Hydrate! Hydrate! Hydrate!

For those long runs, I bought the Amphipod RunLite 4 Hydration Belt.  Unfortunately, I ordered it right before Ironman Arizona and so was not able to use it for training.  The thought of using it during Ironman crossed my mind, but my coach cautioned against trying anything new (plus, there are aid stations at nearly every mile).  These belts might chafe for someone new to them, and the water swishing around may not be the most comfortable either.  Thus, no usage yet.

With Iron Sherpa training for a full marathon now, the hydration belt is going to become handy.  I tried it on a 5 mile run the other day with good results.  No chafing or other major issues with the belt.  With four full water bottles and a little sleeve filled with a power bar and Clif Bloks, the belt felt a bit heavy, as if I were carrying some light weights on my waist.  While this slowed my pace, it is to be expected.

The location of the water bottles can be shifted on the belt - you can also remove or add more bottles if needed.  I found it most useful to have one bottle in front and three lined up along my back.  This kept them out of the way of my legs and as I drank the water, I shifted the bottle around to keep the one I'm using in the front for easy access.

While I thought the sloshing of the water in the bottle would be a major issue, it was not.  I've carried bottles in my hand, and the water sloshing is an annoyance - you can feel the shift of the weight of the water.  However, with the hydration belt, I can hear the rhythmic sloshing, but did not feel its weight being shifted around.  Again, it was not an issue.

Towards the end of my run, I can felt lighter on my feet, no doubt due to the fact that I drank most of the water by then.  I highly recommend this item for folks starting to get into distance running and don't want to carry a water bottle in their hands.