5 miles, 5 degrees

My winter running log is pretty pathetic. For the first time in about 5 years I've had a hard time motivating myself to get to work without a car. We've had quite a number of below zero mornings, with some in the double-digits below zero. Add a brisk wind and my thermometer just reads, "You don't want to know." So I've been catching extra winks and in some ways have enjoyed being a little lazier. But daylight is getting noticeably longer in late February, and I've learned to cope with the cold weather, so now I'm making more of an effort.

Staying warm isn't too hard most days; all you need to do is pile on the layers. I do see people out running with their bulky winter coats on. But feeling like the Michelin Man when you run isn't much fun. Don't let his happy face fool you - he just doesn't know any better. Besides, wearing a bunch of bulky layers only works for short runs. On longer runs, it is hard to hit that happy medium where you're tolerably warm in the first 10 minutes, and tolerably cool for the rest of the run.

So here's the outfit I ran in this morning. It was a 5 mile run in 5 degree (Fahrenheit) sunny weather. I like wearing 2 pair of gloves so I can strip down during the run if I want. One is a thin windproof pair and the other is a thin insulating pair. I also brought 2 hats so I could switch to a thinner one after warming up. I wore medium weight Smartwool ski socks and expedition weight long underwear tops and bottoms. Topped it off with lightweight shell layers, this system works pretty darn well.