When it comes to Long distance running, runners should have certain assets which are useful from time to time.
Yoga Mat. A Yoga mat is something you will use for your Strength Training and Yoga sessions. The thickness of the mat matters the most. I would recommend 8 mm thickness Yoga mat as you find in Decathlon. I usually keep two yoga mats, one for outside, to be used in Garden and other external use and second one exclusively for home use.
Resistance Band: Runners will have high economy in running if one have right body composition. One of the composition of the body is muscle mass. Some runners hit Gym to achieve this objective and I recommend to stay lean both on Fat and muscles. Focus should be on muscles' strength not mass. Resistance band are good for doing home based strengthening . Theraband is the good quality brand when it comes to buying bands. They have color code based on resistance in kg/lb. I recommend Blue and Black for a normal male runners and Green and Blue for female runners. Your requirements may be different and for that consult your Coach.
Loop bands: Loop bands have loops which you can put around ankle or knee to provide more resistance. Here is sample loop bands which is available on Amazon
Foam Roller: If you have this then probably you may never need physio. After every run this is my the tool to release my muscles. Buy a hard one with spikes. Consult your coach how to use it. Here is the Foamroller from Decathlon
Massage Stick: When you need to do deep Massage, Massage stick is a very useful tool. You can use it yourself or you can ask someone in home to help you with. Here is the sample Massage stick from Decathlon.
Massage Ball: Some massage are reserve for this tool. Massage ball is good for massaging feet, back and butt. Here is the Massage Ball from Decathlon.
Hydration belt: Many runners hate it. They don't like to carry water bottle with them. A hydration belt can carry your drinking water or energy drink, phone , gels, medicine, money, emergency card etc. during your long run. Decathlon Hydration belt with water bottle is the basic one you can get. When you start long distance more than 21km you may need with two bottle. In an event, if you carry a hydration belt with bottle then it is very environment friendly as at water station you will be only refilling and you won't be using single use plastic. Also carrying hydration belt gives you flexibility of sipping water whenever you need, contrary to sip and drink only at water station. Stopping at too many hydration points slows you down and breaks your rhythm. Practice your runs with hydration belt.
I wish you all happy and safe running
Uday Bhosle
Integrated Wellness Coach
Life | Nutrition | Physical Coach
+91 9819326452