As good as it feels to defy Mother Nature in the winter months by getting out for a run, there are a few things that you should consider before layering up. First and foremost, running in the winter presents a number of different challenges that running in more moderate temperatures does not. I'll list a few of the items that I consider to be most important:
Clothing: Perhaps the most difficult consideration in the winter is the type/amount of clothing you will need to wear. This requires some trial and error as tolerances for cold vary, however there are some general rules of thumb. Layering is your best defence against the cold. By starting with a good technical fabric for your base layer (next to your skin), you will manage to stay dry and warm. The amount of layers that you pile on top is up to you. For extreme cold (-15 and below) I would recommend wearing some type of wind-breaking shell. The fabrics designed to do this have come a long, long way.
Safety: Visibility should be your #1 goal in the winter. Bright and reflective clothing is a must for early morning and evening runs. If sidewalks aren't going to be clear on my route I will strap a flashing red light to a waist belt as an extra reminder to drivers that I would rather they not hit me.
Traction: I could have called this section injury, as the risk of slipping in a Canadian winter is obviously far greater than any other time of year. My advice to beginers is that if you suspect that there is ice beneath the snow that you're about to run over just skip it and hit the treadmill. Some runners go as far as to strap on traction spikes to their shoes but I find they do little more than provide a false sense of confidence. The bottom line is that if you go full steam on to a section of ice you are going down....and it will probably hurt. Please be careful.
Hydration: The tendency in the winter is to drink far less than you normally would during a run. For short runs this is usually okay. If you're already running over8km you'll need to drink something. Perhaps not as much as the summer months, but just because your face is freezing you're still probably sweating under all of those layers.
The Good News:
Okay, so that's all of the doom and gloom, here's the good news. A bit of fresh air in the winter never hurt anybody. Winter in Canada is too long to hide inside; getting out with a run group is a great way to make use of this time and start your spring with a great base of fitness. Besides all of that, running in the winter will make you look as tough as Sylvester Stallone did when training to fight Ivan Drago in Rocky 4
Happy trails,
Adam.
I hate in my very first post to disagree with Adam but... I love my yak trax. I do a lot of winter running because I refuse to run on a treadmill. (Anyone who knows me knows that I say "Treadmills are for hamsters"!)Of course you need to be careful of the ice - nothing helps with that (except salt/sand) but when running in the snow, the yak trax will prevent you from that feelling of going one step forward and two steps back.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I would like to recommend one more article of clothing - that is the belaclava (a hat like bank robbers wear so that only the eyes show). It takes some getting used to because you have to breathe through mesh. But, if you are going to take on the -25s it will keep your lungs toasty and prevent your cheeks from frostbite.