Running is for free! - how much do you spend?

wrstan

I've often heard people say that one of the great things about running is that it costs you nothing to do it! I thought it would be interesting to see how much you spend on your running? Here's an estimate of my spend last year:

Item|Cost|Note
shoes|€340|1
Aparel|€30|2
Nutrition, recovery, gels, etc.|€110|3
Physio, massages etc.|€140|4
Race entries|€290|5
Club membership|€65|6
Total|€975||



Notes:
1. Estimated 2 pairs @ c.€100 plus 2 pairs @ c.€75
2. I buy very little, maybe a couple of pairs of socks, or a replacement top etc.
3. Again I buy very little, usually 2 boxes of 12 tubes of Nuun tablets @ c.€55
4. I have estimated 2 sessions @ €70
5. Based on 1 race @ €50, 7 races @ c.30,6 races @ €5 (fit 4 life, county races etc.)
6. based on current single membership rate

So there's the bones of a grand a year, based on what I think is a fairly conservative estimate (apart from the shoes maybe). It excludes any spend on running mags, books, travel to and from races etc. and probably under estimates nutrition, aparel, accessories, physios etc.

The thing that surprised me most was how much I spent on race entries :eek:, my estimate is based on the actual number of races I ran although the €30 cost for the mid range races is a rough average estimate.

I would hate this to scare off any newbie who has just cancelled their gym membership and is just getting into running. For me, every step was worth every cent

So how much do you spend?

b.harte

You ran 1407miles / 2265km last year according to the 2012 spreadsheet.
That's 60c per mile or 43c per KM.
If you run at approx 5min/km pace then your spend is under 9c min.
Not being a smart ass but there isn't a whole lot of things that are as enjoyable and beneficial as running in a similar price range.
Yes, some of the associated costs can be on the large side, but the benefits are worth it IMO
Under 20 a week for something so good, bargain, it'll be taxed next.
You don't have to enter races, and you don't have to join a club, but again there are other benefits therein.
I'm not going to post my totals, because my wife doesn't know exactly how much I spend on shoes.
She thinks all of mine are like her special offer green-silence

wrstan

Thanks b

Don't get me wrong, I don't begrudge a cent. Like I said, every step was worth every cent. In fact I think the benefits I get from running are priceless!

I was a bit surprised when I did the tot and thought it'd be interesting to know how representative that is.

RayCun

shoes - 300? I think 3 pairs last year
Apparel - 20? socks and a pair of shorts
Nutritition/recovery/gels - 40 and that's being generous
Physio massages 0 (last year
Race entry 275*
Club membership 50

685, call it 700


*13 BHAA races = 145, less 40 winnings , plus about 170 on other races

hot to trot

wrstan wrote: »

Here's an estimate of my spend last year:

Item|Cost|Note
shoes|€340|1
Aparel|€30|2
Nutrition, recovery, gels, etc.|€110|3
Physio, massages etc.|€140|4
Race entries|€290|5
Club membership|€65|6
Total|€975||



Notes:
1. Estimated 2 pairs @ c.€100 plus 2 pairs @ c.€75
2. I buy very little, maybe a couple of pairs of socks, or a replacement top etc.
3. Again I buy very little, usually 2 boxes of 12 tubes of Nuun tablets @ c.€55
4. I have estimated 2 sessions @ €70
5. Based on 1 race @ €50, 7 races @ c.30,6 races @ €5 (fit 4 life, county races etc.)
6. based on current single membership rate


I would hate this to scare off any newbie who has just cancelled their gym membership and is just getting into running.

So how much do you spend?

If you had gym membership , you would still have to pay for shoes and apparely , and most of the other stuff anyway.

rom

6 pairs of runners 648
Garmin 610 350
Race entry 245
Overnight stay for races x2 200
Train to DCM 70
Petrol going to and from races and training 200
Gels 50
Sports drink 30
Shorts and socks 100
Recovery drink 300 (which I no longer drink)
Physio, sports massage, dietitian 600 (can claim about most back)
Club membership 50
The grid 50

2012 2648 euro plus

The watch, grid, shorts socks are one offs so that will bring it down by 500.
I pay 35 euro for an hour sports massage. I claim 25 back from VHI. This leaves 10 euro remaining. I can claim the low tax rate percentage of this back on Med 1 so 1hr sports massage means I am 7 euro and change out of pocket rather than 35.

If I was racing every week it could prove quite costly. That race may be only 10 euro but 30+ euro in petrol to get there.

A running budget is going into my log now

spurscormac

Runners: 220 (110 x 2)
Gear: 120
Watch: 180
Race entry: ~250 (guesswork)
Nutrition: 10
Physio/Massage: 0
Club Membership & Track fees(per session): ~80
Petrol to/from training/races: ~350

Grand Total 2012: €1210
Estimate 2013: €900

Runners, got 2 new pairs last year, that will probably drop to 1, maybe a second pair later this year. I'll be mixing them up, so none are near end of life.
I always pick up a few bits and pieces, socks, shorts, tops etc, but I doubt I'll spend that again this year unless I splash out on a fancy jacket.
Watch was a once-off, so that won't be on the cards this year.
Races is guesswork, not going to go back and tally it, though I might record the price for this year.
I only race as far as half marathon, no intention of doing a full, so don't see the need for any gels etc.
I haven't currently had any niggles that has needed physio or massage for a couple of years, so no cost there. Might look into some sports massage if I can claim a lot back from health insurance.
Based in Galway, travel is always quite a bit to & from, and also probably doing 18 miles to/from training a week, so it all adds up.

Oh well, its heap at the price for the health benefits.

rom

Don't forget stuff you eat and drink that you won't if you didn't run from vitamins to supplements, fish oils etc

plodder

One pair of shoes (95 euro), a few pairs of socks from Lidl (10) and two races (about 50 euro). That's based on having accumulated so much running gear, that I really never need to buy a top or shorts again, or for a while anyway. Don't travel for training. Could be some miscellaneous costs but total is below 200. Probably would have done more races if it wasn't for injury and will need a new Garmin soon as well

macinalli

Most of these costs though are optional. You don't *have* to spend hundreds on entry fees, trips away, garmins, gels etc. You could have a damn good year of racing based on BHAA and park runs alone which definitely wouldn't break the bank.

hardCopy

rom wrote: »

The watch, grid, shorts socks are one offs so that will bring it down by 500.

In my experience, there seems to be a "one-off" every year!

Tipp man running

Shoes (2 prs Ds Trainers)...........€170
Clothes (socks mainly)................€50
Nutrition (gels)..........................€20
Race Fees (3 marathons etc)......€450
Accommodation (Dublin).............€100
Travel Expenses (petrol)......... ...€150

Roughly €20 a week, same as a takeaway and a few cans of beer.
I'd gladly pay more when I get the times to qualify for London, Boston, New York etc.

Pisco Sour

Sure running can be free but if you want to be in any way competitive and get the best out of yourself then it will not come cheap. But money is there to be spent on things we enjoy so who cares really?

Rough Estimate (all in AUD):

Spikes: 160 (have been using a pair I got for free nearly 3 years ago but they are on the way out now so will need to replace)
Racing Flats: 160 (Got my current pair for half price at 80, but would be doing well to get that again. They are fairly worn so 1 year is all I got out of them)
Road running shoes: 160 (I've had mine for ages now, may need to replace them at this stage)

Athletics Victoria membership: 140
Club Fees: 50
Entry to races not covered in AV membership: 70
Socks: 30
Massage: 800 (20 a week is very cheap, we'll say 40 a year for simplicity sake)
Fees to use the track: 50
Random other costs which I cant think of: 100

So maybe 1650 for the year, but road running shoes and spikes can last 3 years or so, it's only the flats which need annual replacing, so can be closer to 1300. It's not too bad to be honest. Some people spend that on nights out over just one month! Things like Lycra shorts and all that jazz are really not needed.

rom

I will be trying to race in more local races. I had planned to do the Frank Duffy 10M and stay overnight in Dublin but will look for a half closer to home around the same time now.

spurscormac

macinalli wrote: »

Most of these costs though are optional. You don't *have* to spend hundreds on entry fees, trips away, garmins, gels etc. You could have a damn good year of racing based on BHAA and park runs alone which definitely wouldn't break the bank.

If you live in Dublin, yeah fine, you can race for free or low cost.
If not, afraid its costly enough to enter & travel to/from races.

And what would you be doing all the training for if not to test yourself in a few races throughout the year.

Tipp man running

rom wrote: »

I will be trying to race in more local races. I had planned to do the Frank Duffy 10M and stay overnight in Dublin but will look for a half closer to home around the same time now.

As far as I can remember St Finbarrs usually have their half marathon around the start of September in Blarney, toughish course but really well organised. Also Charleville at the end of Sept if you want another well organised race with a flat fast course.

vitani

I started running at the beginning of the year.

So far, I've spent €105 on shoes, over €250 on clothes and about €110 on race fees for the rest of the year (one half marathon, 2 x 10ks, 1 x 4 mile). I'm spending about €10 a month on magazines. I plan to spend about €100 on a Garmin at the end of this month. After that, if I can curb my clothes-buying addiction, I'll only be spending that €10 a month until August, when I'll have to replace my shoes, unless I look into joining a club in the meantime.

So, no, I haven't found it 'free' to run but aside from the runners, everything could have been. It's my choice to race (and to choose the races I have), it's my choice to buy specific running gear, it's my choice to buy a Garmin and magazines. If I was just looking to run three times a week to keep fit, then I could do it much more cheaply.

EDIT:

Just to add, however, that on the flipside, taking up running has encouraged me to clean up my diet and I've pretty much stopped buying breakfast & lunches as a result, preferring to bring them in. So I'm saving between €25 and €30 a week.

rom

Tipp man running wrote: »

As far as I can remember St Finbarrs usually have their half marathon around the start of September in Blarney, toughish course but really well organised. Also Charleville at the end of Sept if you want another well organised race with a flat fast course.

Would only be 3 weeks out. As Berlin is 29th Sept I would ideally like somewhere 5 weeks back (in munster) so I could drive in the morning from Cork.

rainbow kirby

My biggest expenses last year were travelling for a race (I did the Great North Run, accomodation in Newcastle that weekend was horrendously expensive, a combination of race entry, flights, accomodation, trains, meals out etc probably cost around €500-600 total) and physiotherapy for 4 months on my back injury (€60 a time, probably 10 visits, €600-ish again). Not too expensive apart from those though, probably €100 in race entry fees, €300 on 3 pairs of running shoes, €35 on an extra pair of full-length Nike tights, and €20 on a Decathlon running jacket.

Krusty_Clown

If I offset the petrol savings from running into and out of work, I'll have broken even with my Boston marathon flight costs in 416 days! I'm not going to worry about the cost of running. At least it's less costly than being a triathlete!

Pisco Sour

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

If I offset the petrol savings from running into and out of work, I'll have broken even with my Boston marathon flight costs in 416 days! I'm not going to worry about the cost of running. At least it's less costly than being a triathlete!

It's also less costly than being obese.

walshb

Being obese is more fun, though. Get to eat what you want!

DogSlySmile

Woah... I just totaled up my 2012 spend on races etc. Really wish I didnt now...

€207 on clothes, accessories, books etc

€414 on race entries.

So, €621 in total and thats without factoring in stuff like petrol, lucozade, gels etc.

Still, running is what I like. Its probably far less than smokers spend doing what they like.

walshb

One could cut down costs on these fizzy drinks/gels by using water.

walshb

BTW, are gels and energy drinks really needed in 5-10 k runs/races? I wouldn't have thought so. Hydrate pre race with water. In longer races maybe they are of some benefit. But, wouldn't water also be sufficient?

Bugsy2000

Just went through my races for last year & f**k me! Races alone totalled €610. Thanks christ the missus isn't on here.

Throw in 3 pairs of runners, 4 physio appointments (I think), compression gear, socks, nutrition, accomodation & Strength / Conditioning classes and the figure is up over €1700.

And the missus wonders why we couldn't afford a holiday last year.

Krusty_Clown

walshb wrote: »

BTW, are gels and energy drinks really needed in 5-10 k runs/races? I wouldn't have thought so. Hydrate pre race with water. In longer races maybe they are of some benefit. But, wouldn't water also be sufficient?

No, they're not needed in 5/10k races and it's quite rare that you will see anyone taking one.
Out of interest, how many races have you completed?

walshb

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

No, they're not needed in 5/10k races and it's quite rare that you will see anyone taking one.
Out of interest, how many races have you completed?

0!

Krusty_Clown

walshb wrote: »

0!

I'll be taking your nutritional advice with a pinch of salt then! (pardon the pun).

RayCun

walshb wrote: »

0!

why not?

edited to add
3 years ago you timed yourself running a mile
last year you timed yourself running a k
so...?

TFBubendorfer

5 pairs of runners: €250 (honestly!)
race entries: ~€200
train / coach / petrol money / car rental: €600
gels: €20
sports drink: €50
club membership: €20
new GPS watch: €190
attire: €0 (got tons of pacing gear and race shirts these days)
physio, sports massage, dietitian, ...: €0 (wouldn't dream of wasting my money on any of that)

That's €1330 for the year. I might have forgotten the odd expense, but it should be reasonably accurate.

But consider the fact that I used to be sick several times a year before I started running and these times don't even get a cold any more despite the kids bringing germ after germ into the house from school and I call this a win.

Plus, if I weren't a runner I would never have gotten rid of my car and started cycling to work 5 years ago. The savings made that way by far outweigh the costs of running.

rom

TFBubendorfer wrote: »

5 pairs of runners: €250 (honestly!

How do you do that ?

Timmaay

I use to race motorbikes, never ever dared work out how muchy I spend every season on that ha, but it was well into the 1000s. Athletics is small change in comparison, and worth every penny. How much ya spend is wayy too broad a question anyways, you probably wear some of the gear/runners etc anyways, use the watch for other stuff etc.

In terms of entry fees, most races I do are mad cheap, rarely over 8quid, likes of track races, fit4lifes and club championships etc. Not that I'm cheap or anything ha, but just lucky to enjoy most of the cheaper races.

rom

If someone smokes 10 a day then that's 3.5 packs a week at just under 10 euro a pack so 35 euro a week by 52 = 1820
Some of it ain't needed but how bad. At least I get one or two weekends away and a few days out from it along with all the other benefits. There are somethings money can't buy* and that is the feeling of getting a PB.

* Unless your a triathlete and just dropped a few k on a new bike that weighs less than a bowel movement.

TFBubendorfer

TFBubendorfer wrote: »

5 pairs of runners: €250 (honestly!)

rom wrote: »

How do you do that ?

http://www.sportsshoes.com/product/BRO551/brooks-green-silence-racing-running-shoes/


Last time I bought runners from there I got 3 pairs for €140 including shipping (2 x Brooks Green Silence, 1 x Saucony Kinvara).

The Green Silence and the Kinvara v2 are so cheap because they are being discontinued and therefore end-of-line. I'm sorely tempted to get 5 pairs of Green Silence at least. Not only are they cheap, they are my favourite running shoe at the moment .

sconhome

TFBubendorfer wrote: »

I'm sorely tempted to get 5 pairs of Green Silence at least. Not only are they cheap, they are my favourite running shoe at the moment .

Move fast on it because they are gone. There is nothing left in Brooks, so only what is on shelves. If you have a particular size, buy what you can now.

Ososlo

i think that part of the beauty of the sport of running is that it can be as simple or as complicated as you want or as expensive or inexpensive as you want. All you need is a good pair of trainers and if you're a lady a sports bra (complete necessity!) so you could get away with 150-250 a year if you don't run an awful lot but maybe 3 times a week to stay fit.
The more you get into it, the more you want to spend though... then it just spirals out of control:( I find it impossible to pass a sports shop these days without having a little look. Just in case there's a bargain or something... There nearly always is :rolleyes:
But I guess most on here aren't down the pub on the weekends as much as yer average Joe (have to be fresh for the lsr the next morning!) and on the whole we don't spend as much on doctors etc.
I started adding up what I spend but I think i'll leave it a mystery as I kinda got scared:eek:

Pisco Sour

TFBubendorfer wrote: »

physio, sports massage, dietitian, ...: €0 (wouldn't dream of wasting my money on any of that)
.

How is sports massage a waste of money? I have found that a weekly massage has been a crucial ingredient to staying injury free, and without it my body would have broken down with all the intense track and gym sessions.

wrstan

Thanks all for some great responses. Some thoughts:

Like I said for me every step is worth every cent, what I get from running far out weighs any cost.

I agree with Ososlo that running can be as expensive or as cheap as we make it, you can choose to travel the world and run all the marathon majors, or you can run F4L's and Parkruns. While no one "has" to race, I agree with Pisco Sour: why would you run if you never raced? I race a lot less than some people, and I'm never at the business end but for me racing is when I learn most about myself and my running, it's where the greatest challenges and greatest rewards are. For me running without racing would be like a bike without wheels, or a stereo with no speakers! As Jack Daniel's says "Racing is the ultimate expression of a runner's ability, training and motivation"

It may also be true that what you spend on running is saving you elsewhere - I used to visit the chocolate machine in work, at least once a day, often twice,

Ultimately though running is my hobby, it makes me feel good and I spend money on it! And if I wasn't running for sure I would be spending it on something else, probably something much less rewarding, and more than likely something much less wholesome

But as Krusty pointed out, if you ever feel shocked at how much you've spent on a race entry or pair of shoes or milkshake - just be thankful you're not a triathlete

brandon_flowers

It doesn't matter what sport/activity you do as a hobby it will cost you a certain amount of money.

Walking/Jogging/Running are certainly the cheapest though.

I've probably spent €600/€700 since I started back running a year ago, comparing that to the money I have spent on golf clubs/lessons, mountaineering equipment is buttons.

Team sports are the most expensive.... because of the socialising!!

dna_leri

I'm cheap:

Item|Cost|Note
shoes|€80|1
Apparel|€30|2
Nutrition, recovery, gels, etc.|€10|3
Physio, massages etc.|€0|4
Race entries|-€10|5
Club membership|€35|6
Travel to races|€220|7
Total|€365||



Notes:
1. 1 pair for €40 in TKMax, another from a mate.
2. Just a few things from Lidl/Aldi.
3. Tried a protein supplement, gave it up.
4. No injuries, no paid-for sport massage.
5. Prize money exceeded entry fees by €10.
6. based on current single membership rate
7. estimated petrol costs for about 7 trips

At a euro a day, where else would you be going.

Correction: Shoes should be €126, forgot about 1 pair on-line for £40. Makes the total €411 - pity because 365 was a nice round number.

BeepBeep67

dna_leri wrote: »

At a euro a day, where else would you be going.

You could have had a burger a day from the McDonalds Euro saver Menu

AK333

rom wrote: »

Would only be 3 weeks out. As Berlin is 29th Sept I would ideally like somewhere 5 weeks back (in munster) so I could drive in the morning from Cork.

Boston Scientific HM in August in Clonmel might suit

i'm hoping to do it for the first time - depends how my training goes

rom

AK333 wrote: »

Boston Scientific HM in August in Clonmel might suit

i'm hoping to do it for the first time - depends how my training goes

Great thanks. Looks good.

robinph

Can't be sure on exact numbers, but it's a lot. :eek:
According to Wiggle I think I've spent over £700 with them on "stuff" last year, there was a few hundred worth of bike stuff in that as well so could possibly half that number.
Think in a previous thread I declared that I'd done around 50'ish races during 2012 with race entries ranging from free-£3-£30.
Just a wild guess, but maybe another £400 on shoes or apparel that I didn't get through Wiggle.
Cost of travel to races ranging from £0 as it's just outside my front door to several hundred because there was a plane ride and hotel stays involved as well, but if I'm turning that trip into something for another purpose that just happens to have a race tagged on the end is that fair to include the costs of a 5 day trip as running related?