. It protects against the wind and the severe weather. The base layer aims to evacuate the humidity towards the second layer so that the body stays dry and warm. Despite the fact that merino wool evacuates less fast the humidity compared to a synthetic tissue, it keeps its thermal capacity even when it’s humid. It is a very good choice as a first layer.

The intermediate layer adds an extra insulation. Depending on the weather, it can be worn or not. Most of the time in synthetic since it evacuates more humidity than the first layer.

Due to the intensity of running, the outside layer will seek for breathability in order to keep the body dry. It is most of the time resistant to wind and rain in the front and more breathable in the back since the wind grabs us from the front.

Item	Specifications	Woman	Men
Running shoes	Crampons shoes similar to those for trail running will be favored. Since trail running during winter has roads that are uneven (bumps, ice,etc.) In this conditions the crampons will offer a better adherence and will reduce the risk of injuries	Women's Speedcross 3 GTX	Men's Speedcross 3 CS
Running socks	Merino wool is favored
Leggings	For winter the pants are mostly windbreaker in the front to let the most possible humidity evacuate from the back. The inside is sometimes brushed with a polar to increase the insulation. They can be worn alone or with a base layer underneath.
Pants (First layer)	Merino wool, optional depending on the temperature.
Underwear	For women, an excellent support is required to have a pleasant experience For men, underwear close to the body is prefered to avoid rubbing and irritation.	Women's Just Right Racer	Men's UA Original Series 6 inch Boxerjock Boxer Briefs
Sweater (First layer)	Depending on the temperature, it can be worn below the coat or worn alone. The merino wool will keep its thermal capacities even when humid.
Coat	For winter the coats are mostly windbreaker in front and the back is a light breathable fabric to let the most possible humidity evacuate from the back. The inside is sometimes brushed with a fleece to increase the insulation. A coat softshell may also be appropriate.
Long sleeve sweater	By colder times, more breathable	Chandail à manche longue AEON	Chandail à demi glissière Agil Homme
Tuque	Since a lot of heat is lost by the extremities it is important to properly cover them.
Buff	The cold air can be irritating for the lungs, while breathing through a buff or a neck warmer, the air breathed will be more humid and less cold. Tough, some people do not like that feeling.
Gloves or mittens	Since a lot of heat is lost by the extremities it is important to properly cover them. .

3. Equipment

To have an ultimate experience when running, some equipment can be added like:

• Light : on the shoe, t-shirt or even a headlamp
• Waist Belt : for food and hydration
• Water bottle
• Armband for music
• Headphones
• Hydratation Backpack
• Sunglasses
• Training watches and accessories to calculate the rhythm and other
• Cap