On the road again.

It has officially been a little more than 7 months since I first moved all the way up to the state of Wisconsin. Adam has been here now since the summer of 2012. 

During the first winter that he lived here I could not understand what prevented him from running during the winter...now that I am experiencing month 5 of winter here I have a better perspective on why Adam thought it was crazy for me to suggest he run outdoors. Let me preface the rest of this post by saying that this is not going to be a rant about how cold + horrible the weather is, thought that is a true evaluation it is not the primary focus...today anyways :) Before the winter officially got underway here I was determined that I wouldn't let a "little snow" get in the way of my running. I knew that after our marathon at the end of October I would take some time off, but surely after a few weeks I would just bundle up and head outside. 

Boy was I ever wrong. I had not ever before considered that there were boundaries weather need to stay in for it to be safe to run outdoors. This may sound like common sense, I knew it could be too hot to run outside but too cold just had never crossed my mind. 

I said in a post a few weeks ago that I had given up on looking at the weather reports. I knew it was going to be cold and that was it. Around that same time I also realized I might go completely crazy if I didn't get out the door for a run. 

After spending an afternoon researching all the information I could find about cold weather running, I began looking at weather reports again. The temperature needed to be above -20 for me to head out the door, safely, I was aiming for above -15. Now let's be serious -15 does not count as a warm temperature, it is just a bare bones stand in for warm enough to run. 

After religiously watching weather patterns for a few days, magically the temperature hit -8 one day! I spent a tedious amount of time making sure that I had no exposed skin. Layering with non-cotton running items. Planning a route that allowed me to get mileage with out running too far from our apartment. I was so excited to be able to run outside that all of this went by quickly and before I could think through things any further I was out the door.  2 miles completed and I was very satisfied to have gotten outside.

That was run #1. Every run since than has been challenging in many new and different ways. I love running and one of the things I love about running are the challenges that come with the activity. Learning about pacing, form, fartleks, tempo runs, long runs, fueling, hydrating...all of that has been really great. Learning how to embrace cold weather running when I know it will be freezing outside, - I am truthfully not enjoying that learning process so far. 

The two toughest parts of my new learning experience are {1} Mentally gearing up to run {2} the unpredictability of the weather. 

Mentally gearing up to run is tough right now because I have a long time from when I find out the weather is in the clear for running to when I get out the door. It's kind of a hassle to have to spend at least 10 minutes layering up to run, instead of just throwing on shorts and a t-shirt and heading out the door. That time of physical preparation gives me plenty of time to realize how much I hate running in frigid weather. 

All of the layers. The top left picture is from my first run in negative temperatures

Weather unpredictability is tough because I can plan out a week of running goals and all it takes is one inclement weather problem to derail my goals. Sometimes I do not know if a run will be possible until I actually gear up, get out the door, and try to head out for the run. For example. Last week the temperature was high enough that it was safe to run and bonus the sun was out too - all signs a go for a run. I got out the door only to find that all of the roads were covered in sheets of ice. After almost falling twice and realizing that the ice was endless, I was forced to head back inside. Today is another example. The temperature was high enough + sun was out + roads were clear but the wind was too cutting. After trying to make it down the street, I was forced to turn around since I couldn't breathe in the cold air - even through my scarf. Again, very defeating.

So, while I am in this season of learning to love running in a new way I thought I would share what that has been like so far. One thing I do when running in general is remember good runs when I am in the middle of a hard run. I am thankful for the many miles I have shared with friends + family in races over the last 6 years and {in spite of cold weather} look forward to many more miles to come!

These are pictures from all of the races I have done so far. My first event was Phil's Friends 5K Walk/Run  on September 28, 2008. I ran it with my college soccer team. My most recent race was the Chicago Marathon last October 13, 2013.