I’m not a gear head. I don’t own seventeen pairs of shoes or obsess over stack height. But after eight years of running — including three off the couch — I’ve landed on a kit that works. Here’s what I actually use.
Shoes
Adidas Boston 12 — my main shoe and has been for eight years. I’ve run through more iterations of this thing than I can count, and I keep coming back. For the intermediate runner who wants a reliable, versatile road shoe that isn’t trying too hard, the Boston series is hard to beat. The 13 is already on deck for when these wear out.
Lululemon Men’s Running Shoe — my alternate pair, used mostly for workouts rather than road runs. It’s a bit heavier than I’d want for logging kilometres outside, but in the gym it’s excellent. Good build, solid feel underfoot.
Tech
Apple Watch SE + Strava — the combo I use for every run. Strava is my go-to for tracking; Apple Fitness gets a look-in for other workouts, but anything running-related lives in Strava. The two talk to each other anyway, so it all ends up in the same place.
AirPods Pro 2 — no complaints. They stay in, the audio is good, and I’ve never once thought about replacing them mid-run. That’s really all you need from a running earbud.
Eyewear
Oakley — running with bad eyesight means I actually need to see the road, so prescription sunglasses aren’t optional. My Oakleys handle that job well. For backup when I’ve inevitably misplaced them, I keep a pair of Ray-Ban Wayfarers around.
Clothing
This is where I diverge from a lot of running bloggers: I don’t spend a ton on kit, and I’m fine with that. Running clothes get sweated in and washed to death — spending $90 on a t-shirt doesn’t make the run better.
Most of my day-to-day running clothes come from Decathlon. It’s affordable, the quality holds up, and honestly it performs comparably to stuff that costs three times as much. I’ll also grab Lululemon when it goes on sale — a few select pieces in the rotation. And every once in a while I’ll splurge on something from Arc’teryx or a similar brand when the moment calls for it.
That’s the full stack. Nothing here is sponsored (yet) — it’s just what I’ve landed on after years of running, a long break, and a slow rebuild. I’ll update this page as the kit evolves.
Above Average Jogger 