When Marie Kondo's book "The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up" rocketed up the bestseller list in 2015, thousands took to their closets to toss item after item in a clean-sweep frenzy. For those of you unfamiliar with Marie Kondo and her methods, she is a Japanese organizing expert who encourages her legions of followers to declutter their homes using one very simple criteria: Does this item spark joy?
How about runners? Can we capture some of that life changing magic? Will decluttering our running gear help us spark joy and maybe claim a new PR? I decided it couldn't hurt to try.
Rather than tidy a bit at a time, this method (named "KonMari") has you work by category: tackling all your clothes in one go, followed by books, papers and so on.
I ruthlessly applied the KonMari method to my running gear. I gathered every single running-related item I owned (shoes, clothing, tech and accessories) and threw them into a huge pile on the floor.
Part of the KonMari process is coming face to face with everything you own. By placing it all in a big pile, I was confronted with my own excess. I was also forced to ponder the age-old question: Just how many technical t-shirts does one runner need to own? (Spoiler alert: NOT THAT MANY).
After picking up each item and asking myself whether it sparked joy, I was finally down to a reasonable amount of gear. Once folded and put away, I was very pleased at how nice everything looked. It all fit in my drawers, and with room to spare.
Along the way I picked up a few tips for fellow runners who would like to embark on their own decluttering mission: