But, when I go out running in the snow, I also try and remember, “I am using different muscles and this run will make me stronger”.   Kind of like running in the wind.  The resistance is good for me right!   So says my friend Sarah, who leads our Running Classes on Monday and Wednesday evenings.  She’s right!  As much as we complain about heading outside for the first part of class, we have fun and know it’s good for us and it makes us tougher runners!  Come to think of it, I have similar thoughts when I go out and run in the heat and humidity.  “This really sucks.  Why the heck am I doing this…oh that’s right, it’s making me a stronger runner!”

When I first started running I had no clue what to wear in the cold.  I remember wearing cotton turtlenecks, sweat shirts, sweat pants over a pair of long underwear.  Come to think of it, I may have ran with my winter coat once.  It doesn’t stop there…..socks to keep my hands warm.  For REAL!  In fact, here is a picture of me running my first marathon back in the 80’s.  Notice the pretty blue turtleneck.

I just couldn’t believe I’d ever get warm in such horrific temps.  It took me a long time to trust that.  Most often I would shed a layer or too, stash it somewhere and retrieve it later.  I put on layer after layer.  Granted, I hadn’t heard of Athleta yet?.  You could say my taste in running gear has improved and my husband would say, got more expensive.  Ha.  I try to remind him, it’s cheaper than diamonds!  (But I’d love a pair of diamond earrings…hint, hint).  Take me to one of my favorite coops, restaurant, and Athleta for a date night, and I am a happy girl!

When it’s really cold out I tend to reach for this jacket use see me wearing above, but here is a closer look.  I wear a base layer underneath with a warm half zip shirt like this one from Athleta, my favorite place to shop.  I purchased the above jacket from Zulily.  They both have really great sales but if you see an item on Zulily, don’t hesitate to purchase because things go fast.  I love almost everything from Athleta, and my husband would say, a bit too much?.

Warm Tights

Above is a closer look at the tights I am wearing with those cute socks above.  Both keep me really warm!  I purchased the tights from Athleta a few years ago and they are awesome.  They are fleeced lined and so warm!  Unfortunately, I don’t believe these specific ones are available any more but they do have some other options I know you’ll love!  The socks are from Target.  Champion brand.  Warm and cute too, don’t you think!  Some of my other favorite brands are Balega and SmartWool.  On longer training runs, anything over 10 miles, I wear compression socks.

My husband gave me these gloves for Christmas this year.  My hands are probably the toughest part of my body to keep warm.  Even more so than my face.  That thing you see on my face is my gaiter from Under Armour.   My hands however have had so much frost bite in the past, probably due to improper so they are bit more sensitive.  I tried these on my last cold run, and my hands stayed warm.  WOOT WOOT!  He purchased them from Sierra Trading.  Check out this article and give this a try!

 There you have it!  Now all you need to do is mentally prepare and suck it up and get out there and run, (except when it’s icy…than I head to the gym) after all, it’s beats running on a treadmill, (in my opinion that is).  Besides, it’s much prettier too!