Cold Weather Running

Fleece and Cotton would be a place to start. They don't breathe at all.

Light layers that breathe and easy to shed if you need to.

It can get -20F where I live. Some like running in the cold some don't...personally I don't.

Good for you!!!! Keep up the running. The key is layers...you can always take some off! Healthy body temperature for running in any weather is 70 degress. Keep that in mind. Also people tend NOT to hydrate well when it's cold out.

From Runners World Magazine:

50 degrees F and up:
Bottoms: consider longer cut short than you'd wear in summer or capris
Tops: long sleeve technical shirt or short sleeve shirt w/ arm warmers + thin vest
Add: light weight baseball cap style hat

35-50 degrees F
Bottoms: capris or 3/4 length tights or long tights or pants
Tops: layer 2 long sleeve shirts or wear one long sleeve with a breathable wind or water proof jacket, a thicker vest or thin mid layer
Add: wicking beanine and thin gloves

20-35 degrees F
Bottoms: brushed tights or pants; consider a pair of wool underwear. wear socks high enough to cover any exposed skin
Tops: Double up on long sleeve shirts, or wear a long sleeve shirt with a thin mid layer and thin jacket or heavier version of either
Add: beanie hat, thicker gloves and sunglasses to protect your eyes from chilly wind gusts (consider clear lenses on cloudy days)

0-20 degrees F
Bottoms: brushed, insulated tights or pants made of wind and water blocking fabrics
Tops: long sleeve shirt tucked into your bottoms and/or a midlayer that zips up to protect your neck, plus an insulated jacked. Long socks
Add: a scarf or "gaiter" around your neck that you can pull over your chin and mouth. A warm beanie that covers you ears. Thick gloves that fit snugly. Sunglasses

Below 0 degrees F
Stay inside..hit the treadmill!

I used to run in the cross country team when I was in college in Minnesota. We used to joke that as long as you had warm socks and a warm hat, you could practically run naked! :embarassed: One of the guys used to run in shorts and a t-shirt, with warm socks and a hat.

I wouldn't recommend doing that, but good socks and a hat are a great place to start. Gloves, too, since it always seemed to me that my extremities got the coldest since all the blood was focused on being in my torso. You'll want to have the layer closest to your body one that doesn't hold the sweat close to your skin, so find a "wicking" t-shirt as your bottom-most layer. The sweat is what's going to get you really cold. You're goal will probably be to dress so you're a little cold as you get started and cold when you're finished, but comfortable when you're running. Before and after your run, you can throw on warmer clothes, but you won't want to be too hot while out there. So, basically, what everybody else is saying about the layers. Layers are good.

The cold air on my lungs were what used to bother me the most, so I had a head cover that went over my mouth (not a scarf because I didn't want to be breathing in fibers, but something else) and that helped me a lot. I used to love running in the middle of winter -- it's so quiet and beautiful with the snow. But it takes a little bit of getting used to -- the top of my thighs were always freezing when I got home, but hopping into a hot shower afterward was heavenly.

It's been a long time since I've been running in the cold, though (I moved to Georgia and South Carolina about 6 years ago), so it'll be interesting to see what other people say.

Good luck!

Thanks! I appreciate this too, because I will begin training for my first half marathon in a few weeks. Previously I have done most of my runs inside on the treadmill at the gym, but will be branching out, getting in the cold! omg!

From Runners World Magazine:

50 degrees F and up:
Bottoms: consider longer cut short than you'd wear in summer or capris
Tops: long sleeve technical shirt or short sleeve shirt w/ arm warmers + thin vest
Add: light weight baseball cap style hat

35-50 degrees F
Bottoms: capris or 3/4 length tights or long tights or pants
Tops: layer 2 long sleeve shirts or wear one long sleeve with a breathable wind or water proof jacket, a thicker vest or thin mid layer
Add: wicking beanine and thin gloves

20-35 degrees F
Bottoms: brushed tights or pants; consider a pair of wool underwear. wear socks high enough to cover any exposed skin
Tops: Double up on long sleeve shirts, or wear a long sleeve shirt with a thin mid layer and thin jacket or heavier version of either
Add: beanie hat, thicker gloves and sunglasses to protect your eyes from chilly wind gusts (consider clear lenses on cloudy days)

0-20 degrees F
Bottoms: brushed, insulated tights or pants made of wind and water blocking fabrics
Tops: long sleeve shirt tucked into your bottoms and/or a midlayer that zips up to protect your neck, plus an insulated jacked. Long socks
Add: a scarf or "gaiter" around your neck that you can pull over your chin and mouth. A warm beanie that covers you ears. Thick gloves that fit snugly. Sunglasses

Below 0 degrees F
Stay inside..hit the treadmill!

If I wore that much clothing at those temperatures, I would melt into a puddle.

You are an experiment of one. Try different combinations to see what works for you. I find that if I keep my head and hands warm, then I'm good to go. Shorts down into the 20s.

I run in cold weather running clothes. I have Nike therma-fit leggings and a Hind cold gear long sleeve shirt. I also have an ear warmer and gloves. I think I will probably have to add a neck warmer for my longer runs but as of now I am pretty toasty during the run. I also hear Under Armour has nice gear for cold weather running too but I dont have any of my own yet.

When I run in the cold, my throat gets dry and hurts a bit and I think I caught a soar throat last night from it. I think I might use a scarf or something.... idk, i just dont want to look ridiculous

i run in shorts until it gets a WINDY 32 or less...my tops are layered for easy removal...i keep eye wear on so that my eyes don't water...basically it all ends up coming off...these are for RUNS that are longer than the 30 minutes

i like the arm bands b/c i can take them off easier while i am running

I've heard a rule of thumb that you should dress for 20 degrees (F) warmer than it is outside (if you were just standing around). So if it's 30F outside, you'd dress for 50F. Just standing around in 50F weather I'd need long pants (but not super thick), a tshirt (but not cotton), and a thin long sleeved top. I like to start with a hat, but my ears get cold because I don't have much hair.

I have a lot of trouble with wind - a windy day at 30F and I'll make it a thick long sleeved top, thicker pants, and put a wind breaker on, and wear gloves or mittens. But I loathe being cold (and I loathe the wind). When it's below 20 and windy, I start wearing some of my heavier duty socks, long undies, and my biking jacket (I bought a bicycle police jacket from an online supply store - everything but the "POLICE" lettering, including cop vents, cop pockets, cop elastic, and cop zip off sleeves, cop removable liner - best purchase ever).