Here are the ones I've tried.
1. Snug buds - I know many runners swear by these. My sister has had several pairs. They seem to go static-y after a while but because you can return them with in a year, she's been able to replace them. I got a pair for Christmas one year and honestly, I hated them. First off, I don't like things sticking that far in my ear (so that was the first problem). The second problem was that because they were so far in my ear, I felt like I was stuck in a bubble. I could not hear anything ( and I literally mean anything) that was going on in the world around me. This is good for someone who wants to block out EVERY noise around them but I like to be aware of what is going on while still listening to music.
2. Because I don't like things completely in my ear, I thought I would try this over the ear model. After one run, I've determined these things were useless. They would not stay put.
3. The following Christmas I was hoping for a pair of Yurbuds since I heard so many great things about them. Turns out I got a pair of nice Sony earbuds. I REALLY liked these. These were no fancy shape like Yurbuds or Snugbuds, they were just the round disc shape. Over the years I had lost the little foam cover that goes over the ear pieces but I continued to wear them and they were perfect.
Until...... The day I crushed them in my car seat. I suppose you need a visual.
While traveling to and from the trail I put my ipod in the cup holder in my car. Apparently I did not noticed that one of the strands had fallen in between my seats, When I moved my seat to get out of the car I completely crushed the earbud. It was beyond repair. So now my search had started all over again.
You would think I could find the same Sony pair, but oh no. That would be too easy.
4. My sister decided that she wasn't crazy about her Yurbuds and offered to give them to me. Turns out I wasn't crazy a bout them either. It was the shape that I just couldn't get to stay in my ear.
5. last year for Christmas I had bought Scott a pair of the wireless earbuds from Sharper Image. I thought maybe these would work but they are Bluetooth and I don't believe they work with my ipod.
So what did I finally find?
A pair of cheapo JVC earbuds from Best Buy. Seriously, these were the only ones I could find that were shaped like my old Sony ones. They we only $10 and I've had them now for the majority of my training cycle and they work like a charm!
Tell me what worked and didn't work for you? -M