Running accessories that actually earn their place

After shoes, everything else is optional — but some options pay for themselves weekly while others audition for the junk drawer. Here's the accessory list in rough order of earned usefulness, from someone's who's bought all of it.

The first five (buy in this order)

• Anti-chafe balm ($10). Body Glide or Squirrel's Nut Butter. The best cost-to-suffering-prevented ratio in running. Long-run day without it is a lesson learned exactly once.
• Real running socks ($15/pair). Merino or technical synthetic; blisters mostly live and die here, not in shoes. Darn Tough, Balega, Feetures are club-favourite brands.
• A belt or vest. Phone, keys, gels: a slim belt (SPIbelt, FlipBelt) covers daily runs; a hydration vest (Salomon, Nathan) enters when runs pass 90 minutes or summer hits. Bounce-test with a full load before trusting it on race day.
• Visibility kit ($20–60). A clip light or two and reflective bands make evening club runs boring in the best way; a headlamp (Petzl, Black Diamond, or the runner-specific Kogalla-style torches) unlocks trails and unlit paths. Non-negotiable per our safety guide.
• Sunscreen that survives sweat. Sport formulations, applied before, reapplied on long days. The accessory dermatologists wish ran the list.

The strong seconds

• Foam roller ($20–40) — boring, effective, evidence-friendly for feeling less wrecked. The fancy vibrating ones mostly add invoice.
• Massage gun ($80–300) — feels wonderful; think recovery-adjacent comfort tool, not medical device. Theraguns have cheaper rivals that do 90% of it.
• Running hat and gloves — cheap items with outsized comfort range; see gear by climate.
• Wireless open-ear headphones — covered fully in the headphones guide.

The junk drawer (skip or gift)

Compression everything (fine for recovery comfort, oversold for performance), copper-infused anything, phone armbands (belts won), hydration gadgets for 5 km runs, and any accessory promising minutes off your pace. The accessory that actually makes you faster meets on Tuesdays and waves you over.