How to Run Commute

I'm always looking for ways to integrate more running into my day.  Run commuting has worked out pretty well for me to add in a few additional miles.  Looking back at the last 7 weeks in my running log, I've run to or from work 25 times.  Otherwise I ride my bike, which is technically cross training but doesn't really require too much effort.

I started run commuting occasionally back at the beginning of 2011.  The initial problems I thought I would encounter turned out to not be such an issue.  Here in the form of a Q&A are the things I wondered myself.

What kind of bag will be comfortable to run in?  Do I have anything that will work?
I tried the typical unstructured cloth race giveaway bag (more of a sack) a few times.  No matter how I tried wrapping the strings, tightening, etc. it never worked very well and swung around way too much to be comfortable.  I ended up using a "fast pack / day pack" sort of bag I got as a gift.  These can be incredibly cheap.  The REI Flash Pack 18 I have been using for almost two years has an MSRP of only 34.95.

The bag has held up for almost two years of use and abuse (carry it on my bike too) and that seems like a pretty good test so far.  It has chest and waist straps so if adjusted and packed well it's extremely comfortable.  The largest load I typically run with includes lunch, a change of clothes, shoes, and a Macbook Air.

What about breakfast, won't a full stomach be uncomfortable to run with every day?
I typically eat for breakfast 3-4 eggs, a grapefruit or banana, toast, and occasionally an avocado as well.  If we have bacon or turkey bacon, I'll sometimes eat that too.  I would consider this a decently protein and fat heavy breakfast.  Even so, after my first few times running with a "fuller" stomach I found it not to be an issue.  The intensity of my running first thing in the morning tends to be low and limited in distance by the commute itself (usually under 3 miles).  That definitely helps.  A full stomach might not be good for a hard workout or race, but seems to be just fine running at a less than 80% of maximum heart rate type effort.

What about clothing?  How can I not hopelessly wrinkle up dress clothes?
So far, packing clothing has worked out well for me.  If I roll a nice cylinder of pants and shirt and make sure these are on top of the bag wrinkles tend to me minimal.  Another solution I have used  some is to just leave a few shirts and pants or dress shoes at work to make packing up everything even easier.  There was one day I carried a poorly sealed container of indian food and accidentally packed it on top of the dress clothes.  This ended in some leaking and curry smell infused clothing.  Make sure to put food on the bottom.

What if I don't shower, won't I smell terrible?
I am lucky in this respect.  Since I work at a fitness facility, I have a great locker room with showers waiting for me at work.  However, I have alternatively showered at home before and just refreshed with some deodorant at work upon arrival.  I've found that showering first still leaves me feeling fresh and clean as my skin and pores were clean to begin with.  So I think either way could work pretty well.  Also if I commute early the combination of low effort, cool weather and minimal sunlight makes a big difference in overall sweat anyway.

How will this affect my workout, since these will pretty much be just junk miles?
First, I don't really believe in junk miles.  Every mile counts for something in the grand scheme of developing fitness.  A few slow morning miles can greatly improve my preparation for "higher quality" runs later in the day.  I've noticed that I feel warmed up and super alert all morning at work after running to work.  This feeling of being completely warmed up remains when I begin a lunch or late afternoon workout.  I've also noticed that my second run of the day in these cases (or even my commute back home) feels even better than if I hadn't run earlier that day.  If I'm beat up from a workout the day before, the morning "shakeout" seems to help my legs feel fresh for a later run.

What about adverse weather?  What if it's really cold or it rains and my stuff gets all wet?
I've found colder weather to improve my commuting experience.  I have battled occasionally with cold temperatures cycling to work where the wind feels relentless in creating discomfort in the body's extremities.  Running has been a great solution to this problem since I naturally stay warm at a higher intensity and slower speed.  Also, I sweat even less in the cold conditions that aren't comfortable for cycling.  When the rain comes, I found a pack cover to be the most important piece of equipment I own.  I found a cheap pack cover that stuffs up into a tiny ball to keep in my pack in case of rain.  Since I'm changing clothes it doesn't matter much if I myself get wet.  Something like this would probably work well, mine is similar.

Those are the big questions I had.  I have been hard pressed to find reasons not to run to work!