My cut off for temperature is arround 0, although I have done a 5k where the temp was closer to -5 and had days where is was 15 but with a cold wind where I opted to stay inside. It is all about the clothing. I use a lot of stuff that is designed for cross country skiing.
Did my 14-miler (was supposed to be 15) on Friday (which was also my 30th birthday - maybe that's a sign - lol) and it did not go well...i was very tired...(did it in the morning about 1 hr after eating breakfast) and i ended up walking alot of the 2nd hour...to put things in perspective: the first time i ran it in 2:20...this time was 2:45...ugh...oh well i'm definitely learning how my body likes to run...long runs for training are definitely best around mid-afternoon early evening...no more of these 'right before i get to bed' long runs...
oh well...yesterday was 6 miles and it was much better...am planning on a lot of quick runs and 2 medium runs this week before heading out of town to visit DH's family.
Can y'all give some examples of your winter gear, please? I'm not planning for 0 but anything below freezing kicks my butt now and I'd like to extend my able-to-run range.
I can start: For 30s (F), I like midweight tights, long sleeve wicking tee, fleece (200-weight, I think) pullover that unzips, gloves. Fleece headband only if it feels a lot colder than it is.
WTG Anne, Helen, and Frus on your tri and runs this weekend.
I did okay in my 5K with a lesson learned: I dressed too warmly and had to start unpinning my number to take layers off, which slowed me down a little.
If I had ran with my planned clothes (long pants with a ss tee under a longsleeve) I would have been fine.
Softballmom, you can also pin to the lowest layer and take off as you go. There is also a gadget called a race belt that is used in triathlon (I use it for running races as well) that is very handy--basically an elastic belt that you pin your number to, and you clip it on around your waist, very portable, very adjustable. This is what one looks like: http://www.tri-sports.com/racenumberbelt.html
I had a fantastic 4 miler today. 12min/mile pace. Felt easy, felt good. I had a scheduled walk break at 2 miles, which I probably didn't need, but I took it anyway since it was on the schedule and the last thing I want to do is run around with a sense of euphoria clouding my judgement and overdo.
I purposely underdress all the time when I run in cold weather... I run in -20C/-4F in the winter, I wear only one pair of tights that are a dryweave and have sort of a light fleece inside, I wear the same type of hoodie top under my running jacket, I undo the zippers under my sleeves in the winter too ... I get so hot that it drives me nuts to carry around extra bagage... If I am on the coolish side when I start running I know I will be ok by mid-run when I start sweating... I get teased all the time running with the gals but I am always comfortable by the end of the run and the others have had to strip away the layers and tied their jackets around their waists, etc... So I guess I'd rather be cold than too hot but I must say I have never ever been cold running.
Thanks Anne for the belt idea. Def something to look into b4 the next planned race in November.
My race was done in the low 30s, and I think one layer with a possible jacket that could be tied around my waist would have been sufficient. Fortunately, GA winters don't fall below the 30s too often when I would be running (afternoons). It only took a mile to get warm as well, so I would rather run cold for about 10-12 minutes than run too warm for the remainder!
I'm going to running club for the first time tonight, fingers crossed my legs hold out! I'm actually getting quite excited about running in a group, and getting to wear a club vest in races.
Does anyone find that they can run faster/easier on different TM's. I know they aren't calibrated exactly the same, but when I use any of the StarTrac's at my small gym I find that I run much faster and easier than when I use one of the Precor TM's at the other gym.
Last edited by RockerGirl; 10-18-2006 at 05:56 PM.
Helen -- You'll love the camaradery of a group, I know I love my group and hate missing the runs with them...
Rocker -- I've only run on a Precor, so I can't help you there...I'm sure there are some differences in the quality so that would make a difference in the run IMHO...
Today I did some HIIT on the I only had 30 mins, so that's all I did...
I love it! I'll have to do some swimming so I can use it!
I went to running club last night and quite enjoyed it, they're all really friendly and there are enough slower people to split into groups with the fast ones heading off on a slighly longer route and the slower ones taking it more gently. I haven't officially joined yet, but I think I will, then I get a natty purple vest to wear in all my races.
20 minutes of speedwork on the too this morning. I've lost a lot of speed during marathon training, and I find it easier to stick to fixed intervals on the treadmill to make myself work harder. I'd forgotten how boring it is though, I wanted to do longer originally, but got bored and did some weights instead.
(love this new little guy!!)
...
Yoooohoooo!
I only had 30 mins, so that's all I did...
... I love it!
