Freezing temperatures and snow covered ground doesn’t mean that you have to give up your outdoor exercise workouts. You can still go for daily walks or runs in the winter, you just need to know a few tips to stay warm and dry during those winter exercise workouts.
Cover your head and your hands before you begin your outdoor workout. Almost 1/4 of your body’s heat will escape through an uncovered head. Wear an easily removable head cover like a toboggan to keep your body heat regulated, if you become too hot during your winter exercise workout, remove the toboggan and you will instantly begin to cool down. Uncovered hands will become cold, painful and the skin will dry out quickly when exposed to cold temperatures. Exposure to temperatures below freezing can even do permanent skin and/or digit damage via frostbite, so keep those hands covered with mittens. Mittens will keep your hands warmer in the winter than gloves will, since mittens allow for finger to finger contact.
Cover your mid-section with an extra layer of clothing for overall body warmth. Wear synthetic fabrics that wicks moisture away from the body. You will sweat even during a winter exercise workout, staying dry is essential and moisture wicking fabric is the way to go.
Choose water resistant shoes for your outdoor winter exercise workouts. Shoes with an outer layer of water resistant material and inner layer of supportive cushioning will protect your feet from the winter’s ground moisture and hard frozen surfaces. Wear synthetic socks that will wick the moisture away from your feet also.
Wear a light weight water resistant wind-breaker jacket as the top layer of clothing when exercising outdoors this winter. A light weight jacket with vents in the back and under the arms won’t keep heat and sweat trapped and the mere ounces that the jacket weighs won’t hold you back during an exercise workout. Winter weather changes quickly, it might look clear when you leave home for a run, but before you can return, snow or freezing rain can begin to fall and a water resistant wind breaker will keep you dry.
Stay safe while walking or running by making sure you have reflective strips on your outerwear. In the early morning and early evening winter darkness, walkers and runners are not easily visible to traffic, reflective strips will help keep you safe by making you more visible to oncoming traffic.
Cold winter weather doesn’t have keep you confined to indoor exercise workouts only, just wear the right clothing to keep you warm and dry so you can enjoy the scenery with outdoor winter exercise workouts.
