My Gear...

When I first started running 5 years ago, all my non-running friends all commented, "The bad thing about running in Chicago is you can only do it 8 months out of the year.  You can't run in Chicago in the Winter."

I believed those statements and shut down a little after November the first couple of winters.  I'd hit the treadmill once or twice a week, but my running really was put on the shelf when the snow and cold arrived.

Now, the cold and snow arrive for us at sporadic times.  Since my wife, Jeannie and I work on cruise ships, the longest amount of time we've spent in the snow and cold has usually just been 2 or 3 months. We're usually home in Chicago for the months of January and February and then head out to a ship in warm weather until we return again in June or July.

After my wife and I ran our first half marathon (The Chicago Half Marathon) in 2011, I decided I didn't want to stop running during the cold weather.  We have a small gym in our apartment building, but it's too cramped for me and I think the treadmills are too old.

So, I invested in some cold weather gear.

Now, I get a pretty big thrill hitting the lakefront path on a cold, snowy day.  We live in Wrigleyville, near the lake.  This is what the path looks like on any given February day.

Here's my gear:  Craft Running Tights

I don't know if they're called tights, but that's what I call them.  These are insulated and super-comfortable.  I like the spider-man design behind the knee.

I always wear shorts over my tights because it feels too obscene to run in just my tights.

Don't get me wrong, I don't feel it's obscene when I see anybody else running in just their tights.  It seems perfectly normal to see guys and girls chugging along in form fitting lycra.  I just feel naked with just my tights on.

Here are my gloves, hat and yurbud headphones.

Those yurbud's are key.  My headphones used to slip out of my ears all the time and it drove me crazy. Jeannie bought the yurbud's and it changed my life.

My newest piece of gear is my new jacket.  I have a soft-shell running jacket, but it's a little constrictive.   I bought this Sugoi Jacket at Fleet Feet when we returned home from our contract in Mexico and this light, thin thermal has exceeded everything I hoped for.

I love it.  It's light, thin and keeps me toasty warm.  So warm that I only need to wear a light, long-sleeved, dry-fit shirt beneath it.

I have a couple of base-layer shirts that are super thermal and warm, but I don't need them with this jacket.  I save the SmartWool base layer shirts for those -10 below zero temperature days.

The most important thing I learned about running in the cold is that you need to be comfortable and you need to keep it light.  You want everything light and close to the skin, but you don't want to be bundled up in big, cumbersome clothes.  Also, keep as much skin as possible covered.  You can take off your gloves or hat as you run, if you get too warm.  But, you're going to want to have it on when you start.

My friends were wrong.  You can run in Chicago in the winter.  Some times, it's even more fun than running in the summer!