Running expenditures (races Vs shoes Vs gear Vs tech)

Shoes are my biggest cost. I only buy when they are on deep discount but I'm always on the lookout. I always end up paying the most if I wait too long to buy when I don't have the luxury to wait. The biggest sales are usually on the older models and I embrace the ugly colors.

I'm a broke runner. Luckily running can be pretty cheap if you need it to be.

What I've spent money on in the last year or so:

Salomon Pulsar trail in ugly white/blue closeout color: $97.50

Refurbished Garmin Vivoactive 4: $134.95. I broke the old cellphone I used to track runs and provide music. Love not having to carry a phone, and the watch is much more accurate at tracking.

Walmart Athletic Works active T-shirts: $7.48 ea x6

Darn Tough wool socks: $24.95 x2. Expensive for me, but I'm really hard on socks. These last way, way longer than any other sock I've owned and they have free lifetime replacement. Buy them a little bigger than you want, they will gradually shrink even if you wash on cold and hang to dry

Loritta running shorts with liner: $15.95. I don't really like them, I think I'm going to buy some cheap basketball shorts instead.

If any of you are also super low budget runners, I'd love some suggestions of cheap places to get running clothes. I lost a bunch of weight this year, so I need to buy more clothes soon. I need shorts, long sleeve shirts and a light jacket for rain days. I've tried the local thrift store, but I live in redneck country where few people buy outdoor gear.

thank you! I never took the time to recall how much I spend on running

my budget:

• 0$ on t-shirts (plenty of them of all kind after many years of running)
• 100$ every three/four years for a good lightweight windshield (winter time). Over the years I have acumulated couple of gloves, beanie, etc. that actually long for ever
• about 20$ running shorts every other year, as they wear out I'm going rotating them. Mild weather here, some I don't need expensive gear to run in the winter. In the summer it is much more cheaper XD
• my latest "wrist computer" is a 450$ from 3 years ago. I think I will use it untill it breaks down in pieces or battery dies, as it covers much more that I actually need. One of my best purchases
• shoes... as a barefoot runner .... :D I also have some "minimal" shoes for trail, road, couple of running sandals, but I guess in the next year I will need a new pair for trailrunning (<150$) This kind of shoe does not lose any quality untill they break so usually I use them well beyond 1000km.
• races... all costs considered ... about 200$ per year? Yes, might be that. This year is well below that figure, but it's an average stimation.

I don't have a limited budget per se, as I don't travel to far away races that would increase the costs, but I'm defenitly not in the spending wheel or motivated for the latest gadget, trend, etc.

I was actually also surprised on how much i ended up spending on running when i got more serious. But in the end it is a hobby and that simply comes with some cost. I dont think yours are actually outrageous.

The races are a big event and relative to that i actually doubt you'd spend less if you were to do some other larger all day events.

The clothes you'd likely need for any type of sport (which you can also see as an investment in your health) and should usually last quite a while.

Tech wise i think your 3 year old garmin should hopefully have a bit more life left and the HRM should also last quite a while (and isn't that necessary imo)

The two big dials where you can imo adjust your spending are coaching and shoes. The first one would be a reoccuring cost and the second one is the main "consumption" type of equipment of the sport.

A coach can be nice as source of motivation and to hold you accountable, but as an amateur runner we still have so much room to improve that we can get more than enough out of just following the average proven training plan.

As far as shoes go some costs cant be avoided, but they can be limited by holding out for good deals and using good value workhorses for the majority of mileage (only doing the key sessions with your better pairs). You can definitely find sales on good durable daily trainers like the puma velocity nitro, nike pegasus or saucony ride for like $50 per pair.

Imho Goodr sunglasses (25 USD) work very well. A solid cap under 20 should be good. Your watch can last 4-5 years and I don’t expect you to need new socks for years. I’d advocate you get a few new pairs of shorts. I like Nike 2-in-1 as I have bigger thighs. For training consider looking into trainingpeaks.com

My two cents on a few of those items:

• Road shoes: Pick work horses that can last for a while. As you get more into road running and racing, you'll want to diversify, as the durable shoes tend to be relatively slow, but for a limited budget you want the best bang for the buck. I personally use Brooks Ghost and Mizuno Wave Rider as my go-to training shoes. They last over 600 miles, so per-mile their price is quite low. I also get one pair in a running shop where I test them first, and later stockpile more during online sales.
• Garmin watch: Three years old isn't all that old, but there are good watches and not so good ones. I picked a Garmin Fenix 6 very cheaply (Black Friday sale, combined with the release of the Fenix 7), and I don't need a HR strap with those. If you want the newer model, look at Coros Pace 2 as well - same bells and whistles, but unbeatable price.
• Coach: After I plateaued, I just took a one-day workshop to fix my running form. You can learn the rest on the cheap, via books (Pfitzinger's Faster Road Racing is my go-to book) and then Youtube videos for more workout inspirations.
• Cap, sunglasses, tights: Even the cheap Chinese ones from Amazon last longer than the price would suggest.
• Additional expenses: As you get more into running, expect additional costs for physio or massage, or at least a massage gun or foam roller. There will be costs for sports glide, hot/cold packs, possibly energy gels or salt caps. Consumables will be a recurring cost, so budget for that as well.