Sunday Wrap Up: How to Wrap Up When it's REALLY Cold

If you're a runner living anywhere north of, say, the Washington, DC area, chances are you know how to dress for runs in 30 and 40 degree weather.  But unless you're living in Maine, it can be hard to figure out what to wear when it's really cold.  Sub-20 degrees cold.  Wind chill factor in the single digits cold.  Sure, you could say "that's easy; I wear shorts and a tank top and get on the treadmill in the climate controlled gym, fool!"  And sometimes I do say that.  But sometimes I just want to breath actual air.  Even if that air immediately freezes all my nose hairs.


Lucky for you people, I was treated to just those conditions when I woke up this morning.  15 degrees.  Windchill factor at a nice round zero.  While I was glad I knocked out my long run for the week yesterday, I still had 5 miles on the schedule today, and a hankering to be in the sunshine for awhile, before I locked myself in a dark bar for 4 hours to watch football later today.  So, I knocked back a few cups of coffee and bundled up.

(I'm standing in front of the refrigerator for added coldness).


Now, that looks totally ridiculous.  I know this.  And I am the proud owner of lots of top of the line wicking fabrics and technical tees and all sorts of expensive and fashionable stuff designed for winter running and not looking like a homeless person.  I wear that stuff when it's 30 degrees, and I look good doing it.  But when it's really cold, I end up combining the fancy stuff with the good old fashioned gear that got me through ski school twenty years ago.  I look horrifying, but everyone else outside is so cold they have their heads down and don't even notice.  


So what is all that crap?

Working my way up from the bottom:


Ski socks: I wear ski socks while running when it's bitterly cold.  Not only is the fabric around the foot thicker, but the knee-length socks keep more of my lower legs warm as well.  I don't care what Nike says; wool was the original technical fabric.  A word to the wise, though: because ski socks are so thick, you've gotta tie your sneaks loosely if you want to be able to retain circulation to your lower extremities.


Long underwear: I owe a great many pairs of running tights.  The best kinds for regular winter running are those that are fleecey on the inside and stretchy Lycra on the outside.  Under Armor makes good ones.  But when it's bitterly cold, I find that the shiny Lycra on the outside stays very cold on the surface, and that surface is close to your skin.  While these kinds of tights keep your muscles warm, they leave your skin frigid.  Plain old cotton long underwear in a heavy weave keeps your body heat in and doesn't get cold on the surface.  Plus, when it's this cold out, you're not sweating buckets, so you don't have to worry about getting soaked (my thighs generally don't sweat buckets anyway, but if that's a concern for you... ew).


Shorts: Normally, I find it patently ridiculous that anyone would wear shorts over tights. But. Cotton long underwear does let in a bit of a breeze in the areas where it isn't as tight to your body, and one of those areas is the Junk.  To prevent genital wind burn, and to keep the big muscle groups of my legs (quads and ass) extra protected from the cold, I throw on a pair of shorts over the long underroos.


Under Armor Cold Gear: You can't see it in the picture above, but I'm wearing a long sleeved Cold Gear top.  It's amazing how warm this top keeps your muscles.  While wrestling into a compression shirt is kind of annoying, it's worth the effort.  However, because this top has that same Lycra surface on the outside that makes your skin cold, I top it with...


Fleece Jacket: I have no idea who makes this jacket or to whom it belongs.  I just found it in a closet at my parents house.  It's just a plain old zip front fleece.  Gets the job done.


Gaiter: The Under Armor top has a mock turtleneck, which doesn't offer much coverage, and the fleece jacket has a cold metal zipper.  A gaiter keeps the lower half of your face warm and prevents wind burn, which is ugly.


Gloves AND mittens: This renders your hands completely useless, but who needs hands when you're running?


Wool hat: I wear a baseball hat for everyday runs because my hair is too slippery to be restrained otherwise (note to self: be less greasey). A wool hat with ear covering is a must.


Sunnies: The sun is strong even when it's freezing out.  Protect your peepers, kids!


Of course, putting on that many layers means you have to start running as soon as you're dressed, otherwise you risk the ski school meltdown of being too hot and uncomfortable indoors.  It's a fine, fine line.


Number of Miles Run This Week: 40. Do as I say, not as I do.  I only ran 16 miles last week.  Using the 10% rule, I should have increased my mileage to just about 18 this week.  That'd get me ready for Boston in, oh, 2014.


Number of Beers Consumed This Week:  TBD.  I'm at about 8 right now, but I'm headed back to the City today to watch the Giants game.  If it's anything like last weekend, I will be increasing this figure by drastically more than 10% as well.


Types of Beers Consumed This Week:  Lake Effects APA, Sam Adams, Stella.


Neal and I have 12 beers riding on this game, and since the Giants are most assuredly going to win, I'd welcome suggestions as to what beers I should demand from him.  Take to the comments!