Winter Running Clothes

Those of you who know me know that I hate the winter.  Even if you don’t know me all you have to do is look at this picture of me in American Grit and you know I speak the truth.  I mean seriously, Clare’s wearing a vest, Noah has his jacket open and I’m wearing sixteen layers of whatever clothing I could find.  It’s a wonder I could raise and lower my arms.

I’ve trained for marathons in the past, four of them actually, but I was living in California at the time.  On the San Diego running team we used to joke that the people might be flaky but the weather is consistent.  It was always sunny and warm and the temperature liked to hang out in the 70’s most of the year.

Now that I live in Austin, my training is coming up on something I didn’t have to deal with on past long runs and that’s below freezing temperatures.  For real.  Look at what it was yesterday:

I’ll admit it – I tried to ride out the weather pattern.  See where I live now one day it’s almost 80 degrees and the next day it can drop to 35 because Austin weather makes no sense.  (I like Austin best around May when it decides it’s summer and stays in the 90’s until around Halloween.)

This week we had a cold snap so I’ve been doing treadmill running instead.  But tomorrow is my long run (8 miles), the weather won’t get warmer until next week, and since the Austin Marathon is February 19 there is a real chance I could be running in the cold on race day, so I have to suck it up and run outside.  Damn it.

One thing I did learn from my time traipsing through the Pacific Northwest wilderness on American Grit was how to dress for the weather because my teammates Clare (Alaskan fisherwoman) and Mark (lumberjack from Buffalo) gave me some tips.

The first was to make friends with a base layer that would wic away moisture from sweat and then make sure layers on top of that included wool and weren’t too tight so that there was room for air to pass through and warm me up.  Here’s what I’m wearing for tomorrow’s run:

They include:

• Sports bra (tight fit so I don’t knock myself out while running)
• Winter running tights (dry wic so the moisture leaves your body and evaporates)
• Long sleeve dry wic shirt
• Wool blend dry wic long sleeve
• Fleece
• Headband that covers my ears (hats sometimes make me too sweaty)
• Gloves
• Dry wic running socks
• Running shoes

Granted, most people don’t need as many layers as me, but I’d rather be too warm and have to shed a layer than too cold and still have to run 8 miles, you know what I mean?

On the upside, it isn’t snowing.  #GodBlessTexas

Lisa 🙂

I’m running a half marathon in honor of Johnny James Follis who was paralyzed from the neck down in a car crash just before Thanksgiving.

Did you find this article useful?  If so, please DONATE NOW. 

The money goes towards his medical expenses.  Any donation is greatly appreciated by his family, and me too!  #JJwillWalk #JohnnyJames

 

 

Lisa Traugott is a Mom’s Choice Award winning writer, fitness blogger, wife and mom of two….and Original Cast Member of AMERICAN GRIT, starring John Cena, on FOX!!!

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