Walking OK in the UK

New kit time as thoughts turn to walking and the 3 peaks challenge. I've never had a pair of walking boots before and was hoping I could have used a pair of my trail trainers but I'm required to have footwear with some ankle protection. Although the challenge is not until July, I wanted to get my boots early to allow 'wearing them in' time.

So without any knowledge of walking boots I went straight in and ordered a pair of Hi-tec V-lite Sphike hiking boots from Amazon (£43.99). As luck would have it the fit was perfect (I went a size bigger to allow for walking socks) and after 2 x 2 hour dog walks on multiple terrain this weekend....all appears good. Comfortable and lightweight. I'm not sure how waterproof yet as conditions have been dry of late.

Success with the boots, and I appear to have been just as lucky with my other purchase...my Craghopper Kiwi walking trousers, again from Amazon (£19.99). Loose fitting, part elasticated waist, plenty of pockets (9 in total) lightweight and water repellent. Like the boots, really comfortable, so I seem to have struck lucky with these two important parts of the kit. 

Obviously 2 hours of walking isn't quite the same as 24 hours walking the UK's highest mountains, but you've got to start somewhere, and so far so good.

I'm still running 5 days a week, which includes a hilly 7 mile trail run in the dark,with head torch once a week with friend Brian, whom is also doing the 3 peaks challenge. 

The running will obviously be beneficial training for the walking challenge, but we've also got some big walks planned to complement the running training which will hopefully make the 3 peaks as enjoyable as it is challenging.

Nike Lunarglide 6

The Lunarglide range was one of the first new revolutionary lightweight trainers and has been a favourite of mine for a long time. I started out with the +2, then onto the +3 and +4, skipped the version 5 and am now happy to be back reviewing it's 6th reincarnation.

It makes you wonder how a stability shoe can be so light but Nike have done it again, in fact they've made the new version 30% lighter than it's predecessor! Now weighing in at just 272 grams.

One of the Lunarglide's strong points is how well it holds the foot particularly in the heel. 

The heel clip has been updated to give extra support which works well. The trainer generally feels quite snug but comfortable. 

The flywire technology integrates with the seamless breathable upper to give a glove like snug fit but not restrictive and extremely comfortable and airy.

Stability trainers in the past always relied on a medial post on the inner side of the outsole to stop the foot rolling. This in some shoes was quite noticeable and in some uncomfortable, the Lunarglide's support comes from opposing wedges of foam of different densities which gives the stability without the fore mentioned problems.

The outsole design has been much improved and is one of the best new features. The design map under foot is made up of individual contour maps that flex independently making the shoe very responsive and give a more natural movement to the foot.

Overall this is a big update and a worthwhile one.

I would highly recommend this shoe to the overpronating runner, it can be used for long distances or for more faster shorter distances as the trainer is so light.






Cushioning - 10 out of 10, Very supportive trainer
Comfort - 9 out of 10, Extreme comfort below foot
Flexibility - 10 out of 10, Amazing for a stability trainer
Responsiveness - 9.5 out of 10, Very good due to the new outsole design

Overall 38.5 out of 40

The Nike Lunarglide +6 can be purchased from JD sports at £95

TomTom Runner Cardio sport watch

I've had GPS sports watches in the past with heart rate monitors where you wear a strap around your upper body. All good but sometimes temperamental in keeping satellite signals under trees and buildings and often losing heart rate readings while on the run. 

Well what if you could have watch that doesn't lose signals under trees and can measure your heartrate without a chest strap....Enter the TomTom Runner Cardio sports watch!

The watch measures heart rate with a Mio optical sensor, which monitors changes in blood flow by shining a light at the rear of watch through the skin on your wrist. It's amazing and you are oblivious to this taking place. I'm aware of the Mio sensor technology as I have reviewed the Mio Alpha heart rate monitor in the past. Billed as the worlds first strapless heart rate monitor the Mio Alpha was a great watch but did not have any GPS built in or software to be able to download data.

But now combined with TomTom's GPS expertise, this is now a serious piece of kit.

The strap is the same design as the Mio Alpha, which I'm glad, as this was a good feature. It's soft and secure with no fear of coming loose on the run.

The watch was easy to set up out the box and comes with a USB cable for uploading to a computer and for keeping the watch software upto date through the TomTom MySports website. 

Once the watch is set up, you're ready to go. Navigating around the watch is simple. Moving left with the Joystick opens the status screen, Down opens the settings menu, Right opens the activities menu. The only touch screen capabilities work the back-light for the screen.

The joystick looks quite obtrusive but it actually does not get in the way, and is easy to operate whilst running.

To start a run is simple, a click to the right highlights the run option, another click to the right and the watch will begin to search for satellites using the latest GPS and GLONASS technology. Initially this may take a few minutes, and if you run from a new location it will be the same, but once it has located the satellites and if you run in the same area again the fix is almost instant. The watch will vibrate and display the word 'GO'. Pushing the button once more to the right begins the run. To pause a run, press and hold the button to the left, from here you can either continue your run by pressing right or finish the run by pressing and holding to the left again. It's all very simple.

Whilst running the large screen displays information of the current run: distance, duration, pace, average pace, lap time, lap distance, lap pace, calories, heart rate and heart rate zone. By pressing the joystick down you can scroll through each of these items....Now for my one criticism of the watch, once you've scrolled through to the end, to get back to the beginning you have to go back up through each item again. It would be nice if whilst continuing to press down you went back to the first item after the last. Other than that the information is clear and very accurate. I've run with the watch under heavy tree coverage and the satellite signal never weakened making for accurate results. 

The furthest I've run with the watch is around 2 hours and battery life was hardly touched. The watch is recharged via the USB cable through the computer. When not being used the watch does not turn off but displays the current time when not in use.

One of five intensity zones can be selected to match your training goals and the watch will send alerts letting you know whether to speed up or slow down.

The five zones are: 

Sprint: mostly used as part of interval training.

Speed: high tempo training to improve your speed and fitness.

Endure: moderate to high tempo training to improve your lung and heart capacity.

Fat Burn: moderate tempo training, great for weight loss.

Easy: easy tempo training, mostly used for warm-up and cool down

The watch is very durable and has a scratch and impact resistant screen and is weather and water resistant.

Uploading your runs can be done connecting the watch to a computer via the USB cable or by Bluetooth onto any Apple device with the TomTom My Sports APP downloaded. The APP should be available for Android devices in September 2014. As well as the My Sports Website the data can be synced on popular running sites and community platforms, including MapMyFitness, RunKeeper, TrainingPeaks and Strava.

Syncing with my IPAD is the easiest and my favourite way of uploading, wireless and through the APP.

Once uploaded, Your run can be reviewed on the MySports website. I must admit I'm not a great fan of the layout of the site but all the information you would expect and want from your run is there. I would like to see a calender layout of my runs rather than a list that you get when entering the site. Also viewing the laps of the run is not clear.

This is a minor criticism of the software rather than the watch. I cant fault the watch and highly recommend, it's strengths being its accuracy and ease of use. 

The TomTom Runner Cardio sport watch is priced £219.99 and UK retail stockists include Sweatshop, Runners Need, Up & Running and John Lewis – also available from www.tomtom.com/sports

New Balance 1260 v3 & the British 10K London run

I'm pleased to be able to get a chance to review one of my favourite running shoes again. I've reviewed and run in the version 2 of the popular New Balance1260 so now it was time to see how the 3rd generation of the trainer would fare.

What's so great about the 1260 is that although it's a stability trainer you feel close to the ground and the responsiveness of the trainer is second to none. 

The latest version of this trainer feels similar on foot to its predecessor, a roomy toe piece but keeps the forefoot in place, the upper then hugs the foot nicely feeling comfortable upto the ankle.

The blown rubber outsole gives plenty of stability but makes the shoe lighter than the v2 weighing in at 305 grams (10.8 oz).

The shoe looks busy with plenty going on, is bold and bright and is no shrinking violet! The appearance may put some people off, but I like it.The breathable air mesh upper allows for plenty of ventilation and is noticeable on the run; great when running in the heat.

The grip underfoot works really well gripping to the Tarmac and allowing a good push off yet there are no deep grooved areas that allow small stones to get stuck in (a real bug bear of mine on the run).

Not too many noticeable features over its predecessor but not much improvements were required. As the saying goes, if it's not broke then why fix it!

Cushioning - 8 out of 10, Good cushioning you'd expect from a stability shoe

Comfort - 9 out of 10, Very comfortable especially in heel area

Flexibility - 8 out of 10, Good Flexibity.

Responsiveness - 9 out of 10, Very responsive with the low profile

I will certainly be wearing my new trainers this coming Sunday at the Vitality British 10K London run on Sunday and will be heading to the exclusive ‘New Balance Village’. New Balance, which is an official sponsor of the race, is treating runners to special incentives including access to an interactive chill out area, as well as a free sports massage for runners wearing New Balance.

The ‘New Balance Village’ will be home to a host of activities including sports massage from YourPhysioPlan.com, a network of expert independent physiotherapy practices across the UK. Together with YourPhysioPlan.com, New Balance is offering runners wearing the brand a free sports massage in a space before or after the race. Those wearing the iconic brand will also receive a free New Balance T-shirt and an exclusive discount on a 12 month membership with YourPhysioPlan.com

Ready to run!

All runners are invited to celebrate after the race in the ‘New Balance Village’ chill out area, where they can play crazy golf amongst London landmarks, feast oncomplimentary popcorn and pose for a picture in front of Westminster Abbey and Big Ben within the photo cut out boards. Visitors to the New Balance Village can also head to the New Balance market to pick up the latest New Balance technical trainers from sports retailer Sweatshop.

All participating runners will receive a free pair of exclusive New Balance union jack trainer laces and a discount voucher for Sweatshop at the bag drop areas at the end of the race.

The New Balance Village will be located at Waterloo Place, London. Runners taking part in Vitality British 10K London Run who don’t want to miss out on the New Balance race day incentives can pick up an exclusive discount on a new pair New Balance trainers with Sweatshop. Head to www.sweatshop.co.uk and enter code NBB10K by 31st July, 2014 to receive 20% OFF all New Balance footwear and apparel.

This year the Vitality British 10k London Run is supporting Help For Heroes as its lead charity partner and will honour the 100 years since the First World War with a host of activities.

Keep up-to-date with all of the latest New Balance news on Twitter @NewBalanceUKand newbalancerunninguk on Facebook.

Asics half zip top and 2 in 1 woven shorts

Following on from last weeks review of the Asics Kayano Gel 20 trainers, this weeks review is on two more Asics products. The half zip compression top and the woven running shorts.

Firstly the t-shirt is designed to improve your posture whilst running. The built in diamond shaped muscle panel on the rear helps to open up your chest to allow you take in more oxygen. 

You can definitely feel the panel working on your shoulders and your running posture which would be a great benefit on a longer run or race when losing strength in your core and getting ever closer to the ground mile by mile!

The compression top truly feels like a second skin, extremely comfortable, with no chaffing experienced. The material's wicking properties work extremely well and the t shirt stayed lightweight throughout the run.

There is plenty of reflective prints around the shirt making it safe to run in on when the sun drops on a warm summers evening.

Overall a comfortable compression top with some clever features above and beyond a lot of compression tops. Highly recommended.

The outer layer of the shorts are made with a breathable woven fabric which is extremely lightweight and loose fitting giving plenty of ventilation. Due to the lightweight material the shorts can flap around but the benefits of the ventilation out weigh this minor criticism. There is also a zipped pocket in the rear of the short.

The inner sprinter length tights are made from a breathable mesh which gives extra support, and are seamless which helps prevent rubbing against the skin.

There are reflective prints around the shorts increasing visibility running at night.

Asics Kayano Gel 20

• I must admit, I'm new to Asics, never had a trainer nor any running Apparel....but If the Kayano Gel 20 is anything to go by then I've sure been missing out! 
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• The Kayano is now in its 20th year, I've been running for nearly half that time and wish I'd given these a go in that time. This is a stability trainer which is particularly good for me as I overpronate and have low arches, so need good support for my feet.
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  There is plenty of support in the Kayano but by far it's most impressive features are making the run comfortable. It's truly like running in your slippers! It's noticeable from the first time I put them on and I particularly liked how soft they felt around the ankle which again was noticeable when running. 
  
  
  The Fluidfit technology that Asics use in the upper is a flexible mesh that stretches in multiple directions and this gives a snug but not restrictive fit, imagine wearing a glove on your foot.
  
  
  The Kayano is nice and lightweight for a stability trainer but with new technologies in outer sole making, most trainers are so much lighter these days. Asics use their GEL cushioning system in the rearfoot and forefoot along with the FluidRide technology which gives bounce back, and again enhances a comfortable ride. The outsole material has high abrasion-resistant qualities for added durability, which is good if you go off road like me. Although not a trail trainer, I took mine on some less technical trails and they handled the surfaces fine but the trainer is at it's best with what's it's designed for and running on the tarmac, this is when you really get the benefit of the bounce back and how comfortable the shoe feels.
  The Impact Guidance System (I.G.S.) allows linked components from rear to midfoot and forefoot to work together to enhance the foot's natural gait from heel strike to toe-off.
  
  
  Others features of note is the Exoskeletal heel counter that provides good heel fitting and plenty of reflective material for added reassurance when running in the dark.
  
  
  • 
    Without a doubt this is one of the best trainers I've run in (and I've been through a few!) with comfort being the Kayano Gel 20 best attributes. A new favourite for me.
  Cushioning - 10 out of 10, Plenty of support throughout
  Comfort - 10 out of 10, A*
  Flexibility - 8.5 out of 10, Good for a stability trainer
  Responsiveness - 10 out of 10, Very responsive on the Tarmac
  
  Overall 38.5 out of 40

The Kayano Gel 20's can be purchased at  http://www.asics.co.uk/ 

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Salomon XA Pro 3D review

When I hear the name Salomon, I always think of them as the Rolls Royce of trail running shoes. Although I've been running mostly on trails the last few years I've been very happy with the mid range of trail trainer I've been running in. But now I get to try something at the top end of the market.

Cotswold Outdoors have sent me a pair of the latest model of the Solomon XA Pro 3D to review and I've been itching to get out in them since they arrived. The latest version of the trainers is currently only available at Cotswold Outdoors and can be found here: Cotswold Outdoor - Salomon XA Pro 3D

This latest update on the XA Pro 3D has many advanced improvements, the reshaped chassis gives better stability and with more cushioning in the forefoot gives better propulsion.

The Sensifit system and Endofit foot sleeve gives a real sense of a secure fit and this is really noticeable when putting the trainers on for the first time. I would say in my opinion this is by far the best feature of the shoe holding the foot stable but really comfortable on the run.

With the UK weather being like it has recently the new Salomon's were certainly going to be given a real test on my local trails, deep mud and deep puddles, rocky trails, gravel, Tarmac and plenty of hills lay ahead.

One of the features new to me was the Quicklace system, no laces to tie just pull the cord, slide the toggle and away we go. The excess from the lace tucks conveniently away in the pocket at the top of the tongue. The toggle can easily be adjusted to tighten or loosen the laces while running.

It wasn't long into my run before I was going through plenty of water and with the upper being made predominantly from mesh, as well as letting the water out and getting drier quicker it allows the foot to breathe. This certainly worked and the shoe never felt heavier despite the amount of water I was going through.

The new lug design dealt with everything underfoot easily. Going through the mud the grip was excellent and limited any sliding around, on the gravel and stones, if any debris collected it was soon cleared. Clearly the homework had been done with the design of the sole.

The shoe looks and feels very durable especially around the exterior of the sole and the toe piece making it excellent when running on rockier surfaces.

I was surprised when I read that these Salomon's weigh in at 410g because they don't feel like a heavy trainer. Obviously a trail shoe with it's more durable features is going to weigh in heavier than a road shoe but I'd rather my trail shoe be heavier and more protected on the trails. I'm more into enjoying these runs at a moderate pace than requiring a lighter trainer for speed, I've got different trainers for that job, but for the trails these are a new favourite for me.

Mule bar

The good people at Mule bar sent over their energy range of products for me to review.

Over the last year, I've been trying to use 'real' food for fuelling on the run rather than the sickly sports drinks and gels that had become the staple runners source of energy when exercising. Sports drink I won't touch, 1) Because of what they contain, ie. bad sweeteners, too much sugar etc etc and 2) I find it disgusting how these companies know full well they are being consumed by children as a regular soft drink sold in fridges up and down the country in supermarkets and newsagents. Totally irresponsible in an age of obesity!

Sorry...rage over, back to the review.

You get the picture, I'm not going to review rubbish nutrition on this blog, so it was nice to receive some products that are promoted as natural, organic and fairtrade.

Mule bar are made in the UK and the energy range consists of: energy bars, protein recovery bars and energy gels.

The dominant ingredient in all the products is rice syrup, I'm no nutritionist but from what I've been reading on the Internet this appears to be one of the favoured natural sweeteners, if you've got to sweeten something.

The energy bars come in a range of seven flavours. I'll use the Mango Tango bar as an example of ingredients; Rice syrup 30%, Mango 28%, Oats 10%, Cashew nuts 9%, Rice crisp 9%, Whey protein 6%, Water 3%, Soy flour 3%, Amaranth (a healthy grain) 2% and Sunflower oil 1%.

Sugar and Glucose Fructose does turn up in small amounts in the choc/orange bars, but generally the above is a good example of the ingredients used across the bars.

I've used all the bars, they taste good ( with exception to the Summer pudding bar, sorry Mulebar, I didn't enjoy that one) and they work, I've used one bar before a range of runs from short fast 5k's to a long slow 13 miles and in both cases the one bar has proved adequate. Although for more intense longer runs I would take additional bars with me.

The refuel bars contain similar ingredients to the energy bars but have 20% Whey protein for muscle recovery, the chocolate and chocolate banana bar (25% banana) both tasted great.

I can't comment on the gels, because I don't use any form of gels anymore, I used to use them all the time but just didn't get on with them as I began to experiment using other forms of fuel on the run.

The gels vary in flavours, the sweetener being organic agave nectar and the electrolyte Himalayan crystal salt. The agave nectar gets mixed reviews as an alternative sweetener to sugar on the Internet, but again I'm not a nutritionist so cannot comment.

So overall, all good, I will definitely use these products again, and seem to tick all the boxes from what I'm looking for fuelling my running.

Polar FT80 heart rate monitor review

Heart rate training is probably the most sensible way to exercise not only are you listening to the most important muscle in your body but also you know that your training is totally specific to you!

The brand name most people associate to heart rate monitors would be Polar. The FT80 is marketed as 'A heart rate monitor for fitness enthusiasts who want to improve strength and cardio'.

The watch is GPS enabled, but the GPS unit needs to be purchased separate and paired to the watch. In the box the watch comes with a Polar H1 heart rate sensor and strap and the very clever Flowlink data transfer unit.

Before we get into the performance of the watch, the design deserves a mention. It's very sleek and stylish, very light, non intrusive on the wrist, and the buttons are nice and accessible and easy to press.

So it looks good, but does it work as well as it looks...that's a resounding yes!

The FT80's best bits are the Smart Coaching Features (Fitness Test, OwnZone, Smart Calories, STAR training program, strength training guidance, training load) and Polar Personal Trainer.

After setting up the watch with your, birth date, height, weight and sex, you're ready to go. The more you work out at different intensities the more the watch learns about your heart's capabilities and how to improve your personal performances.

Here's a bit about each of the standout features from the Polar website:

Fitness test: Improving your fitness and keeping up to date with how well you’re doing, the smart Fitness Test will tell you what you need to know in five minutes. By regularly comparing your test results, you can see what progress you are making and how your fitness is improving.

Ownzone: By using the OwnZone, you can be sure you're training on an intensity that improves your aerobic fitness as the feature adjusts your heart rate training zone to perfectly match your body’s current physiological condition.

Smart calories: OwnCal is the most accurate calorie counter on the market. It calculates the number of calories expended during a training session based on your weight, height, age, gender, your individual maximum heart rate (HRmax) and how hard you’re training.

STAR training program: Designed to keep you motivated, using a personal guidance program, STAR Training Programme shows you how hard and how much you need to train to reach your long-term goals.

Strength training guidance: When it comes to boosting your workouts, you should forget standardised recovery periods between sets and use more reliable guidance based on your heart rate. Strength Training Guidance determines the optimal recovery time between your sets, helping you to improve muscle tone.

Training load: Training Load helps you to find the perfect balance between rest and training. Find out your training load status at polarpersonaltrainer.com. It shows you at a glance your cumulative training load for every day, advising if and when rest days are needed and when it’s best to train harder in order to maintain your performance improvement.

I've now done 7 of my last runs using the heart rate monitor and it's been interesting. It's clear I'm running most my runs probably too fast. That's not to say there's not a place for fast, but training should be varied.

I'm desperately trying to lose my middle aged tire round my mid drift, to do that I need to be running at a light intensity (60-70% of my maximum heart rate) this is Zone 1.

Zone 2, moderate (70-80% max HR) helps improve aerobic fitness and endurance.

Zone 3, hard (80-90% max HR) increases muscles to lactic acid. Training in this zone should be limited, a) It's working your heart to the max. b)....it hurts!

As you can see from some examples of my runs below, I've spent virtually no time in Zone 1, most in Zone 2 and probably too much in Zone 3.

Once you've done the hard work, all your information can be uploaded to the Polar Personal trainer website. You can view limited data from your workouts on the watch but here on the website you can get really nerdy and study all the vital statistics from your activities.

The Flowlink data transfer unit sits nicely on your desk plugged into the computer via a USB port. Simply lay your watch face down on the unit and within seconds the FT80 has synchronised and uploaded your information to view.

The training load feature is clever, letting you know how you should train daily.

Green: You're ready to train more.

Yellow: You're OK but don't push it

Red: Stay in bed!!!

This is the first time I've used my heart rate for training, it's been fun, taken the pressure off trying to run fast all the time, made me listen to my body more and is definitely the way forward for my training.

AfterShokz Sports M2 open ear sport headphones

As my injury hell continues, it's been a great chance to catch up on product reviews on the blog.

Today's review is for the AfterShokz Sportz M2 open ear sport headphones.

                     

Where these headphones differ to what we are all used to, is that the ear piece sits in front of the ear rather than in the ear. The benefit here is that as well as listening to your music while exercising you can also hear everything going on around you also, oncoming traffic etc. So can everyone on my commute to work on the canal path, GO AND BUY THESE NOW!!! It's so frustrating trying to pass people on the narrow path whether I'm cycling or running and they are plugged into their own little world without a care or thought to anyone around them!!!.....Sorry, moan over back to the review!

So how does this all work I hear you ask? Well the headphones use bone conduction technology. The sound transfers to the inner ear via through the cheekbone rather than through the ear. Clever stuff!

Does it work? Yep, perfectly. The sound is good enough; ok its not at the very top end of sound quality, but plenty good enough while exercising and at the same time you are aware of everything going on around you.

As well as lightweight, most importantly they are sweat and water resistant, and feature an on/off switch, volume control, an in-line mic, a micro USB charging port (yes they need to be charged once in a while, the only downside) and a 3.5mm gold plated standard connector that fits most smart phones and tablets. It also comes with a water repellent storage box and a lifetime warranty.

The head-strap sits around and behind the head which is comfortable and although I shouldn't of with my injured ankle; when I did sneak out for a short run to try the headphones they stayed in place nicely.

£69.95 seems to be the RRP on most sites, and I would recommend to anyone who exercises outdoors. I wouldn't recommend for using at home, as they do bleed quite a lot of sound, so a little annoying for anyone sitting near you.