Winter Running

I went to a clinic the other night at Salt Lake Running Company about winter running. I thought I'd do a recap of the clinic on here because I learned quite a bit. I hope I can do it justice.

One of the first things they tell you is if you wear underwear while running DO NOT wear cotton. I've never had a problem wearing cotton, but the longer the run, I can definitely see. Cotton absorbs the moisture and doesn't wick it away, therefore it can cause a rash, infection, etc. :( That's no bueno in my book. They highly recommend either wool or synthetic underwear. I don't know about you, but when I think of wool underwear, I think of itchy scratchy heavy duty wool socks, but they had a fashion show at SLRC and the underwear looks REALLY nice.

SLRC has a layering system that they call S-VIP.
S = Support - Elminiate chaffing and aid in moister transfer {non-cotton underwear}.
V = Ventilation - Keep the skin dry. Wear wool or fabric that will wick the moisture away.
I = Insulation - Manage your body temperature (read further down).
P = Protection - Shield the skin from the wind and elements. Usually people wear shorts over tights.

Manage your body temperature: If you get hot, take off your gloves. Your hands cool down the fastest on your body and if you take your gloves off, it will help cool your body down quickly. Also, try & get tops that have zippers, but only have a 1/2 zipper so that when you get hot, you can unzip and then when you get cold again, zip right back up.

I found it interesting that they said that neon yellow & green are best with if you aren't wearing a reflective vest. Your eye will gravitate to that color fastest. But ALWAYS wear a reflective vest if your running in the early morning or evening. If you have a headlamp, wear that as well. They said that if you have freshly fallen snow, black is a good color to wear because it stands out against the white.

Last but not least, they said to run with a HOT water bottle. By the time you get out and running and need a drink, because it's cold, the hot water will have cooled down and you'll have a cold beverage.