Alrighty, this weather business is just getting ridiculous. I woke up and checked weather.com to find NYC temps @ 38* w/ a wind chill of 29* and continued rain. It’s October 16th! Are you kidding me? This isn’t Chicago. Therefore, it took a bit of mental gymnastics to select the appropriate running gear this morning. With the fear of cold rain / potential sleet, I went for the Big Dog:
No messing around anymore. I went with the winter windblocker/waterproof jacket, lightweight tech shirt, gloves, cap and shorts. I can’t be preoccupied with body temp when running. On the walk to the park, I was still really cold. Hands jammed in side pockets and walking quickly. Not a great sign. Most everyone I saw wore pants, sweats or tights. Although, there were a few knuckleheads like myself in shorts.
After stretching, lady luck smiled upon me … no rain (still cold) and the Bridle Path showed no wear and tear from the overnight rain. Since tomorrow is an LR (asphalt) and yesterday’s run was on asphalt, I really wanted to break it up with trail running today. Also, this is the first week of 6 days of running per week. The pounding of 3 straight days of asphalt (for 30+ miles) seemed less than a brilliant idea.
Given the conditions, it took a while to warm up. However, once the joints loosened up and I started a good sweat, it was a great “fun” run. I characterize “fun” runs as throwing pace out the window … don’t care, don’t think about it, just run. And run I did. No water break. I didn’t look at my watch or pull out my iPhone to check RunKeeeper. After running various loops, I decided it was time to call it a morning. Total = 8.22 miles. Not hydrating wasn’t necessarily the smartest move to make, but I wasn’t thirsty and felt no signs of dehydration, so I kept going.
To top off the run, it didn’t rain! Although, the walk back home was just as cold as the walk to the park … maybe colder. Core body temp rose during the run, then fell like a stone. You’re probably thinking, “Why not just stretch indoors and start running immediately?” Old habits are really hard to break … I am working on it.