Holiday Gift Guide for Runners

It’s about a week before Thanksgiving which means black Friday is just around the corner and Christmas shopping is becoming top of mind! To help everybody out this time of year, I have put together a gift guide to find a little something for that runner in your life. I’ve tried to include a decent range of prices, but most things on my list are relatively inexpensive and will have your runner over the moon excited about their next race!

1. Foam Roller
   • This baby is a God send when it comes to running recovery. Rolling out tired muscles helps lactic acid dissipate to reduce soreness and muscle inflammation. Rolling tired legs is a crucial part of training and helps prevent injury as well as promoting recovery. If the runner in your life doesn’t already have one, they need one ASAP.
2. Sarah Marie Design Studio Everything
   • Sarah Marie Design Studio is a shop of runners clothing and accessories made by a runner! All items are adorable and hysterical, making light of the crazy things we do to excel at our sport. Some of my favorites are this cute sweatshirt, this inspirational tank, anything from the Run All The Miles collection, and this pin remembering Shalane Flanagan’s historic winning finish of the NYC marathon last year. They even have adorable wine glasses to remember runners can relax too!
3. Winter Running Gloves/Headband
   • Winter training can be rough. Cold weather is never ideal when training, but it’s important to be able to endure the elements to get in those precious miles while training for spring races. A good pair of running gloves can go along way. It’s super easy to find a pair that also has touch tips, so you can still use the touch screen on your phone. The next body part to freeze over in winter training is your ears! A good thermal headband can make all the difference when squeezing those miles in when the weather forecast calls for snow.
4. Race Medal Hanger
   • Pride is a huge reason for completing some of these crazy long distance races. Well that, and the bling! A race medal hanger is such a cute and useful gift for your running pal to make sure they can display where all of that hard work has taken them!
5. Headphones
   • A good pair of running headphones can really make or break long runs. This gift also doesn’t need to be over the top expensive! These HBud headphones are bluetooth compatible and won’t make you break the bank. If you want to reach for the top notch headphones that are bit more pricey, you can go all out for the Bose sport headphones. You really can’t beat Bose quality, but don’t stress, the less expensive options still get the job done.
6. Running Gummies
   • If you are looking for the perfect stocking stuffer, look no further! Running gummies are essential for that long run nutrition and are a perfect way to show the runner in your life that you support them (and don’t want them to die in marathon training)! I like honey stingers personally, but there are about a million kinds to choose from. Some people prefer goo or other nutrition, but I think that stuff is pretty nasty, so I’m going to skip on that this holiday.
7. Phone Arm Band
   • Another running essential that helps keep us put together! A good running armband is so helpful when going out on solo runs. They make carrying everything easier and keeps all your belongings safe.
8. Long Run Water Bottle
   • A solid running water bottle that has a strap to keep it in your hand is so simple, yet so important. Keeping hydrated on long runs is one of the most important things to plan for during training, and not every route has water fountains conveniently stationed every few miles. Learning to run with water in your hand can be difficult, but it is so necessary.
9. The Stick
   • The holy grail of running recovery. The stick makes everything feel so much better. Different from a roller, where you have to go through a bit of pain to help your muscles relax, the stick massages out tense muscles in all of the right ways.
10. Winter Running Jacket
    • Last and certainly not least, nothing is quite as amazing as a good running jacket for the winter. The price range on these can be pretty sporadic, but any kind of layers are helpful. A wide range of jackets can be found at Road Runner and they usually have some pretty great sales if you aren’t looking to break the bank.  If you are looking something that is a bit more fancy, brands like lululemon, athleta, and nike have some pretty amazing options.

No matter if your runner is training for their first 5k, or their tenth marathon, a gift from you and from the heart will go a long way in helping reach their goals!

❤ Nikki