Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Cold but Clear

It was cold today. Very cold. I went for my usual run after work and did my usual (when snow and ice are out that is) route through the hills of a close by neighborhood. What struck me right off the bat was when I opened the door, I was hit by a blast of cold air, colder that I have felt all year when going out for a run. Since there are no thermometers at where I work, I went to Weather.com to see how col it was before I stepped out to make sure I have enough on. It said it was 8F out. Brrrrrrr

Since it was so cold out, I didn't want to wait for my Garmin to synch up with the satellites so I went with just my watch. I know the exact distance (5.13 miles) so I would know my pace, I just wouldn't know each mile split. No big deal since this was just an easy run. I had on my running tights and 4 tshirts (3 short sleeve and 1 long sleeve) as well as my bright greenish yellow wind breaker vest I got at the Green Bay Marathon. This was enough on top except maybe I could have used a second long sleeve shirt instead of a short sleeve. By the end of my run, I had a good sweat under my shirts, even at 8F out. My legs took the brunt of the cold. the running tights were not quite enough but I can't run with sweatpants or stuff like that. Maybe I could use some running pants or something like that, but it is so rare that I need them that I can do without. When I took off my running tights after the run, my thighs were pink and cold to the touch. After a bit of a walk through the plant (with tights back on), I warmed up and all was good again.

All in all, it was a good run. I was where there wasn't too much wind so the wind chill wasn't too bad. I maintained about an 8:35 pace and the roads were pretty clear of ice and snow. Lots of Christmas Lights on as well, bonus.

It is suppose to warm up some so the outdoor running will continue. They are forecasting a high of 29F tomorrow. I also checked to sunset times and we have now reached the latest time the sun sets so it will begin to be lighter when I go for runs after work. Even if it is a minutes every day or two, it helps.

1 comment:

Beth said...

Great run in the cold! I have some "wind shorts" that I wear under my tights when it is really cold. They are just spandex-type shorts that keep the tops of my legs, rear and lower belly warm which is what normally gets cold on those really cold days.