Running specials-aldi thurs

racso1975

http://www.aldi.ie/ie/html/offers/offers_week42thursday08.htm?WT.z_src=main

Some very useful items here especially the camel/hydration pack for 14 and the base layer seem good value too

anybody any feed back on the ergonomic running socks:o

Highway_To_Hell

I have bought the Lidl/Aldi running socks in the past and they are not too bad, have used them for long runs and they have been confortable, will probably get a few more pairs as the ones I have are a bit off colour at this stage. It's hard to beat the twin skin or 1000 mile brands but they are €11+ a pair, I keep them for the special days out.

Last week I went looking for something to wear to the marathon and discard on the start line, looked in TKMax but had nothing that cheap. I ended up in Heatons Sporst world in Cabinteely retail park and got a perfect Umbero tracksuit top and bottoms for €20, nearly too good to discard on the day.

racso1975

umm might hang around the starting line and pick up some of these track suits keep an eye on adverts site next week :P

superjosh9

who's on for some 'men's technical running shoes'?!?!

Would love to win a race wearing them and say 'look what I'm wearing!' I'd be the coolest

plodder

or how about the Rose bushes as a peace offering to a long suffering spouse, for all those hours spent on the road.... Good value at €2.49 ... probably should hide the receipt though :eek:

El Hamster

superjosh9 wrote: »

who's on for some 'men's technical running shoes'?!?!

Would love to win a race wearing them and say 'look what I'm wearing!' I'd be the coolest

Now matter how cheap my golf clubs are, if I swap them with Tiger Woods for his set on the first tee, the chances are, he'll beat me over 18 holes.

Or if you're still not with me; Kenenisa Bekele is always going to win a race wearing ALDI technical shoes.

Runners do not maketh the runner.

The amount of money you spend (read: waste) on gear will have little or no effect on your performance. Try training instead.

donothoponpop

El Hamster wrote: »

Now matter how cheap my golf clubs are, if I swap them with Tiger Woods for his set on the first tee, the chances are, he'll beat me over 18 holes.

Or if you're still not with me; Kenenisa Bekele is always going to win a race wearing ALDI technical shoes.

Runners do not maketh the runner.

The amount of money you spend (read: waste) on gear will have little or no effect on your performance. Try training instead.

Really bad advice. Spend the extra money on a decent pair of runners which will cushion and support your feet correctly, you'll have fewer stress related injuries. Save money on running clothing if you want, but wearing ALDI tech running shoes for any significant training is a false economy.

marvinsa

I agree with dono - anyone who is doing any more than a minimal amount of walking or running would be well advised to stay well away from the cheaper brand of runners. I haven't seen the Aldi ones yet but based on my experience with other similar priced runners, they will most likely not be of top quality, and therefore much more likely to result in injury.

Just because you are wearing a €150 pair of runners won't help you win a race if you're only a recreational runner, but they will help you avoid injury.

I'd imagine the running clothes in Aldi would be fine though - I have a Lidl running jacket (cost approx €20) and while it is not very comfortable in milder weather and fits nowhere near as well as my Asics one (cost approx €50), it does the job of keeping the wind & rain off me for the most part.

cfitz

I think the Hamster makes a fairly good point.

Racing Flat

El Hamster wrote: »

Now matter how cheap my golf clubs are, if I swap them with Tiger Woods for his set on the first tee, the chances are, he'll beat me over 18 holes.

Or if you're still not with me; Kenenisa Bekele is always going to win a race wearing ALDI technical shoes.

Runners do not maketh the runner.

The amount of money you spend (read: waste) on gear will have little or no effect on your performance. Try training instead.

Yes, Tiger Woods would still beat you but maybe by less of a margin, maybe only 1 or 2 strokes. Won't be enough to make you beat him, but might for Padraig Harrington.

Gear will have an effect on performance - for every ounce your running shoes are lighter you'll save abouit 3.5seconds per mile. Hence top runners wear racing flats, not their normal training shoes. Also they wear shorts and singlets rather than a track suit. And they'll tend to wear shorts and singlet of materials which wick away sweat etc. and don't get too heavy as opposed to a t-shirt.

So gear does matter. Price may not be relevant, but you can get gear that helps you perform better. Maybe only by seconds or fractions thereof, and nothing compared to the amount you'll gain by training correctly, but if you want to get the absolute best out of yourself, it'll be worth using this gear.

If your attitude is 'If I use gear that might facilitate minor improvements I still won't beat Tiger Woods or Bekele, therefore, I'm not going to bother getting that gear'...well, you've a loser/defeatist attitude. Might be better off sticking to watching them on telly rather than competing yourself.

There was a little bit of a point there by Hamster, but it was badly made.

cfitz

Racing Flat wrote: »

Gear will have an effect on performance - for every ounce your running shoes are lighter you'll save abouit 3.5seconds per mile.

That's a bit of a weird statistic! If Gebresalassie's shoes had been 1 ounce heavier in Berlin he would have ran about 2:05:30? And if they were an ounce lighter he would have ran 2:02:28?

superjosh9

I was only joking - didn't mean to start a debate!

For the record hamster - I always buy my runners in the half-price sales in Arnotts. Currently on Asics 1130 which cost €47.50! Though I usually buy ones that cost a credit-crunch-busting €30.

I personally don't believe there to be a huge difference in runners - unless as pointed out you're talking about the difference between a flat and a normal training shoe. But then, surely that's like comparing a Ford to a Porsche?

So, I'm sure the Aldi runners are fine - but when I'm standing on the start line - I just know I'll lose all my street-cred - and *that* will make me run slower!

ps. that was a joke(!)

--amadeus--

RF is right - the figures he is quoting sound like the ones from Noakes' "The Lore of running". I don't have the book in front of me but he devotes a lot of space to the advantages that the right gar can have, even down to the advantages of a figure hugging versus lose t-shirt (over a marathon teh difference in wind resistance of a loose t-shirt has a measurable effect!)

There are obviously more factors to consider than just weight - elites run in flats because they can. If most of us tried our joints would sieze up half way round and we need to make a trade off between support / cushioning and weight. Cheaper trainers may not have as much support etc as more expensive trainers so may cause more damage than the money saved is worth it over time. That said there is no doubt that you pay for the logo and there does seem to be an "I'm a runner so I must wear Asics" mentality (of which i am a victim!). Go find a pair of trainers that suit you, irresepctive of cost or logo would be my advice.

And equipment does make a difference. Not a vast diference but if it's a gain I'll take it. The biggest gain of all? Proper training - all the fancy trainers in the world won't make you improve as much as a good training plan!

Racing Flat

cfitz wrote: »

That's a bit of a weird statistic! If Gebresalassie's shoes had been 1 ounce heavier in Berlin he would have ran about 2:05:30? And if they were an ounce lighter he would have ran 2:02:28?

Exactly. You can be fairly sure though that his shoes were as light as they could possibly be without going over the threshold whereby that being so light would mean no support and hence sore feet, or too much impact on his legs, which might slow him down. Nike's latest ones are so light they can only be worn once and cost a few hundred dollars.

You might find this hard to believe, but remember the story about Lance Armstrong sending the sports watch back to whichever manufacturers were making one specially for him, because it was x grammes or milligrammes too heavy. Makes me think why, oh why do sprinters and 400m runners wear watches (and chains etc.) in the Olympics? There was one fellow in the 400m with a massive watch on! It's not like he's going to press the start button on the gun, check his split at half way and press stop at the finish!

Obviously the 3.5secs is an average so maybe not as much for faster runners...It's the same for bodyweight. Go on to www.runningforfitness.org and look at the bit about weight and performance, key in a recent race time and your weight and it will work out what time you would have done for every pound lighter or heavier. Once again, there must be a law of diminishing returns, or a threshold weight under which you will be too light or undernourished to be able to perform well enough. No coincidence that most world record holders are a fair % underweight, Seb Coe being one of the most extreme examples, being 20% underweight when racing at his peak.

Racing Flat

--amadeus-- wrote: »

Noakes' "The Lore of running". I don't have the book in front of me but he devotes a lot of space to the advantages that the right gar can have

Here's another one for ya! While most people are aware that running behind someone (mind you have to get within 1m) means a 11% reduction in energy expenditure due to reduced air and wind resistance, running 2 abreast actually has a negative effect - is is worse than running alone because of the eddy currents built up. So when running with someone at the same pace, rather than running alongside each other, take turns at leading out and tucking in beind.

Woddle

I picked up the medium size base layer should have gone with small but it will do.
gloves seem good, and blue long sleeved top is nice and I also got hte arm bands which actually have a switch on them for the 4 small leds on the band.
There was alot of people at this section this morning so if your interested, get down there.

donothoponpop

I picked up a *lot* of stuff in Aldi this morning, went for a run with some of it, here's a quick review:)

Base layer is great at that price, certainly keeps your trunk warm. No real restriction of movement.

Long sleeved running top I found ok, its made with coolmax, so its a wicking material. Very good for the price.

I sweat a lot, and often have stinging eyes from sweat dripping into them on a long run. I'd been looking for a headband, so when I saw the running hat with no "roof"on it, I thought that might do. Indeed it kept the sweat away, didn't really notice it on, and wasn't as hot as a proper hat might get.

I also bought socks (which just look ok), gloves, led strips, and a hyrdration backpack which at €15 was great value.

If they had more of my size, I would go back now and buy several more base layers, but I can't see them staying in the store too long. The brand is Crane Sports, look them up if you like, a while back I got a Crane Sports waterproof jacket in Lidl for €45 which is as good as any Goretex.

PS Oh yeah, the shoes... I had a look at them, they reminded me of runners from Penney's yer ma used buy for you in the eighties. Recession or no recession, steer clear of the shoes;)