Bandanna Fana Fo Fanna

Last night was a four mile treadmill run that was to be done at a 10:55 minute/mile pace. I wore my new shoes (better after loosening the laces), I upped the incline on my treadmill (still don't know what to, though), and I ran the first three miles at 5.5 MPH and the last mile at 5.6 MPH. I've found that as the miles tick past, I want to go faster and faster just to get them out of the way. At least that's how I feel when I'm on the treadmill.

So, overall, a good run that left me with enough time to cool down AND start dinner before Jason got home from work.

But that doesn't really have anything to do with bandannas.

Or does it???

If you look at my past race reports you'll see that in almost all of them I'm wearing a bandanna. It's my running headgear of choice.

See, I have a very small head and hats just never fit quite right. I've contemplated trying a visor but I fear it will have the same results as a hat. Growing up, my mom would take a bandanna, fold it up, and tie it across her forehead sweat band style. I tried that but my bangs always flopped over the edges and drove me crazy. I discovered that if folded the bandanna into a triangle and tied it over my hair it soaked up sweat and kept my bangs from falling in my face. And in the summer it protects my hair and scalp from the sun. A win-win situation!

My first bandanna was the purple one shown above. I can't remember if I purchased it or borrowed it from my mom only to never give it back. The faded gray one I know I stole from Jason. That one is so old that the edges are frayed and there are parts where you can almost see through the fabric. Jason gave it quite a workout before I got my mitts on it. I discovered shortly, though, that only owning two bandannas meant I was doing a lot of laundry.

I've picked up the rest of them over the past two years. Mostly for less than $1.00 each. Some were gifts from my mother-in-law (totally awesome gifts, I might add!). Some I bought on clearance. In fact, I've now amassed so many that although I tried to get all of them for the picture, I think there are a few (such as my pink zebra striped one) that are buried in my drawer so deep that they didn't resurface for their close-up.

I have found in the summer that sometimes I get too hot wearing a bandanna. In those cases, I've tried using bobby pins and hair bands to hold my hair back and just carrying the bandanna to mop up sweat, but I have such fine hair that not much keeps it in place. Also, you may recall my "cotton is rotten" post. Well, bandanna tend to be cotton. And although they certainly soak up the sweat, they also like to hold on to it. After a long hot run, you can practically wring out whatever bandanna I was wearing. In the winter I don't always wear a bandanna when running outside. Instead, I prefer to wear a fleece headband to keep my ears warm.

Regardless, I love bandannas. They're like my signature running accessory. So even though I could try switching to a visor or even a Bondi Band, I don't know if I will.