Training Outside: It’s Only Cold ‘Til You Warm Up

I’m supposed to go for a bike ride on Wednesday nights but my bike isn’t working so great.  I put it together myself and the gears make a weird clicking sound.  Plus I hate the seat.  Everyone says I’ll get used to it but my butt disagrees.  I didn’t do much of anything on Wednesday which is unfortunate.

On Thursday I went for a run outside after work and let me tell you…it was COLD!  I put on my windbreaker, sweatshirt, sweatpants, thermal gloves, headband around my ears and heavy socks and was still chilly when I left the apartment.  Living a block from the ocean means it’s even colder here than it is most other places.  I’ve been dreading training outside in the cold but I had to bite the bullet eventually and get ‘er done!  Why not just run on a treadmill?  Because triathlons aren’t run on a treadmill.  They’re outside and I see a dramatic difference in my running from treadmill to street.  It’s way more difficult outside and those are the conditions I need to run in.

I typically run about 30 minutes through the neighborhood.  I go through the streets and then down to the boardwalk, along the boardwalk for a bit and then around and home.  About 2-3 miles depending on my pace that day.  Here’s the breakdown for Thursday evening:

2.22 Miles

29:58 Minutes

Calories burned: 225

Calories from fat: 23%

The first 10 minutes were pretty rough.  I was freezing and just wanted to go home and have hot chocolate.  I kept going and then all of a sudden I realized not only am I no longer cold but I was sweating.  I wasn’t uncomfortable at all.  The blood was flowing to the extremities keeping them nice and toasty.  I did realize I need to get better undergarments so that my clothing doesn’t get wet.  That’s just asking to get sick.  My pal Rich made some suggestions and said although it’s expensive it’ll be worth the cost of a good liner.  So I’m now looking into that.

Sometimes the fear of doing something builds up so much that when it’s actually done the brain thinks…”that wasn’t so bad at all.”  I’ve always been the type of person to jump in with both feet and worry about the details later.  Now training outside in the cold isn’t as scary as it was a week ago.  I’ve done it and I know what to expect.  Now I just have to keep doing it.