How to Keep Yourself Running in the Winter

It’s that time of year again. Yes, THAT time of year. The time when the days are short, the afternoons dark and the temperature sinks well below the “it’s a nice day for a run” mark. As I type this the radio is chammering on about a low of 10 degrees tonight… We may still have another month of Fall remaining, but here in the north country Winter makes an early appearance.

So how do you get out on these dark cold days and keep your running schedule alive and healthy? With some simple steps. How do I know they work?  Because they were created by someone that really doesn’t like the cold and who has a hard time running even when the weather is nice – ME.

Step 1: Make it a surprise. Don’t tell yourself that you’re going for a run. Simply jump right to step two without any conversation of a run in your head.

Step 2: Get dressed. This may sound silly, but I’ve found that the act of getting properly dressed for the cold makes the idea of going out into it much less frightening. Don’t consider going outside until you are fully dressed to go outside. A little brain trickery goes a long way towards getting difficult things done.

Step 3: Listen and learn. Become a sponge for information. I’ve become an audiobook junkie over the past few years. I listen to no less than 3 (educational) books a week. But I only allow myself to listen to them while running. So even though I may not want to go outside or run, I really can’t wait to get back into the book. This is a big incentive to get out there for me.

Step 4: Just walk outside… Fully dressed… With something exciting to listen to.

Step 5: Walk to the street and take a single step… and then another and another and another.

Post some comments below on how you get yourself out the door on days when you’d rather not 🙂

Here’s a video I made about how to dress for cold weather running to give you some tips and ideas.