Each month the Run Testers try out piles of running products, but there’s a lot of kit outside of shoes and tech that we don’t get a chance to talk about until we do a full round-up.
This month we’ve got a whole heap of the latest kit to talk about, from socks and sunglasses to some of our favourite running nutrition.
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JUMP STRAIGHT IN:
00:00 – Intro
Kieran’s Picks
00:37 – Adidas Terrex Trail Running Vest
01:42 – SiS Go Energy Bake
03:00 – Coospo Realzone H9Z Heart Rate Monitor
Nick’s Picks
03:46 – Coros Heart rate Monitor
05:43 – Sungod Classics
07:38 – CEP The Run Socks Tall
Tom’s Picks
09:31 – Tailwind Endurance Fuel
11:40 – Shoe Goo II
14:54 – The North Face Pacesetter Shorts
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Some other videos you might find useful:
Hoka Mach X Review:
Saucony Kinvara Pro Review:
Puma Deviate Nitro 2 Review:
New Balance Fuelcell SC Trainer V2 First Run Review:
Asics Magic Speed 3 First Run Review:
Hey Tommy for the Run testers and Welcome back for another monthly Roundup In this video we talk about all the Things that we've tested over the past Month or so that we just want to tell You about and these tend to be things Like accessories or fueling that we Haven't had a chance to put into another Video so they're just things that we Thought you would like to know about Right let's jump in and see what we Picked this month For my first pick then I've got this Adidas Terex race vest now I use this Race Fest my recent attempt at the Berlin Wall 100 Miler I've grabbed it Quite last minute I was really Pleasantly surprised with how well it Performed on that race now it's Relatively light and minimal but it's Good for transporting the essentials There's enough room in here for all the Main kind of obligatory kit you would Take there's a nicely padded back and Harness that's pretty breathable there's Room up front in here for two soft Flasks two 600ml soft flasks there's a Sizeable main back compartment with Enough room to stash all your mandatory Kit including a waterproof jacket There's also this external pouch here It's a little bit open for my liking but I didn't really use that I really like The toggle bungee straps you get up
Front these are adjustable there's also An adjustable harness which you can size Down to make a good secure fit to keep It locked in place without too much Bounce now I'd one thing I'd love a Little bit more storage up front but Overall I think this performed Brilliantly I on a race where I didn't Need to carry that much Um oh yeah and there's a built-in Whistle so yeah that's the Adidas terrex Race Fest so next up I've got another Find that I trialled at the Berlin Wall Ultra and these are the sis tiramisu go Energy bait bars well of caution though These definitely fall into the slightly Engineered race fuel category natural They do not taste now I don't usually go For that over the more kind of real food Options but for this race I really Wanted some variety I decided to give Them a crack and they work really well I'd still only use them sparingly for Races but they worked pretty good for a Flavor change they're nice and compact They've got a crumbly cakey texture with A soft Center that's not too dry it's a Bit like a nutrigrain bar texture if You've kind of had those but a bit more Bulky bit more dense but you still need A little bit of water with them I think To wash them down nicely with the flavor Was good I found the tiramisu was a nice Counterpoint alternative to all the
Fruit and sweet flavors It's different from that but there's Also not too much coffee it's not Overdone and the hit of energy is good Too there's 30 grams of carbs in each One of these that's about a third of What I was aiming to eat each hour on Ultra so I'd use them in combination With other things you're probably only Going to want to use these on long and Slow runs where you can cope with Chewing and the kind of more solid foods Or perhaps it's a pre-run top up and They can get easily quite squashed and Mashed up in your pack but if you're After a bar to help power long hauls I Think these are really worth a look and You can also get them in lemon and Strawberry if coffee or tiramisu is not Your thing and they're vegetarian Friendly as well but not vegan so if You're after a chest strap on a budget Then I've been testing this kuspo h9z It's a No-Frills monitor that offers Pretty reliable accuracy with okay Comfort and a rechargeable sensor with Around 32 hours of battery run time in My tester battery life was barely Touched even after a two hour run so That's really solid the sensor is pretty Compact the strap isn't like the most Sort of soft or comfy but it is fine It's a bit rigid where the sensors are And I've worn this a lot and it's kind
Of been fine for no rubbing there's no Tracking outside of heart rate and HRV And it doesn't really store stuff Independently there's no onboard storage But it will beam stats to two Bluetooth Devices simultaneously and if you want Something to track heart rate for under 40 pounds It takes a lot of the right boxes Chorus heart rate monitor this is a Lightweight armband hiring monitor that Costs 79 it's got Bluetooth connectivity But no AMD plus it offers up to three Bluetooth connections at once though It's got a 38 hour battery life or 80 Days in standby mode and I'm pretty Surprised at how much I've ended up Liking this it's become the Hari monitor I use day to day having previously Nearly always used a chest strap and That's largely just out of that it's a Very convenient and easy product to use There's no buttons on it you slip it on It turns itself on connects your watch Off you go take it off at the end and it Turns itself off again and well that Might not seem like a big deal it Doesn't seem like a big deal to me when I first got it in it actually is really Convenient and easy to use and I've Enjoyed that a lot to the point where I Have started using it every day it Connects very easily to a range of Watches mostly I've been using it with
Garmin devices it's very comfortable and You basically forget it's there on your Arm I've used it for a 51k run where I Really did benefit from having it as an Armband because I don't like using chest Straps for very long runs when using a Rucksack like a trail running pack so Having the heart rate monitor out there On your arm is obviously very easy and Convenient accuracy is good it's pretty Much what you'd expect from an armband Heart rate monitor that uses Optical Tracking there's a little bit of lag Behind a chest strap when you look at Intervals and things like that but it Does record every interval just with That slight amount of lag and the actual Peaks and troughs you get with this Compared to a chest strap have been spot On for me like for out runs I've been Checking live and I've looked at graphs Afterwards the accuracy is very much There as long as you'll have to accept It's going to have that tiny bit of lag Compared to a chest strap which Obviously is a little bit more spot on Through the way it measures your heart Rate a big Rob is obviously the polar Verity sense which is a little bit more Expensive but does offer extra features Like swim tracking and the ability to Store workouts but for runners I do Think the chorus horror monitor is a Good option it's accurate easy to use
And very convenient and the battery life Is long enough that you're not really Worried about charging it very often Unless you are a much bigger run than me Looking like 20 hours a week but doing Five six seven hours a week of training It will last you a few weeks comfortably My next pick are the sun god classic Sunglasses with prescription this is a New service from Sun God all of their Lifestyle frames now offer prescription Lenses which is huge for me as a Spectacle wearer I usually wear these on The run and if it's sunny I have to put Contacts in and then put some uh normal Sunglasses on but I've started using the Sun gold plastic for all my runs in the Sun which have been reasonably frequent In the UK summer if not outstandingly Frequent and they're just really good For running they're also obviously just A pretty simple style so you can wear Them for everything they just become my Go-to set of sunglasses for running life Basically now I can just rotate between These Oakley ejector frames and then the Sun gold Classics depending on the Weather so tangled Classics cost 70 Pounds or 90 for the standard frames now If you go for prescription this Rises to 160 pounds or 210 dollars you enter your Prescription online and then it takes a Few weeks for them to make the glasses And send them out to you get all the
Usual customization options with sun god In terms of the frame color and the Lenses you choose to suit different Conditions and then you just add the Description on top of it uh the fit of All of some girls lifestyle glasses is Very good for sports I found with the Classics they stay in place perfectly Well if you want the low bit of extra Security which I always do on running Glasses I've added little silicon Grippers there that sit behind the ear So especially when it's really sweaty Runs I have a kind of nose where my Glasses do slip down a little bit so I Tend to add little things to pin them in Behind my ears which is comfortable Enough you can get those silicone Grippers off Amazon or anywhere for a Couple of pounds you get hundreds of Them they start losing them all over the House so yeah I can't speak high enough Of the sun gold Plastics you know They're not very cheap but prescription Glasses you can use for sports are never That cheap and actually these are pretty Reasonable given that you can use them For everything they look good they fit Well I've used them on very long runs And they're pretty Hardy as well you get A lifetime guarantee which covers damage To the frame but not scratches to the Lenses but these are pretty Hardy Glasses I've just popped them in a
Running bag using just this soft case And and not really had any concerns About the fact they're going to get Damaged or anything like that on the run So yeah that's the sun god Classics and Then my last pick this month is the sep Run socks tool set cep and call them sep These cost 45 pounds or 60 dollars and They are set main compression socks Within the range I've also tested their Ultralight talks recently which are also Very nice and very good if you Consistently running in hotter weather But if you're running in milder weather I prefer the feel of the set the Run Socks because they have that slightly More bulky and comfortable supported Feel from the thicker fabric same time They're not at all hot I've used these For my 51k run in Wales over this month And they're very comfortable throughout I've used them for pretty much all my Long runs recently and I'm planning to Use them for an ultra marathon next Month as well like 50 miler because they Are really comfortable they provide that Little bit of support and I don't know There's no real size behind this yet I Don't think but I have been you know Struggling with some Achilles needles of Life and I just feel a bit more Comfortable going out for runs long runs And hard runs in particular whilst Wearing a compression sock and I really
Like sets range they're really Comfortable they wash well stand up to a Lot of washing without becoming you know Hard or starting to get damaged they Last a long time they fit well they're Not that hard to get on they're not Annoyingly hard to get on I put it that Way because some pressure socks almost Don't end up using because it takes so Long to get them on my foot these are Quite hard to get on as you'd expect but Not annoyingly hard and like I say they Provide that nice balance of support While still feeling quite lightweight And breathable Over the past year I've got quite into Using fueling for my training and racing Before then I did nothing I used to turn Up marathons and just hope there was Something on the course for me to eat or Drink but since over the past year I've Got a little bit more serious about my Training and as a result I've taken Fueling more seriously as well over the Past few months I've been trying out a Load of different fuels because I have Berlin marathon coming up in a few weeks And I wanted to see if there was Something that might work better for me When it comes to the race over the gels That I'm currently using one of the Things I've been testing which isn't a Gel it's the Tailwind endurance fuel mix Now this is a powder you mix it in with
Water and it gives you 200 calories in This serving which is a 54 gram sachet Serving that gives you 50 grams of carb Carbohydrates and 1.5 grams of salt from That serving now I not a big fan of Running with a water bottle I definitely Wouldn't want to race whilst running With a water bottle I know some people Like that they prefer to do that I like Using gels because I can just stick them In my pocket and I don't have time to Think in my hands however I have been Using these quite a bit for my training Runs so when I'm doing longer training Sessions for my marathon training and I'm not running really fast and I don't Mind carrying something in my hand I've Been testing these out as a way for me To fuel and hydrate and I am really Enjoying them they are really nice Tasting I've never used these drinks for Training runs before normally I'd only Ever use gels or nothing but I've been Using these and they're working really Well I think one of the things that I'm Getting out of it is that I don't tend To drink a lot of water when I'm out Training because I don't like carrying a Bottle but using these because they have Electrolytes in as well as the carbs I'm Getting a bit more hydration in as well Which is definitely helping with my Training I still say that I wouldn't use Them for race day still just because I
Don't want to carry anything around me When I'm running but I'm really enjoying The taste of these I think they're Really nice and I'm enjoying using them I think I'll carry on using them for Training Um in the future there are loads of Different flavors of these so you've got Berry flavor you've got Mandarin flavor You've also got my favorite Colorado Cola flavor I think these slightly do Differ on the amount of carbs that you Get in some of these Um but they're generally sit around that 200 Mark 200 calorie Mark in these ones And they're just really solid enjoyable Thing to drink and they're very tasty They're quite strong tasting as well so You get a lot of flavor from them um and They don't really taste like energy Drinks for me they taste um just quite Nice and refreshing so Tailwind Endurance fuel my next pick this month Is a bit of an experimental one if you Watch the channel you will know that I Have a bit of an issue when it comes to To Super Shoes at the moment what I'm Finding is that on the right hand side Of my right foot I tend to be ripping The bottom off of most of my super shoes I've done it to about five Super Shoes Now never used to do it it's only Happening recently I don't know if I've Changed my running style or something or
Super shoes are just getting lighter and Lighter bits of rubber on the outsole And my running style is just not Designed for that but what I'm finding Is I'm ripping a lot of the bottoms of My shoes off um I've tried to fix it so I've been using Um different types of super glue on my On my shoes to stick the rubber back on And it just doesn't work I've tried a Few different super glues and what I Found is that even though it sticks onto Them as soon as I go running it the Super glue just Comes off it just instantly like pulls Off from from the midsole and I think The reason for that is that most super Glues aren't designed to be very Flexible once you've stuck them down if You then move the midsole and with Super Shoes most running shoes you expect them To have a fairly soft midsole it just Pulls apart the glue and it just doesn't Work anymore so this Shoe Goo 2 sugar 2 Um it's actually designed a bit Differently so when you put normal super Glue on something it tends to dry very Quickly this doesn't it takes like a day Two days Um to dry and the reasoning is it that It's it's meant to be a lot more Flexible so uh the way that it sticks Things together means that you can Actually move the shoe which is why
They're specifically designed for shoes And not just any sort of gluing so I've Been using the shugu 24 is sticking on These bits of rubber that have been Coming off a lot of my shoes now what I've found is if the rubber has Completely come off so if I've ripped Off the whole bit of rubber it's not Great at keeping it on on it does tend To Um it doesn't seem to go back on as well And I don't it's not as successful I I Find that I have to keep sticking it Down and down again to to sort of get it To stay down but what I've found is that On shoes where this is good example I've Just done this one yesterday shoes where It's just coming off so say the shoe has Got a bit older uh and a bit of rubber Is coming off the back or the front Section you can use it to just stick That bit down and it just holds it in Place for it and it works a lot better For that so if you've got a pair of Running shoes and there's a bit rubber Started to come off somewhere Um it's a good thing to have to stick it Down and get a bit more life out of it Obviously if your shoe's still in Warranty and you've only had it for a Short period of time you should take it Back but if you've got older shoes and You you want to prolong their life but You've got bits of rubber coming off the
Shugu 2 seems to work very well for it Um and I'm yeah I'm impressed with it so Far you just have to make sure that once You stuck down it doesn't stick straight Away so what I've been doing is sticking It down and then strapping it with Elastic bands or some tape and just Leaving it there for a couple of days to Eventually set and it works quite well Um so yeah definitely give this a go if You're looking for some uh glue for your Shoes and you have not had much success With existing super glues my final pick This month is the North Face Summit Pacesetter shorts now these are Shorts designed for the trails but They're just good shorts you can use Them for Road I use them for road I Don't think I've ever used them on the Trails Um these are the reason I like these is They are really really light so they're Very very thin very loose as well they Feel like they there's they sort of flap Around in the wind they're not hugging They're not thick Um and they have they they dry very Quickly so if you're out running on the Trails and you get a bit sweaty and you Stop and you go somewhere else and you Walking for a bit they do dry off very Quickly which I find very nice Um they have lots of pockets so you've Got a big pocket at the back well I say
Big it's not big enough to hold the Phone it's more for your keys and your Credit card and things like that and you Definitely have to have a waist strap on Or a backpack if you wanted to carry Your phone around with you in these you Also have the secondary little mesh Pockets on the side these are for like Gels and stuff there's one either side And there is also a little mini stash Pocket inside as well if you wanted Hydration tabs or or something like that It doesn't have it does have an inner Liner but it's like a pant in a liner so It doesn't go all the way down the legs I do prefer shorts that have a full Um length Liner that sort of protects your legs And gives a little bit of compression on Them um just because my thighs rub Together when I'm I'm running sometimes And they can get sore I haven't had that Problem with these though it they just Feel very light and comfortable Um and I've really been enjoying running These they're just a very comfortable Pair of shorts to wear look nice as well They're quite pricey though 65 pounds is A lot of money for a pair of shorts but I do think they are good quality and They look very nice if you are into Fashionable running shorts so there you Go North Face Summit Pacesetter running Shorts that's it from us thanks a lot
For watching the Roundup this month and Don't forget that if you're going to the Caption below you can listen to our Podcast that comes out at the end of Each month and as always if you go to The channel you can find loads and loads Of videos of the latest shoes and kit That we've got covered at the moment Thanks love for watching catch you next Time
