Trash Bag: Don’t Leave Home Without It

Believe it or not, a trash bag is the world’s greatest disposable windbreaker. I keep one with my pre-marathon bag and bring it with me even when I know I won’t need to wear it. I wore one for the entire Harrisburg Marathon on 2006 during windy and rainy conditions, and I was surprisingly comfortable wearing a moisture-wicking short-sleeved shirt and shorts underneath the bag, along with a pair of lightweight cotton-blend gloves.

Here’s how to wear your bag in style: Punch a hole in the bottom of the bag and rip an opening large enough to put your head through. Then poke a hole in each side at about shoulder height for your arms, and you’re set to go. Once you start to feel warm, after 1 mile, 5 miles, or at any point, simply grab the bag up near your neck and rip it down the front when you approach the next water stop, and toss it off to the side. As a courtesy to your fellow runners, make sure you toss the bag onto the side of the road so no one near you slips on it.