SBR "U" (Page 9)

Dressing for cold weather runs is a bit of an art form I think.  I find it best to dress so that I start out cold (ie. underdressed) with the goal that after 5-10 mins of running I will be just right.  Suck it up for those first few minutes and then I'm good to go from there.

I can feel the creaking and seizing of the joints already.

Just think, your cold runs are about half-way between Marc's run and a summers day 95.

In uncertain temperatures, I'll try to make sure that some adjustability is build into what I'm wearing. Like zippers. Sleeves that can roll easily and will stay in place. Maybe gloves that I can stow easily. Similar with a hat, or maybe a hood. The comfort level can change a lot when moving in and out of the wind too so I try to be ready for that.

Happy Birthday Arend.   I turned 54 today

Good Lord Jim - did you wake up this morning to find your knees had turned into a fine, powdery dust? Oh, and don't tell Arend about the ear hair thing - let Tab point that out to him tonight when she gets home from work.

I think what I run in to with the middle temps on the run is really the warm up. I do a 15 minute walking/dynamic stretching warm up before every run, then 20 minutes or so of very easy running before doing whatever the actual workout calls for. That first 15 minutes can get really chilly and takes a lot longer to warm up after. So I will often loop back by the house or car and drop clothes before I start running. When it is really cold I swap the walking and dynamic stretching for 20 minutes on the bike indoors before heading out the door for my 20 minutes of running warm up. That works for me as well. 

Happy birthday to you too!  Two of my co-workers also have birthdays today - clearly it's an important date on the calendar.

Ah yes, that would certainly do it.  Me, I go outside, wait for the watch to beep and I'm off!  In fact I bought the Forerunner 220 specifically because it has the fast GPS lock feature so I wouldn't have to stand around in the cold waiting.  My old watch wouldn't lock on anywhere inside my building at work so I had to shiver on the street corner waiting.

Yeah, I used to do that too.

You know, back when I was young.

I have much to learn

What are the chances...2 of my co-workers (one is my supervisor) also have birthday today.

Who says 54 is "old" ?  My grandfather is 95...now that's old.

Funny story (to me at least).  I think I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that my Dad (who is 74) is in North Carolina for the winter and was posting his bike rides on Strava.  Well, on the weekend he had a 66 km ride posted and I asked him if he went tip to tip on the island/peninsula he was on if he would get to 100k.  His response what that that was his original plan for the day but his legs were tired because he had pushed to hard earlier in the ride during one of the longer Strava segments.    

Strava sucks in everyone!

I run in shorts year round for the most part. Winter temps here are between the low 20s and 40s for the most part. Obviously your legs warm up quick as they are the muscles being used.

I layer more on my core depending on the actual temp and if there is wind or sun. 

The easiest thing for moderating are accessories like thin gloves, a hat (or toque for team Canada) and maybe arm warmers. So long as you can tuck them in your pocket or whatever. If it's on that lower end, a vest is nice with a thinner long sleeve under. As you get warmer you can roll up the sleeves if need be. 

Most important is to delayer BEFORE you start to sweat. 

Heh, example: 

I think my biggest issue for dressing for the colder weather is my head....when I wear a beanie, I sweat, and then eventually my head gets really cold.  Unfortunately for me, I have hair that's long enough to be in the way if I don't have something on my head, and too short to actually pull back -- so I have to commit to a hat or a beanie before I leave.  I'm quickly learning that it's hat weather down into the low-30's.

The other stuff -- breathe-able layers, zippers, etc. all seem to be non-issues for me.  And for any run that's not just easy, I'd much rather start out cold and warm up throughout....for easy runs, I tend not to build up too much body heat, with the exception of my head.  I'm apparently a mental case when it comes to all aspects of running

Racing this weekend -- weather looks to be about ideal, in the high-40's to low-50's with no rain (a bit of wind, but nothing excessive).  Probably won't even have to worry about ditching clothes or anything, though a long-sleeved shirt might feel nice for the w/u since they offer a bag drop right before race start.