Frederick Cook

First, for getting fourth overall in 2009 in the Virginia Triathlon Series, Setup Events sent along some sweet schwag: a jacket (with my name monogrammed on the back of the collar), a cap, and some arm warmers, all with VTS logos. Thanks, VTS, you guys do great events!

Next, with Rungame, I have done 11 runs in the first 12 days of 2010, putting me one run behind. (Last Saturday, I was at Wisp in western Maryland, and it snowed for two days straight before we got there, so I skied for 8 hours that day and didn’t get a run in.) One day this week will have to be a double. So far though, I have run for 8 hours 35 minutes in the last 12 days. I haven’t kept track of distance, but if I had to guess, somewhere between 55 and 60 miles total. Not huge, but I’m quite happy with that for this time of the year and these conditions.

Now, a few Cold Weather Running Tips I have picked up over the last few days:

1. Good socks are key. You can always put more layers on your top, or a pair of sweatpants on over your running tights, but because most running shoes are designed to be “ventilated,” socks are incredibly important. Bonus tip: if it is above freezing and raining or wet out, put sandwich bags over your socks before you put your shoes on. Once your toes get wet, your run goes downhill quick. Bonus tip two: if you don’t have good gloves, just pull your sleeves over your hands. All the pros do it.

2. Hold yourself accountable by telling others. I am a huge believer in publicly stating goals. I told all my readers that I was going to do these runs, so if I don’t, I’m accountable to you. If I hadn’t done that, it would have been very difficult to get out the door. Tell someone whose opinion you value that you are going to run X number of times this week, and ask them to check back with you.

3. Short and consistent trumps less longer runs. The boost to your metabolism that you will get from doing something on a regular basis outweighs the fitness you may gain from pushing yourself to run longer. Also, with shorter runs, you obviously won’t have as much time to get cold.

4. Take it easy. Remember that there is a huge range of heart rates between resting (sitting at a desk) and huffing and puffing. Especially this time of the year, the fitness to be gained by going hard is likely not worth the risk of injury. You have more to gain by staying in your lower-intensity fat burning zone. Bring your body to a pace where you are just about to start breathing hard, then back off a tiny bit. Bonus tip: running on busy streets or trails creates pressure to push harder because of the perception that people are watching and judging you. Find less crowded areas. (But stay safe.)

5. Enjoy yourself. Leave the iPod at home, and take in the crisp, cold, fresh air. There are too few times in the modern American lifestyle that a person will allow them self to be alone in their own head. Embrace it. I’ll write a whole post about this sometime soon.

Now get out there.