I’m not a runner.  I like to think of myself as a really supportive Rooster for the Healthy Hen.  One thing she enjoys about running is the simplicity of it.  All you really need, in its purest form, is a pair of running shoes.  So for years, I watched her pack up the baby jogger and her shoes into our minivan (I like to call it the Hoop Ride, it makes me feel just a bit more hip) and take off running from all sorts of destinations:  hotels, campgrounds, the kids’ schools, you name it.  She would wear a regular watch, and just decide how much time she was going to run for.  When she would get done, she would make an educated guess on what her pace was, the distance she ran, that sort of thing.  The only time she usually knew her true pace and distance was running with her sister, who a few years ago got a Garmin Forerunner, which they used to help train for a marathon.

The Garmin is like a large wrist watch/GPS system.  It tells you all the details of your run with amazing precision.  Her sister called it the Giz.  Yes, it really does have a name.  But since we are kind of slow to adapt to technology, we just never ended up getting one for the Healthy Hen.  Until this year.  I finally surprised her with it for Valentine’s Day, and now I’ve adopted a name for it:  the Enabler.

Seriously, this thing is incredible.  She can start her run literally anywhere, and this thing let’s her know her pace, her distance, elevation, you can race a “virtual partner,” all sorts of cool stuff.  And when she gets home, if she runs the same route, she can compare her runs, her times for each mile, elevation, etc., and get a sense of how consistent it is and/or areas of improvement.  It adds a whole new element to running for the Healthy Hen.  She can train (currently for a half marathon), but doesn’t have to follow the same route all the time because the Enabler will always tell her the distance no matter where she is.  So now she has been able to expand her training runs to the course itself, the neighborhood, and other places around town just to add variety while still being able to stick to a detailed training regimen.  Good stuff.

So what is the Enabler? It is the Garmin Forerunner 205.  It is their base model GPS/running/biking watch.  They also have the 305 (the key difference is it has a heart rate monitor) and the 405 (it is a bit smaller and “sleeker”), but the 205 has all the bells and whistles the Healthy Hen needs to feel a lot of freedom in her running while still tracking important training information.  So you should check them out if you do any outdoor distance activities such as running or biking – they are pretty affordable and a LOT of fun for you (or the really healthy person you just love to support)!