Did a pretty good 25k long run on the Pottery Rd Mountain Biking Trail + Don Valley Trail system b/f the Super Bowl and felt pretty good even though I had some tough spots in between (cold related I guess). I did manage to finish strong and drank regularly trying to mimic some of the "normal" running I should be doing this year. Snow is abundant and has made it hard enough lately that it seems that I'm going a lot longer. I've done several more runs the in the mid 20s during Feb and I've noticed that regular drinking is very difficult. I'm still getting in a gel every ~45min but drinking is usually every ~20-30min...I'm hopeful this does not carry into summer b/c I'm toast if it does. Is this influencing how tired I'm felling or is it just that much harder? Dunno, this is my first winter running season so we will see soon enough.
Can't seem to find a comfortable dress code for cold weather running. It seems that only a few degrees changes what you need to wear (or least for me it does), and when wind comes into play you can forget about everything. I'm normally a person that sweats a lot so even in the cold I sweat, and after a while the cold just seems to get to me no matter what. The problem zone is the torso; I'm fine with the legs, head and hands. I've bought all kinds of clothing tight fitting and loose fitting jackets, sweaters, layers, you name it and nothing seems to work. The head is tricky though b/c for me it regulates all of my body, if I start to sweat upstairs then everything does. On another note I just bought a tubular headband that seems to be working for the neck/head, I recommend this product to everyone and it can also be used in the summer as a headband. Lets not even start with shoe traction...icy trails are prevalent now and the Yak Track is good but not for 2-3hrs b/c it bothers my feet and the last time I wore them they gave me blisters. ARGHHH. Maybe I'll try screws.
2hrs I'm perfectly ok with and up to 3hrs max is the most I can do before things get really uncomfortable. Long runs nowadays are harder b/c of the snow so maybe 2-hrs is more than enough until Aprilish. But when I hear people doing the 100M/week in the winter, I have no clue how they can manage the cold. I must be doing something wrong or better yet they are.
I've read a good way to counter the sweating is changing clothes often, but that sometimes doesn't work if you are doing an out & back route, so I guess I just need to do laps from now on when it comes to my long runs if I want to do +3hrs. Looking forward to warmer weather...
I've read a good way to counter the sweating is changing clothes often, but that sometimes doesn't work if you are doing an out & back route, so I guess I just need to do laps from now on when it comes to my long runs if I want to do +3hrs. Looking forward to warmer wheather...
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