Winter Running Tips

I've received a lot of questions about winter running. Most of you know that I live in Minnesota; land of cold winters! Most of you also know that I normally struggle with winter. I complain about being cold, I complain about the decreased daylight, I complain about the depression that sets in and the 5-10 pound weight gain that normally comes with winter for me.

Over the past few years I have working very hard at changing my view of winter. Instead of huddling indoors and complaining I began to snowshoe run, then snowboard and now ski. I didn't really enjoy these activities at first, but with repetition and a whole mind-shift process, mentally and physically, I can say that I no longer hate winter. First time ever. Baby steps finally brought me to that goal.

Not once this winter have I complained of the cold weather, the snow, the winter, shortness of daylight; none of that. I haven't needed to. I have changed my thought process. Thank god.

When I first began running, 13 years ago, I only ran on my treadmill. My children were small and I stayed at home. My treadmill was set up in front of the TV in the living room at the time and that is where I did all of my running.

Eventually I began to run outdoors-when the temperature permitted it. I didn't run outdoors in the winter at all.

I hated winter. I hated the snow, the cold, the 'Minnesota Hunch', everything. And I thought about it and dreaded it and lived the hate every single day. Man, how sad and exhausting.

As time passed and I learned to love to run (another goal I wanted to work toward and completed with baby steps-it doesn't just happen on it's own), I decided I wanted to run during the winter and I wanted to run every day. Hmmm..what would get me out the door every day,even in the winter? You got it, Topaz!

I researched dog breeds and learned that the Border Collie must be exercised every day, an hour minimum, in order to live in a peaceful fashion. I learned that they were the smartest of dog breeds, loyal to their master, loved agility, running and were a great family dog. Sold.

I decided to try snowshoe running that winter so that I could eventually take a dog running winter trail with me. Over the years, a passion was created.

We purchased Topaz at 6 months old and I couldn't be happier with him. I purchased him in April and when the snow began to fly 8 months later I was apprehensive. I had to get this dog out each and every day. It was the promise I had made to myself.

I did it. Rain, snow, sleet or hail, hot sun, it didn't matter. Topaz needed his hour exercise. During those first few winters it rather sucked. I dreaded it quite a bit as the day went on and I would soon be home from work. I would cringe as I drove home, watching the wind bend the trees, the snow flying, the bitter cold temps. I'd walk in the door and the boys would yell "Topaz is excited for you to run!" Ugh. I'd bundle up, head to the trail head, snowshoe run for an hour and realize it wasn't so bad as I headed back home.

Fast forward a few years. Topaz will be 9 next week. I finally love, yes, love, to snowshoe run in the winter.

I've learned a few things that work for me and I will share them with you. Most importantly:

1) You will NEVER feel worse after your winter run. NEVER. You will always feel better! You may be cold and wet on your drive home (if you drive to your running location), but after a change of clothing you will feel awesome. Endorphins are a great thing. Not only that, but mentally and physically, you did something that you were going to dread, and it was OK, and you stuck with your plan. That is huge, emotionally. Good going, you!

2) Clothing: Learn to dress for the weather. This is so important. You don't have to be cold out there. Today the air temperature was 3F, windchill was -17F. I wasn't cold or wet. I felt the resistance of the wind, I heard the wind but I didn't feel the wind penetrate my clothing. I no longer become cold while running. You don't have to either. I actually became a bit warm snowshoe running. I unzipped my armpits on my outer jacket and zipped down my two tops.

3) Surfaces: Ice or snow require snowshoes if deep snow, trail shoes if ice. You can't be slipping and sliding, you may injure yourself. You need the correct shoe tread for the surface condition. Some people use screws or yak tracks. I never have.

When I first began to run outdoors I wrote the temperature and my clothing as well as how I felt every day into my MDRA log book. I still use MDRA log books, I think they are awesome, but I no longer need to monitor my clothing. I know what I need to wear.

Here is what I find works for me:

60F+ Singlet and shorts. I love the compression tanks for summer running but hate compression for winter running. For winter running compression makes me feel like a running sausage.

50-59F Short sleeve and shorts. Technical fabric all of the way. Don't wear cotton!

40-49F Longer sleeve, lightweight technical shirt, shorts.

30-39F Long sleeve, mid weight technical shirt, light tights or wind pants, I normally have to add light gloves at 30F with an ear band.

20-29F Long sleeve mid weight technical shirt, winter running jacket, heavier tights or pants, gloves, fleece hat, neck gator as the temp is closer to 20, gortex trail shoes as I am usually snowshoe running at this temp, snow shoe gator.

10-19F Long sleeve thick technical shirt, lightweight technical shirt, winter running jacket, heavier tights, winter 'over' pants (when closer to 10), gloves, wind mitten, fleece hat, neck gaiter, gortex trail shoes and shoe gaiters for snow shoe

0-9F Same as above but I add wool socks instead of microfiber which I wear otherwise and may have to add a full face mask dependent on wind.

Minus 15 to 1F Same as above and I add a vest for upper body warmth, vaseline on exposed face portions.

Minus 20 and below I'll add hand warmers to my gloves and socks and my snowboard goggles.

One of the Northwoods Snowshoe Marathons was held in the below 0 range and I was not at all cold. I stayed warm and dry because of these layering techniques. The only problem I had was that my goggles froze to the top of my fleece hat when I removed them from my face. They were iced to my hat and I had a hard time pulling them back to my face when necessary! Then I knew it was a cold day, buy hey, I won that Northwoods Snowshoe Marathon and kept my first place title alive another year.

I drive each day to the trailhead, about 25 minutes each way. On the way home my sweat gets cold, making me cold. I could change before I head home but I just don't take the time. I start the car, crank the heater, remove my neck gaiter, fleece hat, gloves and mittens. Sometimes I will call home and ask Troy to turn on the gas fireplace for me. As soon as I get home I change into warm fleece. I love Horny Toad Cashmoore fleece pants and tops. I wear them all of the time as well as Patagonia RI fleece. Yummy soft! A hot cup of tea and I'm all warmed up and comfortable.

My favorite running gear that I keep grabbing for the past few years is my Patagonia winter pants and jacket. Zipper pockets, polyester soft shell so there is no swoosh swoosh swoosh while running, soft interior fabric on collar, arm pit zippers, so warm and comfortable but real light. I wear this all of the time. As I wrote above, as it gets colder I add layers. 1/4 zipper shirts are the best! When I feel to warm I pull the zipper down, letting the cool air inside.

When the temps are cold enough for two layer of pants I like Hind Winter Ready tights. Heavy duty poly fabric with a bit of stretch. Perfect. When I first began to run in the winter I needed three bottom layers, but with these items two is fine.

I wear Inov-8 Gortex shoes from November to March, normally. The tread is good enough for trail or road without adding screws or yak-trax. I've never purchased the yak trax or any of those spikes you add to your shoe. I use the Inov-8s in my snowshoes as well.

One problem I do have is freezing water bottles. Because of this I normally run loop routes in the winter so that my car can house bottles of water out of the freezing temperatures. When very cold I wrap the bottles in warm towels from the dryer and place in a cooler into my car. This usually keeps them from freezing. It just isn't worth it to me, to carry a 24 oz water bottle at below 0 temps that is going to be an ice cube before I even need a drink.

You are all set for winter running! Really, give it a try, it doesn't have to be that horrible. If you really do hate winter, you can change that. Wouldn't it be awesome not to dread winter? It is, really! I feel so great by not hating winter. Really.

Friends are Gifts

Yesterday The Pederson Benefit Run took place at Afton State Park. 'This Benefit Run was created to support our friends Colleen & Larry Pederson, who sustained a tremendous amount of damage to their home during the recent flood in Zumbro Falls, Minnesota. After the flood, many people who were able to do so, volunteered to help Colleen & Larry with cleaning up the mess & the damage left behind after the water receded. The work seemed endless, with many hours spent cleaning, tearing down walls, ceilings, pulling out the floor and the fireplace, before rebuilding could begin. Still many, especially those who were not able to be there in person, asked what more can we do? As trail runners we thought let’s do what we do best…Run! And the idea for the benefit run was born.

Over the years Larry and Colleen have become familiar faces in the Trail Running Community, dedicating countless hours of their time so that runners may enjoy the sport they love so much. Each year some of the fun that we get to experience on the trails because of them are The Fall Superior Races, Zumbro 100 & In Yan Teopa. Larry also founded the Upper Midwest Trail Runners Association'

The schedule of events slated were as follows: 1)Run either a 7 AM or 9 AM start, depending on mileage 2) Silent auction 3) Pot luck

What a great day!

I left home by 530, then stopping for gas, making my commute long enough to miss the 7 AM start. My plan was to run 6 hours, more of a time on feet than a total mileage run.

As I pulled into the lot I saw a group of 7:00 ers on their way out. A few stragglers made their way to the course start as I lubed up and added layers. My car said 6F so I put on a heavier shirt, knowing I'd be back in the lot after the first 25K I could change again if necessary.

I had consumed berries and cream at home, sucked back a VESPA enroute, grabbed Hammergel Espresso for my pockets, filled my handheld bottle with water and removed myself from the car.

Half way to Afton I wondered about the trail conditions. Were they snow covered, ice covered, should I have screws or snowshoes? It was too late. My Gortex Inov-8 winter shoes were probably fine.

As I began my run I was relieved that the trail only had about an inch of snow. Enough to make the run slower than usual but not a big deal. The tread on my shoes was enough to keep me upright. In the first mile I ran past Afton Ski Alps base hill and they were making snow. The snow was floating across the trail and here I walked as the snow was a good 4" deep. I was thankful I wasn't going to be running through that all day sans snowshoe!

I followed the trail and noticed a fat tire track from a bike and some yak track tracks amongst a few other tracks of runners somewhere in front of me. I turned to take a right up a steep hill and was surprised to see that the trail was closed due to erosion. Hmm..I trotted back onto the main trail and ran along. Pretty soon I noticed arrows pointing me to take the trail to the right. WOW, trail markings to mark the 50K course. How awesome was this! I noticed that the trail marker had a big railroad tie spike holding it upright. It had to be tough to drive that nail into the frozen ground-and the ground was rocky here. I said a thank you to the one who marked the trail.

Since I was running solo I was really paying close attention to the trail and made a point to look for these nifty arrows on the ground and each trail intersection. What a blessing.

About 4 miles into my run I came running down the hill and there was a big cooler of water at the first 50K aid station when the summer Afton Trail Race is held here. What a treat. My bottle was frozen up and the water was more ice chunk than water. I smacked my bottle on the table and filled it up with the warm water, gulping it down before it froze. Wonderful. Filled my bottle back up, said thank you to the water deliver-er and headed off.

I was so happy to be out running, to be enjoying this wonderful day. It was sunny, not much of a breeze, the day would warm to mid 20's. Perfect.

I kept marveling at the fact that here I was, running solo, and enjoying the winter run. I was comfortable in 2 pr of gloves, hat, neck gaiter, my Patagonia heavy pants and jacket. I like my pants and jacket so much for winter running. I'm always comfortable. I've had this set for 4 years and almost think I should buy another because as soon as I get a hole or tear and need another..Patagonia will have discontinued the items. I loved my Houdini jacket and lost it at a race..now I can't find another! The jacket they market as a replacement is not as light.

As I was saying, I was totally enjoying this run. I felt awesome, the sun was shining on my face, I felt as though I was in meditation.

As I came up near mile 9 I saw the bike I had been following leaning upon the bridge but couldn't tell who was near it. A water station was set up here so I cracked my bottle on the bench, emptied out the ice and refilled with water, sucked it back and refilled again. I looked up and there was Don Clark.

I should have figured it was him. He is Chief Course Marker and I did see his name as one of the entrants for Arrowhead 100 in the bike category. Here he was, out on the course, riding and marking. I thanked him and gave him a huge hug and stood there, yakking at him for a long time. Finally I pulled myself away from our conversation and continued my run, smiling all the way. So good to see and talk with Don. Pretty soon I hear something coming down the path. Don yells 'hey, you are running faster than I can ride this thing!' I ran with him biking along the trail for some time. What a treat.

A few miles prior to the finish of my first 25K I spotted a pair of runners ahead of me. I trotted on and came upon Tom and Carl. It was good to say hello. Tom and I began to run toward the Visitor Center. We had plenty to talk about as we rounded back into the parking lot. Tom was finished with his run, headed back to the Visitor Center and I headed to my car for a refill of VESPA, grabbed a few gels changed into a lighter shirt to wear under my jacket.

During my second 25K loop I didn't see a soul. I don't know if everybody ran 25K or less or if I was just missing everyone. It was warming up, I noticed my water was no longer freezing and my gels were no longer the consistency of frozen frosting! About 4 hours in I began to feel like I was urinating too often. I was paying close attention to how much I was drinking and then realized I hadn't taken any S-CAPS. I dug into my handheld pocket looking for some but they were not there. I couldn't help but think of my first 50K, also at Afton, where I bonked and blacked out, pretty much having Don carry me off the trail. That was 7 years ago!

I began to feel a bit loopy but nothing to fear. I ate two gels to see if that would put my mind at ease. It did. I only had two hours left to run and felt in good shape. Because I didn't stop to chat with anyone during this lap I ended up running it faster than the first.

Pretty soon I was back to the lot, then decided to walk through the picnic area for a cool down. I've noticed that walking before and after running seems to help recovery for me more than stretching does.

What a great run. I stopped at my car, collected a bag of warm clothes and headed to the Visitor Center. It was just full of people wanting to support and give to Larry and Colleen. Amazing. There was hot coffee, pop, tables of food. Tables of silent auction items and just a feeling of compassion in the air.

I quickly changed into dry clothes and began to visit. What a great group of people. Larry and Colleen didn't feel deserving of this treatment and that is because they are so humble and so giving of themselves. They couldn't get over the fact that we were there for them and we were all so happy to be able to help them out.

After a few hours of visiting I had to say my goodbyes to get on the road for home and evening plans.

Thanks to all who turned out yesterday. Together we can do anything!

Embracing Winter

After an unusually warm fall MN has finally taken the leap into winter. Don't get me wrong, I loved our fall. Temperatures in the 60's and 70's couldn't be beat. However, I am not dreading winter as I have in the past.

After years of dreading winter and complaining about the cold temperatures every day I began to change my perception of winter a few years ago. It's working!

I began to run outside during the frigid months and after I learned about wicking fabrics and laying to keep warm, I eventually enjoyed it. I began to snowshoe run which I now can't imagine not doing every day. Because I run mainly trail and have a dog who loves to run trail off leash, we snowshoe run every day during the winter months. It is awesome fun.

A few years ago I began to snowboard with the boys. I'm not very good, I spend most of the time out there on my butt, but it is fun to spend the day on the hill with the boys.

Last year I began downhill skiing. I do enjoy this more than snowboarding and I can ski along the boys as they snowboard. I'm not on my butt quite as often!

If you dread winter and just want to curl up on the couch in your PJ's you really ought to try going for a walk in the snow. You won't feel worse upon your return to the couch!

After work yesterday Topaz and I headed for the park. It was a beautiful sunny afternoon. The wind was whipping but I hardly felt it deep in the woods. As we ran the miles accrued and before I knew it darkness was falling. There was an incredible almost full moon rise, the sky was going to bright for a while longer.

Instead of stopping at the car and heading home I filled a bottle and we headed out for a few more hours. Oh, it was magnificent! The moon rose above the trees and set eerie shadows upon the trail. The landscape changed before my eyes. I had my headlamp but never switched it on. The moon was the only light we needed.

As I was bombing down a hill, laughing and smiling, I wiped out! I felt my foot catch upon a root and down I went! I let out a yelp and Topaz turned quickly, running to me so that he could cover my face with kisses. I'm fine, fine, Topaz. I stayed on my back for a moment, resting. Just a little fall! It was hilarious. I picked myself up and we trotted on, enjoying the magnificent moon under which we were running.

A few miles later I heard a ruckus to my left. I stopped and noticed that Topaz had his ears up and was listening as well. A few moments later 6 deer crossed our path, not more than 20 feet in front of me! So awesome. The moon cast enough light, even deep down in the woods, so that I could count out the deer and watch their white tails flashing through the trees and up the hill. I wished I had my camera with me!

We ran for another two hours until we came upon my car. Exhilarated, I called the run done.

I'm going to try winter camping this season..something new for me!

Get our there, enjoy the season!