Cool Running

Brrrrrrr. We're in the midst of a pretty brutal cold snap in the midwest. Of course, that doesn't stop me from running outside. I really really really dislike running on treadmills so much that I'll subject myself to all kinds of weather in order to keep running outside.

This morning, it was maybe 0 degrees F. I say maybe, as that was what the temperature was being reported a couple hours later after the sun came up. So figure more likely a couple degrees below 0. Then there was about a 5-10 mph wind. That all adds up to really freakin' cold.

The plan for this morning was 20 min zone1 warmup, 6 miles for time, 10-15 min cooldown ( cooldown? ). I bundled up with two pairs of running tights, a wicking shirt, a heavy weight bike jersey ( for the pockets and to add a bit more on the core ), 1 lightweight fleece, and my running jacket. Add gloves, hat, and my reflective vest, and I'm all set for a nice 5am run in subzero temps. Throw two fuelbelt water bottles (~7oz each) into the pockets, add a turtle fur in another pocket in case I decide I need it ( I didn't ) and walked out the door.

I set out, and after about 10 minutes, was starting to warm up nicely. Hit the 20 minute mark and took off. Did I mention this was in the pre-dawn dark? Not exactly light outside. Oh, and to make things more fun, the running path doesn't get plowed/shoveled, so it was kinda chunky in a few spots.

I managed to pull off the six miles in just over 46 minutes, or about 7:40 per mile. I'd hoped to run it faster, but considering the conditions, I've now decided that I'm pretty happy with that time. Give me a couple more months of running, and I should be hitting a even stronger pace. Woohoo!

Oh, and here's a picture of what I looked like a couple minutes after I got back. It melted a bit, but you get the general idea:
















Yes, those *are* icicles hanging off my chin.