Baby it’s cold outside! Makes you want to curl up on the couch with a warm fire, or a warm companion. We watch someone out running as we drive down the road and think they must be crazy. How can anyone run in this weather?  While I admit, I don’t do it as much as I used to, it is still exhilarating to be out there in the bracing cold.

The hardest part of any run is the first step out the door. On cold days, you have to prepare a bit more, thinking about the elements. Dress in layers, with wicking material next to the skin. Most people don’t realize how lucky we are today. In college, I ran on cold days, with a cotton t-shirt and cotton hooded sweatshirt. Today we have many miracle fabrics to help keep us warm. Head down to the Runners Shop to check out the latest. 

Some quick hints about cold weather running: If possible, have someone drive you out, so you can run back with the wind. You can run on bitterly cold days if you just run with the wind. If this is not possible, run out against the wind, then back with it. If you do it the other way around, you will get chilled on the return run. 

Wear a stocking hat, and adjust it up or down to regulate your temperature. Gloves are good, but mittens are even better. The outside layer should be wind and water proof. Something light that you can tie around your waist if you get to warm. Goretex is great, but a bit expensive. A simple nylon shell will work also.

While the cold can be brutal, it also gives you a chance to test yourself, expand you limits. And that is never a bad thing!

-Gary

We’ve heard that saying applied to certain drugs before, but how about applying it in a positive way to the sport of running? If you haven’t run before, then you might not know what I’m talking about. If you are a runner, then you might have an idea. Have you ever run a race (could be anything from a 5K to a Marathon) and thought that you could do a little better or wondered how much faster you could have gone? This could even apply to your daily run. What do I need to do to run from point A to point B and back without hurting?

I started running marathons over four years ago and got hooked. After I knew that I could run the distance, I set my eyes on qualifying for Boston. I grew up in Massachusetts and flipped between the Red Sox game and Boston Marathon every Patriots Day. Anyway, I was a runner for about ten years before taking on the marathon and now I constantly look for other activities that help my running, and other cross training to do when I’m not running. For example, I started yoga to help stretch and calm my wild mind and I also took up Tai Chi. I try to swim two times a week to work on my VO2 max. I have always used the November through February time to get in the gym to do some lifting, but I wanted something a little more core-oriented rather than working on the major muscle groups. I discovered the kettlebells. Kettlebells are basically a cannonball with a handle and have been used by Russian body builders since the early 1700’s - very core intensive.

So,why is running the gateway sport? At least for me, I took up five different disciplines because of running so I’m not just one-dimensional when it comes to overall fitness. I also let my drive from improvement in running spill over into my other disciplines. For example, I want to be able to swim a certain distance, so I bought some new toys to work on my form in the water because runners notoriously have poor leg form in the water. With kettlebells, The US Secret Service has a fitness test that requires individuals to perform 200 snatches with a 24kg kettlebell in a 10-min timeframe. I’m trying to build up to that.

Feed the addiction. Set goals. Expand your fitness horizons. The New Year is right around the corner, and time to start thinking about those resolutions that everyone forgets about by February. I get a kick out of how crowded gyms are after the start of the New Year for a couple of weeks, then procede to become virtual ghost towns by late winter. This is the time to start making a plan for your resolutions and let your running be the gateway to other activities in 2009.

Stay safe over the holidays and good luck with your 2009 goals.

-Joe