Being a researcher in renewable energy as well as being vegan in part for environmental reasons, I would certainly consider myself to be an environmentalist. But one part of environmentalism I had neglected for a while was sustainable fashion and buying second-hand. I don’t buy a huge amount of clothes as it is, but I’ve definitely been guilty of turning my nose up at the thought of buying second-hand in the past. Buying second-hand means you’re diverting items from potentially going to landfill, as well as avoiding the environmental cost of making new items, with all the raw materials and manufacturing that comes with it.
I’ve made a considerable effort over the past year to buy clothes in a more sustainable way, either by buying from more ethical brands when I do buy new, or buying second hand from sites such as eBay or Depop, and recently I’ve started to apply this to running gear too.
I’m trying to focus on some solutions in this post, rather than just talking about the problem of clothing waste, and there are plenty of great sources for information on the scale of the issue, such as WRAP, clothesaid, and ReRun (for a more running-focussed take).
When it comes to running kit, not everything is well-suited for the second-hand market; for example, I’m still not that keen on buying used base layers or running tights for hygiene reasons. Socks are another essential item that you’re obviously not buying anything other than brand new. Pretty much everything else is, though, especially jackets, shorts, and tops. I tend not to buy t-shirts (second-hand or otherwise), as (like most runners), I’m slowly building a collection of souvenir race t-shirts, so there’s just not the need to buy any more. There is an ever-growing conversation about the sustainability of souvenir race packs, and many races are now offering opt-outs as a result. The sustainability of races in general is a huge talking point, but that’s beyond the scope of this post (maybe for a later one…).
With summer drawing to a close and the cold, dark winter months creeping in, I needed some new running gear that was either warm, reflective or both. I decided to put my money where my mouth is, resist the urge to buy fancy new kit and look for some second-hand steals.
Running Kit
I went looking for jackets and a pair of shorts, and ended up pretty happy with what I found:
I got this great Nike dri-fit jacket on Depop, for only £24 from red cactus vintage. I’m not sure on the exact style, so couldn’t find it online, but the current Nike Windrunner series look very similar, and they’re going for £70 new, so £24 is a pretty good deal. It’s warm enough for cold mornings whilst still being lightweight, it’s also practical with a hood and large pockets. Plus it looks good, so I’m very happy with this buy.
eBay is another good site for used running kit, and there’s an abundance of jackets, shorts and tops to be found. I got this adidas response jacket for £10, it’s extremely lightweight and packable, as well as being wind/shower-proof. It has great reflective detail for those twilight runs, and the colour scheme gives it a great retro look. No complaints from me for £10 here.
I also got these Nike dri-fit shorts for £2. Two. That’s about as much as a cup of coffee, and you’d expect to pay upwards of £20 for a brand-new pair. There are loads of similar bargains to be found on shorts, making them a great piece of kit to buy second-hand.
Hopefully these buys have convinced you (if you’re not already) that there are some great second-hand running finds to be had on sites like eBay and Depop, and that we can all do more to make running a more sustainable sport.
Running Shoes
We’re constantly being told to replace our shoes around every 300-500 miles, which for even the casual runner, isn’t actually that many. I bought my current pair at the end of March, and they’re already at 500, without the two races and subsequent training I had planned since then. Assuming we all follow that advice, that means a lot of old pairs of shoes, so the question is; how do we get rid of them? I often relegate an old pair of running shoes to either gym shoes or trainers to prolong their life, but at some point you have to make room in the cupboard. I haven’t been a serious runner for long enough yet to have gone through a lot of shoes, but I’m already thinking about what to do with them when the time comes. I haven’t looked at the second-hand shoe market much, but there does seem to be a reasonable amount on eBay, mostly pairs that have been worn once or twice before being sold.
I did find a couple of good initiatives for disposing of well-worn pairs though, those from Runners Need and ReRun, below:
Sustainable Initiatives
Runners Need and SOEX are currently running (no pun intended) a great scheme called Recycle My Run, where you can recycle your old pair of shoes at one of their stores in return for £20 off a new pair. Your old shoes are then sent off to second-hand markets around the world or broken down into raw materials, depending on the condition they’re in. This is a win-win really, as you’re getting a discount off a brand-new pair of shoes whilst diverting your old ones away from landfill, and possibly providing a good used pair for someone else.
When doing some research for this post, I came across ReRun, an organisation whose aim is to prolong the life of running clothes and equipment. They get involved in a whole host of sustainable and ethical initiatives, from taking donations and reselling used clothes/equipment, to upcycling pieces of kit that would otherwise be unsellable, and they even have a shoe bank that offers free shoes and equipment to those in need. They’ve got a great collection of second-hand and upcycled clothes in their online store, and I’ll definitely be checking them out next time I need some new kit.
With so many great initiatives for recycling old pieces of kit, the days of just throwing your old shoes in the bin are long gone. And with the second-hand market booming, there’s really no need to buy a brand new piece of kit every time you need one, and also piece of mind that you can find a good home for your old gear when the time comes.