The first pair I tried was the Scosche SportclipAIR earbuds (right, above). The buds feature flexible ear clips you can custom fit to your ears, and a connecting wire that runs behind your head.
I liked how lightweight they were, but because they're connected by a flexible wire, the mic/controller bounced a lot during runs and caused the right bud to constantly slip out of my ear.
The other pair I tried was the Reverb Active X Wireless Sport Headset (right, below). The key difference with this set is the buds are connected with a solid, wraparound piece of plastic. They kind of look like something out of "Star Trek"—like LeVar Burton's eyewear, but backward.
The plastic piece eliminated the bouncing issue I experienced with the SportclipAIRs, but they were a little too tight at first and caused some soreness after my runs. After wearing them four or five times they became a little less rigid and are much more comfortable now.
Regardless of style preference, the best part of wireless headphones is the control they give you over your phone without ever having to touch it. With wireless headphones, I can turn the volume up when a quieter song comes on; I can answer the phone when my wife calls me (please stop calling me while I'm running, honey); and I can skip a song whenever I need to (even though I never actually need to because my running playlist is flawless).
In addition to freeing me from the inconvenience of attempting to unlock my phone on runs, switching to wireless headphones allowed me to stop running with my phone in my hand altogether. This really made a difference on my tempo and faster runs, because it allowed my right arm to swing more naturally, evening out my form while saving energy.
I started running with my phone in a Bracketron TruRunner gear belt, which is basically a super skinny fanny pack (NOTE: I run with this thing over the very top of my shorts so my shirt covers it and I don't look like I'm running with a super skinny fanny pack).
How do you take in your audio while running? Is there a super awesome pair of headphones I should know about? Let me know in the comments below or tweet @active using #TheRookieRunner.
And keep an eye out for the next Rookie Runner, where I'll be trying wearable tech for the first time ever to see if I really need to be tracking my pace/heart rate/white cell count while I work out. See you on the next run!
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