Fellow Calgarians like to talk about how we develop our winter skin as the cold months progress. Whenever the first cold snap hits it is always a shock to the system, but then a few weeks later we’ll warm up for a few days to +2C and we’ll be out running in shorts or capris and just a long sleeve tee.
This week is my opportunity to let that winter skin toughen up to cold temperatures. I met my friend Kelly for an easy lunch run yesterday. I knew the weather might be chilly but I purposefully did not check the temperatures as I didn’t want to know how cold it was out there. I figured ignorance would be bliss!! As I walked to meet Kelly the cold wind was smacking me in the face, making my cheek bones feel chilly and abused by the wind. Luckily once we started running we had enough things to talk about that it took our minds off of the cold air.
We ran for 36 minutes and the time flew by. When I got back to the office I checked the weather and it was -14C (7F) with the wind chill. Brr!! I made the mistake of refuelling on smoothie…an ice cold, frosty smoothie. Within minutes I was shivering away so I had to hurriedly make some hot tea to combat the chills. Note to self: a smoothie after a cold run is maybe not the best idea!
There really is no improvement to the weather as the week goes on.
Tonight will be a treadmill run since I have intervals to do and I find it easier and safer to do them indoors at this time of year. Friday will be hill repeats on a rather strange day where it looks like our high temperature is colder than our low temperature. Sunday’s long run of three hours in -10C weather will be a character builder as well! Thank goodness I have some good winter gear now that will hopefully keep me toasty warm.
How do you feel about winter running? Will you run outside in any temperature or what is your cut-off?
**They updated the weather forecast this morning (Friday) and it looks like it won’t be nearly as bad as they were predicting yesterday! I’ll just have to brave some chilly hill repeats today. Right now it is -12C, but it feels like -21C with the wind chill. Brr!!!
When the windchill is colder than -20, I start thinking twice and not wanting to run. It takes awhile to build up to that – it is barely -5 here and I’m not feeling ready for the cold … but yeah, i run in the winter. I don’t love it, but mostly that’s a sidewalk issue. I don’t want to fall and break myself.
It’s not so much the cold that bothers me, but the snow and ice. I’m pretty klutzy, so I know that if there’s ice I’m going to wipe out. I’d definitely rather do the treadmill than risk an unshovelled sidewalk.
I will run outside in any weather. I have run up to about 20 below but I don’t think I’ve run below that. And that isn’t very common here. The only weather I won’t run in is thunderstorms. But saying that most of the time during the week I run at the gym on the treadmill. It’s on the weekends that I am the brave cold weather runner. After work I’m too tired to fight the cold and the dark.
I love winter running. I’ve run as cold as -35C, though it starts getting tricky if there is a wind. Cautious about ice as well. I figure you can always put on another layer in the winter, but there is a limit to how many layers you can remove in the summer.
Living in Florida for the past three years has made me forget it gets cold other places. We’ve only recently had highs dip below 70F (21C). I’ve developed a summer cutoff. Anything above 85F with the humidity is unbearable to run in. I don’t know how some people keep running in the summer here!
Thanks for reminding me! Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
I would rather have it be really cold like you have and see a sun in the forecast than what I’ll have for the next 10 months which is rain, drizzle and grayness. =(
Lunch running is the way to go this time of year if you can, at least you get daylight instead of dark and cold =).