What We’re Loving This Week: Old Watches, New Shorts, and Recovery Drinks

Every week, we spend a lot of time doing all the triathlon-type things. We have our favorites in our own lives (and the things we really dislike). This week, we’re all about running shorts and recovery powder that hits the spot just right. Plus, we asked our co-workers at Women’s Running for what they’re loving—and they’re all about the low-tech running right now. We get it.

Garmin Forerunner 25

Has anyone else gone on a housecleaning binge during the pandemic? I was cleaning out my office a few weekends ago and came across a Garmin Forerunner 25. I’m guessing it has to be at least five years old, if not more. I charged it up and took it out for a run and I’ve fallen back in love. I’m not a high-tech runner. In fact, I usually rely on my non-GPS enabled Timex Ironman chrono, measuring my training by time instead of distance or pace, to save my ego. However, I’ve tried some fancy watches in the past few months that have all the bells and whistles. They tell me when to stand up and move. They send me my text messages. They alert me to incoming calls. They connect to my shoes and tell me my cadence. They reprimand me when I’m not running enough. They’re just too much for me. I put that Garmin 25 on and I haven’t taken it off. It’s like an old, reliable friend who tells me what I need to know and nothing more. Distance, pace, and steps I’ve taken each day. Only a few buttons. No syncing—I don’t log my mileage on any apps—required. Hit start and go.

– Erin Strout, senior writer at Women’s Running

Tracksmith Lane Five Tights

I’ve never been someone who enjoys running in super-short, skimpy run shorts, preferring old school-style loose-fitting ones instead—mostly so I can focus on my running and not think about whether my butt is hanging out of my shorts, but also because I’ve spent far too many miles running in poorly-designed tri shorts that never fail to “ride up” and annoy me no end. When all you want to do is run and run well, having gear that impedes that is, at best, annoying and, at worst, detrimental to performance. But then the Tracksmith Lane Five Tights landed on my desk and—me, oh my!—they fast became a game-changer in my World of Shorts. The fabric (a nylon/elastane blend) is lightweight and has an extremely comfortable soft-on-skin feel. The five-inch inseam is about as short as I’d be prepared to go, and the “fast and flattering fit” that Tracksmith promises is highly accurate. These shorts move with you, not against you, and the silicone grippers on the legs keep them in place perfectly. I’ve loved every single mile I’ve run in them this week. For a “skimpier” short, they also have an impressive number of pockets, five in total (one zipped rear pocket and two smaller open ones on either leg). I’ll be running many more miles in the Lane Fives!

– Emma-Kate Lidbury, managing editor

Nuun Recover

As someone who firmly believes in the importance of eating actual food right after a big/hard workout, I’ve never been a fan of high-calorie/high-protein recovery drinks because they sort of replenish you, but they can also end up making you too full to really crush the whole foods you really need. The good news about Nuun Recover (aside from its super light taste and super-intentional ingredients, which is classic Nuun) is that it serves almost as a “bridge” from the five minutes after you finish your workout—while you’re stretching, driving, showering, etc—to the 30 minutes when it’s time to start finding some real calories to ingest before the “golden hour” clock runs out. Even though it’s ostensibly super light in calories and protein on the label, according to Nuun it has a pile of BCAAs that give you the equivalent of 30g of protein in a light, small amount of powder. This keeps your muscles from cannibalizing you, but still leaves you with an appetite for the real food your body still needs.

– Chris Foster, senior editor