Running Costume Tips

It has begun!! I’ve started work on our runDisney costumes for the 2015 Dopey Challenge. As you know, the Dopey Challenge is 4 races over 4 days beginning with a 5k and increasing in distance, culminating with a full marathon.

My hubby (aka Handsome Jack) and I are excited to train for this race. But more than training, the Disney races require planning. (Well, they don’t require planning, but stay with me. I’ll explain).

If you haven’t run a Disney race you may want to consider a costume. See my post about Disney races and costumes here. Now, cosplay isn’t for everyone. And running cosplay is not something to take lightly. If you are going to run any distance in a costume you will likely have to sacrifice authenticity for comfort (can’t have your nipples bleeding after mile 1 can we?). And, for those of us who are sewing-challenged, it is possible to have a kick butt running costume without picking up needle or thread.

If you are toying with the idea of making a costume here are a few pieces of advice I've picked up along the way:

· Avoid cotton at all costs. Once you go tech you never go back – at least that was the case for me. Running in cotton, especially when you sweat buckets (like you will running a race) is horrible. The material gets heavy with sweat and sticks to your skin. The seams are usually raised in cotton t-shirt’s so they rub and rub and rub. You may think you’ve found the worlds softest cotton t-shirt but 13 miles into a race every inch of that shirt will feel like it was made of bee-stingers and beach sand. Just don’t. do. It.

· If you know your thighs will rub together be sure to cover that base in your costume (Note: All my costumes include shorts or tights that drop past the rub zone). If you always run with longer shorts or capris but for the race you want to go as a sexy R2D2, that’s fine. Just be sure your sexy robot outfit includes shorts that pass the rub zone. I made the mistake of running a Disney half in a running skirt. I love running skirts, don’t get me wrong, but I thought this skirt’s built in shorts would be long enough to prevent the rubbing. Oh buddy. I was. WRONG. And the race was torture (Vaseline can only do so much, man). If you want to be matchy matchy but can’t find long enough/right color shorts in the girls section, check out the men’s section. There are more color options in Men’s compression shorts. And they are usually longer than girls (perfect for preventing thigh rub).

· If there will be mud, consider tights. This applies to men and women. Wearing tights under your running shorts is essential in a mud run because the tights help keep your junk clean. Seriously. Less mud in the junk the better. Again, this applies to men and women because, frankly, no one wants mud in or around their no-no areas.

· Definitely take a practice run in your outfit. You may feel silly running the trails dressed like a Alice in Wonderland (or maybe not….*makes note to run local trail in Alice in Wonderland outfit*) but actually running in your outfit is essential. Just like you would take a practice run in any store bought, unaltered, clothing before the big day, do the same with your costume. You never know what might rub you the wrong way. This is essential if you plan on wearing anything that covers your face or head (other than a running hat). You read stories all the time about people who ran in heavy, stage makeup or in full wigs and have completely underestimated the ability for something that seems small to ruin their run.

Have you run a race in costume? Share your stories and advice.

Want more on #runDisney costumes? Check out these blogs:

On costumes by Half Crazy Momma

Run Selfie Repeat

Costume Tips from Sparkly Runner