Outdoor winter running

[Wormius]

I thought once winter hit, I would move my daily running from outdoors to an indoor environment, but I think I would rather just invest a bit in some outdoor gear and get back to running outdoors. Now that I haven't been running since it got cold and icy, I have been feeling like crap.

Not sure how many people here are engaged in running, but I have a few questions about shoes and transitioning from a fair weather outdoor runner to cold weather / snow running.

First thing is the clothes - since shorts and t-shirts are cheap, I have enough to last a week before having to do laundry. Pants and long-sleeved shirts are less cheap, and rather than do laundry every day or buy a weeks worth of outdoor running pants and tops what the options? What do people do here? Just let them air out overnight? I figure there might be some parallels between this and the winter cyclists?

Second is winter running shoes vs Yaktrax. I like the thought of the Yaktrax type devices since they can be used on any of my shoes, but most reviews seem to indicate that they eventually start coming apart, things break, not good when you get to bare pavement, etc. Would a pair of running shoes that use the Artic Grip soles be better? They're more expensive than Yaktrax type items, but might be better when running along the trails or sidewalks and getting a mix of bare pavement and snow / ice.

[Northendzone]

Any dri-fit type shirt stinks after the sweat in it dries. Using them a second time is not pleasant.

If you hunt around, you will find some shirts and tights on sale - look at mec in the clearance section, winners, etc.

You may have to,pay for a jacket though.

You wil have to experiment a bit to get the layering right. You will,want to be a little cold when you start your run

[Inglewood Jack]

regarding grips, I've run in Yaktrax and while they do work, they feel so odd that they affect my gait, and I end up with achilles pain afterwards from having to run funny as I go from pavement to snow and back. and they do get pretty chewed up after not too long, especially if there's dry spots along your route.

I'll be trying out the Vibram Arctic Grip tech this winter. right now it looks like it's only licensed to Saucony, which is available in either this polio looking monstrosity:



or these more conventional ones from the Peregrine line:

[bossy22]

A friend of mine here in Calgary is a world class adventure runner. She's trying to get to 200000m in elevation for the year. She's run over 3700km so far for 2016. pretty amazing. She swears by icebug shoes.

BUT, she rarely runs in town. Today she ran up prairie view. She's always in the mountains, running up them.

[Regulator75]

[Slacker]

Spoiler!

Seriously, thanks for creating this thread. I'm looking to training outdoors too.

[Wormius]

The Saucony's were the ones that I was looking at. They do look horrendous, but I got used to the fluorescent green Ride's, so... I guess as long as they're comfortable and I can run with confidence that I won't slip on ice, that's all that matters.

[Wormius]

Originally Posted by bossy22

A friend of mine here in Calgary is a world class adventure runner. She's trying to get to 200000m in elevation for the year. She's run over 3700km so far for 2016. pretty amazing. She swears by icebug shoes.

Where do you find those shoes?

[Coach]

Don't forget these.

[bossy22]

Originally Posted by Wormius

Where do you find those shoes?

Gord's

[TheSutterDynasty]

I just run in my regular shoes and have never had a problem. Or you can buy a winter pair with more grip (tons of options). In pure ice you can try the screw shoe and drill metal sheeting screws into an old pair. As mentioned it messes your gait.

I run in shorts until -20. Honestly you dont need anything fancy, just wear layers. You aren't setting any records running in snow anyway.

[Jbo]

Love going for runs in the winter.
-use my normal outdoor running shoes and never really had a problem;
-usually wear a long sleeve shirt, a hoodie and some kind of waterproof/wind proof jacket. After the first 5-10 minutes or so heat never seems to be an issue;
- wear a scarf or face mask below at minus 10 or worse. Hardest thing on the lungs is taking in a ton of oxygen when it's super cold (this is a personal preference);
- stay on lit paths when you can. Gets dark early and harder to see ice etc

[OMG!WTF!]

Originally Posted by bossy22

A friend of mine here in Calgary is a world class adventure runner. She's trying to get to 200000m in elevation for the year. She's run over 3700km so far for 2016. pretty amazing. She swears by icebug shoes.

BUT, she rarely runs in town. Today she ran up prairie view. She's always in the mountains, running up them.

Is she single? And would she wait for me?

Icebugs are very grippy but the shoes themselves are not great for running...unless they've come up with a better model. MEC has a whole wall of running shoes, lots of winter shoes, and a treadmill to try them on. The La Sportiva's look cool and mean.

[bossy22]

Here is what she told me about the icebugs. I wear Altras because I like the zero drop and the wide toe box. I wanted something with spikes, so I thought I'd ask her opinion, since she runs 100 times more than me, and she's won some big races. Figured she would know what she's talking about.


"I'm going to sound like a paid advertisement, but I love these shoes!

For winter running they are by far the best shoes I've found. I tend to compare them to the Salomon Spikecross since those are what I used before.

The pros: more than twice as many spikes, wider toe box (if you wear the Animas), lighter weight, flexible sole, BUgrip.

BUgrip is a technology they use where the carbide spikes are flexible within the shoe. This means that when you run on mixed terrain like we often have in spring (rock, mud, ice, snow) the shoes still feel very natural. The spikes move around the rock so you don't even feel them; whereas with the fixed spikes on he Spikecross my feet would slide along the rocks. This is also a great feature when you are running on solid ice, which we had LOTS of last year. With the Salomons, if the spikes aren't able to dig into the ice you end up sliding and you will go down really hard. With the Icebugs, if the spikes don't initially dig in, they will bend and you will often regain balance within half a second. The grip is so awesome that I can easily scramble up and down slab all winter long.

Cons: expensive, once they get wet they stay wet, stinky, the upper is very durable so it takes awhile to break it in."

[TheSutterDynasty]

FYI if you go somewhere like running room and they're trying to pick a shoe based on your foot, don't go for it.

Studies show (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25155917) that those picking shoes based on comfort had no more injuries than those who were picked based on arch height. Plus you get the more comfortable shoe..

[Johnny199r]

I run in the -20s in Manitoba in winter. I don't run at -30 and colder.

I wear under armer cold weather running tights, a pair of shorts over top, a toque, Columbia running gloves, a t shirt, long sleeve under armour cold weather quick drying shirt and a sweater over top of that.

I generally just wear regular sneakers. Sometimes I put those spike things on underneath my shoes but not often.

[Nancy]

Originally Posted by TheSutterDynasty

I just run in my regular shoes and have never had a problem. Or you can buy a winter pair with more grip (tons of options). In pure ice you can try the screw shoe and drill metal sheeting screws into an old pair. As mentioned it messes your gait.

I run in shorts until -20. Honestly you dont need anything fancy, just wear layers. You aren't setting any records running in snow anyway.

Shorts in -20? Wow. I don't think I've seen anyone wear shorts below -10, and I'm out there every day. I wear a base layer and sweats at that temperature, two layers on top, a balaclava, ski gloves.

A vote here for the Icebugs. Love those. My routes typically involve an icy hill, though. It's more an insurance policy than a necessity. As an older (50yo) runner, I leave nothing to chance where injuries are concerned.

[TheSutterDynasty]

Originally Posted by Nancy

Shorts in -20? Wow. I don't think I've seen anyone wear shorts below -10, and I'm out there every day. I wear a base layer and sweats at that temperature, two layers on top, a balaclava, ski gloves.

A vote here for the Icebugs. Love those. My routes typically involve an icy hill, though. It's more an insurance policy than a necessity. As an older (50yo) runner, I leave nothing to chance where injuries are concerned.

Pants feel so limiting, but I've never tried tights so maybe they're better. I also never wear anything on my face - but I don't when I ski either.

I get made fun of for sweating so much half the year so winter is my time to shine!

[Wormius]

I have the most comfortable fit with he Saucony's, but I will check out Gord's for the Icebugs.

I don't think I could ever wear sweat pants or any gun too baggy. I absolutely hate the jostling feel of loose clothing. I have one pair of tights I used for cycling, and they are pretty comfortable for running, but I felt really uncomfortably hot. Shorts might almost be okay. It's only ever my upper body that suffers the most from the cold.

[Wormius]

Originally Posted by Nancy

Shorts in -20? Wow. I don't think I've seen anyone wear shorts below -10, and I'm out there every day. I wear a base layer and sweats at that temperature, two layers on top, a balaclava, ski gloves.

A vote here for the Icebugs. Love those. My routes typically involve an icy hill, though. It's more an insurance policy than a necessity. As an older (50yo) runner, I leave nothing to chance where injuries are concerned.

With the Icebugs, do you feel pretty comfortable? I mean, are you able to run freely, or still some level of paranoia about your footing?