What Not to Wear: Winter Running Edition
| December 2, 2010 | Posted by Lauren under Running |
Runners, I have a very important announcement to make. Are you listening? Ok. Here it goes: some of you need to take off your clothes!
No, I don’t mean all of them. But seriously runners, it’s time to lighten up a little. I know winter is here and the shorter days and colder temperatures make it harder to work up the motivation to get outside and run in the first place. I also know that everyone is different – some people get cold easily, and some would rather be a little too hot when they run. But that doesn’t mean you should bundle up in every available layer before you go outside to face the elements.
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Your body is an amazing machine that produces a lot of heat. After a few minutes of running, you will warm up. If you start off your run feeling toasty warm, by the time you get one mile in you’re going to be miserable under all those layers…and drowning in your own sweat. It may not be the most comfortable thing to do, but it’s actually best to start off feeling a little cool. When you walk outside, you shouldn’t feel like you want to hang around in your running outfit.
So how do you know what to wear? Think of it this way: when you run, you’re going to feel like it’s 20 degrees warmer than the actual temperature. That means that even though 40 degrees may feel cold when you step outside, once you get going it’ll feel like it’s 60. And that’s rather pleasant.
For me, 40 degrees and above is actually shorts weather. My favorite running outfit is a pair of shorts and two shirts: a short-sleeve with a long-sleeve T over top. Once it starts dropping below 40, it’s time to make the switch to long pants, though sometimes that’s flexible. Enter Exhibit A. Tonight it was about 38 degrees when I started running – this is what I wore:
Now let it be noted that I am breaking a cardinal rule of running gear: wearing cotton. No matter the temperature, cotton should actually be avoided when running. It holds your sweat and becomes really wet, which will end up making you colder during winter runs. However, I love layering a cotton running T (I have way too many) over a dri-fit/coolmax shirt. The under layer whisks my sweat away, and there’s just something so comfortable about an old cotton running shirt. Once temperatures start dropping even more, though, I’ll trade it in for a shirt made with wicking material.
Tonight when I walked outside I was definitely a bit cold. But once I started running, I warmed up very quickly. In fact, on my way out the door, I had grabbed an old pair of gloves to wear but was warm enough to ditch them after about a mile.
But what about when it’s really cold? Do cold temperatures ever make it too dangerous to exercise outside? A few years ago, there was a great article in the NYTimes about running in the cold and whether it ever actually got too cold to safely do so. The short answer: no…though it may not always be pleasant and you need to take the proper precautions to avoid conditions such as frostbite or hypothermia (though as long as you keep moving, you will generate heat, which will help avoid hypothermia).
Actually, a big problem comes from doing the opposite – wearing too many clothes. As I mentioned above, having too many layers can cause you to sweat too much, soaking your clothes and making you colder. According to one of the doctors interviewed for the piece:
That means, Dr. Noakes said, that even in temperatures as low as 10 to minus-20 degrees, a runner probably needs to wear no more than a track suit, mittens or gloves and a hat.
I know this probably sounds a little insane. And I’m not suggesting that you should be freezing cold and miserable during your entire run. Nor am I suggesting that you should run outside when it’s -20 degrees (I know I’m certainly not brave enough to do that!). But the overall point is important – when you run in the winter, you probably need to wear less than you think!
So next time you head out for a run, add 20 degrees to whatever temperature it is. Then think about how you’d feel walking around in that weather, and leave one of those extra layers at home.
Haha I love that you told people to take their clothes off! Too funny.
I wear shorts until it dips down closer to freezing, and I definitely need more wicking type clothing. I probably have at least forty long sleeve cotton shirts (years of races…oops), and they’re definitely my go-to for running because there’s soooo many of them!
Although I initially thought it was overrated, Under Armour makes some amazing stuff….I can’t wear their tights when it’s over 20 degrees because they’re too warm, but they keep me toasty below zero!
Susan – Nurse on the Run´s last post ..On a Dessert Island…
Gah, it’s in the lower to mid 50′s here and I’ve been whimpering every time I step outside. I don’t even want to think about -20s or heck, even 40! I’m always cold, though, probably from living in Florida for the greater part of my life, and I’m used to nice, warm, sunny days!
Faith @ lovelyascharged´s last post ..Show-off
I’m a wimp and need gloves and something to cover my ears as soon as it gets below 50s – otherwise my ears and hands will start hurting me after 5 minutes (and they don’t really get warmer while you are running). I have retired short-shorts for the year, but am still wearing capris.
Hopefully you won’t have to deal with TOO cold temps once your marathon training starts!
Liz´s last post ..Trails & Traffic
Just when I think I’ve heard it all, you always have the BEST advice! For real, I friggin love your posts.
Our body is little furnace and I enjoyed the note about how quickly your body heats up once it starts moving.
I wish you lived closer!
Nichole´s last post ..We’re gonna have the hap hap happiest christmas since Bing Crosby tapdanced with Danny fn Kaye
I saw someone running in the big “George Costanza” type jacket the other night. It was very funny watching them waddle around.
I wear tight bike pants, a long sleeve compression shirt, and a short sleeve shirt over that, thats it. Oh, and my blue hat, I never run without it.
Jim´s last post ..Im cutting out the extra carbohydrates fueling mainly
I wrote about exercising in the cold recently for work. I read a similar study that said we basically don’t need ridiculous layers of clothes until the temperature drops below -20. I was quite shocked!
I think it’s so funny how we all dress differently for the cold. I loathe wearing gloves and take them off after 5 minutes even in sub 20 weather. But I wear a hat whenever it’s below 45! Sometimes it’s just a wicking material hat and not a real winter hat though.
The worst part of cold running for me is the wind. I’ve gotten hypothermia once because I ran an out and back with the wind at my back the first half of the run. I got soaked from sweat and then ran 6 miles into a head wind. Now, I’m much more mindful about the wind direction!
Jen´s last post ..Embrace- don’t fear- the holiday cheer
Too funny, I almost wrote a similar post earlier this week because I find myself struggling with dressing properly these days on my early morning runs. I know the rules of layering, which you describe perfectly by the way, but the temps are all over the place I am having trouble applying them. One day it is 60 the next it is 40 and my body is just so confused!
Bekah @ runtrackmind´s last post ..Share Your Passions
I live in the Southern hemisphere and I’m facing the opposite problem: it’s too hot to run. Even in the morning, the sun beams are hot hot hot.
Maybe we should run naked!
You really are a New England girl now! I’m with you. I usually wear a tank and a long sleeve light shirt for 35-45 degree weather. It’s not cold until you start running in under 10 degree weather. haha
Lizzy´s last post ..Ibex Winter Warming Party & The Athletes Plate
I know someone who wears way too many layers. I think she needs to bookmark this post
I feel like if I have a hat and gloves in the cold, I can wear less layers. Warm hands keep me comfortable when I’m running.
Becky´s last post ..Bright Lights- Big City
Nice tips about the cotton there. I started running in december with cotton gloves because I didnt have anything else which was not ideal. Sometimes my sweat used to soak the gloves and then would turn to ice and freeze my hands!
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