Hands Free R.I.C.E.'ing

As some of you may know, I took up running last summer and have gotten into it enough to actually run some races. I love the minimalism of running -- you can hit the pavement on your own schedule and can go pretty minimal gear-wise, with running shoes being the major expense (that is, unless you're like some of my crazy barefoot running buddies). But one piece of gear that I was thrilled to learn about and now use regularly is the Moji Knee. I wanted to share my thoughts about the Moji Knee here because it's been great to have it in my running "toolkit" and it also seems as if every week I connect with more readers and bloggers and friends and family who are taking up running.
A representative from Moji reached out about sending me the Moji Knee when they heard that I was part of Eat. Blog. Run. And despite said love for running minimalism, I was immediately intrigued because one of the reasons that I have built up my miles very slowly is because my knees are prone to injury. And pretty much are the source of my aches and pains post-run. But the thing is, even though I well knew that I should be R.I.C.E.'ing my knees, I just didn't. Because after I run (and stretch) I need to get back to work or parenting or household minutia; I can't sit around holding a bag of frozen peas or negotiating a drippy bag full of melting ice.

This is where the Moji Knee comes in. It includes two pieces. The first is a compression wrap made of performance stretch fabric; there are Velcro strap fasteners to secure the wrap above and below the knee. The second piece is the cold cell, which affixes to the wrap via Velcro (Moji's designers even patterned the outline of the cell on the wrap to ensure you put it in the right place). The awesomeness of this product is that the cold pack comprises 18 flexible cells that conform to the shape of your knee and the Velcro wrap creates compression, thus taking care of the I (ice) and the C (Compression) of R.I.C.E. And it allows for totally hands free icing; I can walk around, prop my leg up (E for elevation) and work on my laptop, etc.

At just under $90, the Moji Knee may seem like a bit of an investment, but if you are like me, and have been foregoing injury treatment because it's messy or inconvenient, I would highly recommend the Moji Knee as part of your minimal arsenal of running gear. I now ice my knees after each run -- and it not only feels good from an aches and pain perspective, but also when I make the crazy decision to run on a 90 degree day.