prettyfit /

I have been testing out lots of cool interesting running shoes recently and haven’t had a chance to blog about any of them. So, I am going to dedicate a whole week on the blog to the latest shoes on the health and fitness market, as well as some old favourites too. This week on the blog is SHOE WEEK. I love shoes and I love weeks (?) so this is a great combo. Obviously.

First up is the sexy Adidas Supernova Glide Boost. Now, I’ll be honest and admit that I have never run in Adidas before. I’ve never felt like their running shoe offerings had anything going for them to make me go for them over Nike’s beautiful designs. That was until they whacked out the boost technology. That got my attention. All the hype, the adoring fans…did they deserve it?

Well, I’ve now had the chance to check out one of the latest players in the boost range, the supernova glide, for a month or so. And I am absolutely head over heels in love with them. They are magical. So, without further ado…

Shoe: Adidas Supernova Glide Boost

Type: Road running, suitable for neutral gait / mild over-pronation. I have taken them off road (Epping Forest trails) but felt as if this didn’t let the boost technology shine - you feel its benefits best on the road. Good for urban exploring and city racing.

Features: Boost technology - the soles are made from energy-returning material to add bounce to your run and provide you with more energy out on the road. I was sceptical, but they really do feel very bouncy and light - different from any other shoes I’ve run in. They also have super tough soles courtesy of Continental.

 

Continental Soles

 

Special Boost Soles! Look a bit like polystyrene but an absolute treat for the feet.

Fit: Quite narrow but not too much so. I have very wide feet and found them snug on the first wear but fine after that. I normally only go a half size up in runners but found a whole size up in these fits best - the fit is definitely on the snug side.

Looks: I’d give these a 7/10. I think they’re generally very nice, but the black parts on the uppers are a little shiny and cheap looking which brings them down a few notches. Other colour ways are cool though - I’m a fan of the yellow.

Price: A cool £100.

Best bits: Ridiculously comfy! And the boost technology is genuinely very impressive. Well deserving of the hype (in my honest opinion).

Worst bits: Cannot fault them as a running shoe. If I am being picky, I would change the shiny black bits I mentioned earlier, but this is very minor (and aesthetic only!).

Overall verdict: The best shoes I have found in a very long time. Well played, Adidas - consider me a convert.

love you

Speed Communications very kindly gave me these shoes as a review sample, but all thoughts are most definitely my own. I really do love them that much.

Follow:

Other cool stuff:

prettyfit /

We Own The Night 2014 was flipping ace. I had a bloody wonderful time. 2013 was good, but a lot of work has obviously gone in to making this year bigger and better and it definitely showed.

Nike pro tights and Nike Free 5.0 iDs to go with my race t-shirt! Kit of dreams

First up, Nike had created a whole race village in Victoria Park with a host of awesome tents; runners bar, Six Physio, partner hospitality, Nike Fuel, Vita Coco…all sorts! There was also a stage hosting delights such as an Equinox led warm-up and a post-run DJ set from Nick Grimshaw. Not your average 10k! It was bloody freezing but the Equinox warm-up did the job of getting us all loose and limber and ready to run.

Nike had ironed out all the problems with the starting pens this year and starting the race ran really smoothly. There were more options for race start times, separate entrances to each starting pen and each wave was released in turn, which meant for more room on the narrow course and less mixed abilities running at the same time. Less congestion and happier runners! Charlie Dark was on the mic at the start line and it was great to have his enthusiasm overseeing the start. There was also a plethora of lady pacers - nice one Nike!

My Dubai running partner in crime Chloe had come down from Sheffield to run and we decided to run together for old times’ sake. Chloe was hungover and I had dead ultra training legs so we decided to have a steady run and settled in behind the 58 minute pacers. The course was crowded but not too much to run - it was more of a fun group vibe. I like a relatively crowded course if I’m not going for a time - I like to pick people off, which you just can’t do if there aren’t many other runners around! My knee started playing up around 4km but I kept running through. Chloe started to feel quite vommy around 8km but fortunately managed to hold it together and we both hit up a sprint finish, coming in at a perfectly paced 58 minutes. A huge 10k PW, but so much fun!

The route was lined with big light up km markers, flashing disco tunnels, live bands (my favourite was the ska band) and the beautiful men of run dem crew at the 4/8km marker! Their energy was infectious and running past them to a series of cheers and high fives was the highlight of my race.

I was pretty pleased to feel really comfortable the whole way round and felt like I could have run a lot faster. This was a good confidence booster. I am also verryyy pleased with my shiny new Alex Monroe finishers’ necklace - one of my favourite medals so far!

Big thank you to Nike for having me - the hospitality tent was awesome. I can wholly recommend Hoxton gin and was so happy to catch up with all my favourite babes post-race. Bring on We Own The Night 2015!

Follow:

Other cool stuff:

prettyfit /

Nike very kindly invited me down to their Nike Free Experience last week in the run up to We Own The Night on May 10. Nike Free has now been a ‘thing’ for 10 years - TEN. That is an epic anniversary and Nike, of course, celebrated in style by transforming the basement of Victoria House in to a hub of Nike glory. It was so interesting to see the development of the Free technology, and some of my favourite babes were there too…

ILYSM

Charlie Dark changed my life

I spy you Angel you absolute babe

The event was to celebrate the development of Nike Free technology which has culminated in the new Nike Free collection, which includes the new 5.0, 4.0, 3.0 and the Nike Free Flyknit (in 3.0 and 4.0 soles). If you’re not familiar with the Nike Free collection, the numbers relate to the sole - the 5.0 are the most substantial and supportive, and the lower the number the thinner the sole and more ‘free’ the shoes are. The shoes are designed to embrace the natural motion of the foot and I know absolutely loads of runners that swear by them, especially the new Flyknits. I personally use the 5.0s and find them very comfortable for shorter distances - I use them in shorter bursts to strengthen my ankles and calf muscles and think they do a brilliant job of helping me avoid injuries.

The new collection features hexagonal grooves on the soles to allow for multidirectional movement, an anatomical design led by the shape and natural movement of the foot, and the introduction of Flyknit technology, which offers stretch, support and flexibility (as well as looking super fly).

As part of the event we got to design our own Nike Frees, and I cannot wait for mine to arrive. I went for 5.0, in some SUPER girly colours. I swear what with the finishers’ necklace, beautiful We Own The Night shoe collection and these sugar sweet iDs, Nike are doing an excellent job of turning me in to a girly girl. Who’d have thought it ey?

Patterned swoosh!

I thought I was being very original and creative when I designed these, but turns out Charlie designed pretty much exactly the same ones! What can I say…it’s a strong colour combination!

Thanks to Nike for another killer event and a wonderful insight in to the world of Nike Free.

 

Follow:

Other cool stuff:

prettyfit /

The guys over at Saucony are having an exciting week! Their new run clinics launched on Tuesday (and will be up and running on Monday and Friday next week too) and tonight they’re launching the brand new limited edition London Marathon Kinvara 5. The run clinics will be based at the new Saucony pop-up in Neal Street, which showcases Saucony running shoes through the last 60 years to celebrate the brand’s history of running. I went down for the store opening and loved seeing the vintage running shoe collection, especially the 1949 Hyde Spikes! Proper little pieces of running history.

Saucony Story of Running

The Run clinics are held in participation with The Run Lounge, and will feature free 5k training runs, starting and finishing at the Neal Street Store, as well as the opportunity to chat with The Run Lounge’s expert running coach Nick Anderson. Also, one lucky attendee at each run clinic will be picked at random to receive a full Saucony training kit, including a pair of Guide 7 running shoes, technical t-shirt, shorts and cap as well as a 30 minute one on one consultation with Nick Anderson himself. Worth putting your kicks on for ey?

Saucony have created some limited edition marathon versions of their shiny new Kinvara 5 and they’re launching the London version tonight, a full month before the Kinvara 5 goes on general sale. There’ll also be special edition shoes for the Paris and Boston marathons. I’ll be attending the launch of the London Kinvara 5 tonight, so keep a close eye on my twitter and instagram to get a first look at these limited edition beauties!

 

Follow:

Other cool stuff:

prettyfit /

The Tiffany finisher’s necklace at the Nike Women’s San Fran marathon is legendary in running circles. Mention of it is usually followed up by either “Totally worth running a marathon for” or “I heard fireman hand it to you when you cross the finish line…topless firemen”. I love a good medal as much as the next runner but a special limited edition girly necklace medal? That really gets my attention. Talk to me.

Nike kindly invited me along to a sunrise yoga session (taken by the lovely Jessica Skye aka Fat Buddha Yoga whose classes are highly recommended!) at Shoreditch house yesterday morning in honour of revealing this year’s We Own The Night finisher’s medal, which has been designed by top jewellery designer Alex Monroe. That is fancy. In fact, once I’ve got it in the bag I think this medal may qualify as the fanciest piece of jewellery I own (I am not that fancy). Alex came along and chatted to us about the development and design of the necklace, and explained that the design reflects the concept of the race being open to all abilities and encouraging everyone to get involved. He also said he wanted it to have a ‘medal’ quality when it’s handed over at the race, but also be a piece of jewellery that you can continue to wear and feel proud of your achievements. I love the concept behind it and think that the necklace itself is really lovely.

 

It also comes in a rather beautiful Libery print box (for those in the know it’s the Lora print, which is based on a 1970’s version of William Morris’ Willow pattern) so you can keep it safe and love it forever and ever.

I am a massive tom boy and even I am excited about this medal. Every finisher of We Own The Night will receive one, but if you can’t wait until then to see it the necklace will also be on display in Liberty from 7 April.

So, what do we think runner babes - pretty ey? Will I be seeing you at the start line?

 

 

Follow:

Other cool stuff: