I’ve only been running for 5 months but I’ve certainly done a fair bit of trial and error when it comes to running clothes and I’ve now got a handful of go to items that I always reach for. I’m also finding out that you don’t have to spend an arm and a leg to get good running clothes.

Karrimor X Racer T-Shirt from Sports Direct
£11.99

This t-shirt it lovely! It’s so light and cool, is long and baggy enough to hide my lumps and bumps without being too loose. It has subtle reflective bits to help you to be safe in the dark. When I first took it home I thought it was ripped but it turns out they are little holes for ventilation. The price on the website is £11.99 but I’m sure I picked it up in store for cheaper.

Souluxe Slouch Gym T-Shirt from Matalan
£7.00
Souluxe Vest Top (not listed on website)

After going in to several sports shops and leaving empty handed I wandered into Matalan and left with a big selection of tops and leggings, and their clothing has by far been some of the best! I can’t find the vest top on their website any more but they have a few different other styles available. I did find that all of the tops fit slightly different so it’s better to go in store and try things on.

Next Sports leggings & Souluxe Leggings (not listed on website)
Sturdy By Design Pink Ribbon leggings (capri length)
£28.99

The leggings on the far left I bought a year ago and the exact design are no longer available but Next leggings are well worth checking out. The middle pair are from Matalan, again no longer on the website but different designs are available.

The Pink Ribbon leggings from Sturdy By Design have been done in support of Breast Cancer Care, and while they are quite expensive 10% of the sale of each pair is donated to Breast Cancer Care. The Sturdy By Design leggings are so so soft! Like silk or water. They are extremely light and comfortable to wear and the drawstring means they hold tight while running. I opted for the capri length as I have enough full length leggings and wanted something lighter for summer. They are slightly longer in length than I expected from capri but they can easily be pulled up without becoming uncomfortable.

Under Armour Fly By Shorts from Sports Direct
£17.00

As the sun has arrived it was time to get some shorts. I selected a few to try on in Sports Direct and these were by far the best. They are so light and are short and loose enough to be cool but aren’t easily revealing.

Sports Bra from Lidl (not listed on website)

This is my favourite and best sports bra and it cost less than £20 from Lidl. I’ve got a Nike sports bra which was about £40 and it’s no where near as good as this one. It just works perfectly, doesn’t move, doesn’t allow movement and is so comfortably to wear all day while being active.

Sports Bra by Crane, Aldi
£6.99

Another cheap purchase that is such a good bra for wearing all day.

Danish Endurance Running Socks
£18.95 for 5 pairs

I was having trouble with my trainer socks slipping down so looked on amazon for some sports socks. These are amazing! They have a high reinforced part on the heel to stop rubbing. The most I’ve ran is 5k so I couldn’t say if they can last the miles but for me they’ve been great. Just be warned when you haven’t paired them up and are trying to find a left and right foot at 6am in the morning you can end up trying to put on two left socks.

Saucony Peregrine 8
£110

My only expensive purchase are my shoes. There are some things that you shouldn’t compromise on when running and that’s the thing that is looking after your feet. I spend most of my time running along dirt, rocky tracks and muddy, grassy fields so trail shoes are a must for me. I went to the Running Bear shop in Alderley Edge and tried on bout 6 different pairs. I’d never heard of Saucony before and as soon as I put my feet in these trainers I was in love. I was a little put off by the colour and tried to talk my way out of them but I just couldn’t argue with the comfort and the grip. I’ve ran about 60km in them so far and they are just truly amazing, worth the bright colour and the price. I managed to get them on offer for just under £100.

I should mention that I have heard a lot of people who have Peregrine 7s and absolutely love the comfort and performance of them, but whose pair have fallen about after only a couple of months of heavy use on trail runs. Mine seem to be going strong still after 3 months but I’m perhaps not putting them through the wear and tear of a seasoned trail runner.

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A lot of blogs and articles say that all you need to start running is a cheap top and shorts and a decent pair of trainers, yet so many companies are make huge amounts of money out of ‘high tech’, fancy sports wear.

Running clothing should be light weight, breathable, fit well and not rub or move around too much and that is achievable from clothes costing less that £20 per item. It’s easy to get drawn in to buying those £95 Sweaty Betty leggings or £60 2UX compression leggings that other people are looking so stylish in, but do you really need them? Especially if, like me, you are only doing 30 minute runs 3 times a week.