Baby, it's cold outside.

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Swirls
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Re: Baby, it's cold outside.

Post by Swirls »

Freed Roger wrote:
Swirls wrote:The wife and I did a Resolution Run 5K yesterday morning. Nothing like celebrating the new year by doing a 5K when it was -13 outside (wind chill of -31). Friends on FB got a kick out of the pictures of my frozen beard and frozen eyelashes (which we both had). We both wore masks to cover most of our face, except I had to keep taking mine off as it wasn't fitting right and didn't help much overall.
I run in the cold, but damn, not that cold. 5 degrees yesterday on run, but sun was out. only intermittent wind, so lucked out there - face wasn't covered.

I've read mixed things about a body's physical adaptations to cold. Cold water swimmers can get highly efficient at generating heat ( brown fat- ugh no thanks I'm not so sure how it works in just cold air. Seems for the most part- you can't physically adapt to cold like you do in the heat (increased sweat rate, more blood plasma after doing it for a while).

Really, the main adaption - figuring out what to wear based on conditions. STL typically doesn't have the sustained cold for me to tell if I'm getting physically/mentally used to it or not. though yesterday I noticed, I was able to relax in the 5 degree cold (body not screaming at me to quit as much) than the day before - that has to help efficiency. So much of it depends on how worn down I am/or not when trying to stay or get warm. Also, I've learned my lesson to have the game plan (a change of clothes, something to eat, drink etc etc) for after the winter outdoor exercise. I may be able to stay comfortable in light gear on a run, but once I stop, I only have minutes before I get the shakes.

Sitting outside at cold sporting events can be the worst. Went to a WI Badger game without enough warmth for my feet. I had layers of socks but just wore shoes rather than boots. My friend had a few extra hand warmer things that I threw in my shoes that save my dumb arse.
This is what I wore - the wife had a similar setup:

Feet:
1x compression socks
1x ski socks
running shoes

Legs:
1x medium thermals
1x heavy thermals
1x fleece lined tech sweat pants

Upper body:
1x medium thermal
1x light zip up tech hoodie
1x Patagonia Better Sweater
1x wind resistant zip up fleece lined polyester jacket

Head:
1x neoprene balaclava
1x stocking cap

I had a pair of sunglasses I started out wearing, except they would instantly fog up so I just left them in a coat pocket with my eyes exposed the whole time. My clothing worked, but I don't think it was ideal. Half of the course was in the sun and during those spots I got hot and sweaty. The other half was in the shade through some snow-covered trails... And I froze my ass off in those spots.

I also walked pretty much the entire thing since I am not a runner, so that made it 45 minutes outside rather than the 27ish minutes my wife finished it in.

Also, re: sitting outside for extended periods, we loaded up last year when we sat at Lambeau for a Packers playoff game in January. We actually both wore ski pants and our ski jackets. Feet were snow boots with a couple layers of socks. Feet and hand warmers were in both gloves and boots. We were sitting on the aluminum bleachers, so we bought "warming" hunting seat cushions from the Gander Mountain in Green Bay to sit on that would heat up once you had been on them for a while. I think they were these exact ones: https://www.amazon.com/NEP-Outdoors-Ins ... B014XWG7QQ

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Freed Roger
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Re: Baby, it's cold outside.

Post by Freed Roger »

With sweating in the cold,( hard to believe it is possible at single digits or below - but it definitly is). Obviously that sweating can be dangerous later on.

One trick I've learned is to have some venting options. Some zipper options on outer layer help-even though you have something underneath. More needed? untucking on or more layers of shirt etc from pants helps a lot.
Smart move swirls on the shades. Protect the eyes from wind. Even if no snow -I still wear shades more in winter than summer. A lot less tree shade and some powerful radiant light. Less eyestrain helps me stay relaxed, hopefully more efficient.

Now that I procrastinated an hour here- off for a run.

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Swirls
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Re: Baby, it's cold outside.

Post by Swirls »

Yeah, my ski jacket has the armpit zippers to help venting, my regular outer shell rain jacket has them too. I don't think I own anything else with them, except for sweats with the traditional zipper at the ankle that goes up to your mid-calf.

planet planet
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Re: Baby, it's cold outside.

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My dad and sister are visiting for a long weekend this weekend in STL and I'm trying to come up with things to do in this frigid weather. Any ideas?

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CardsofSTL
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Re: Baby, it's cold outside.

Post by CardsofSTL »

planet planet wrote:My dad and sister are visiting for a long weekend this weekend in STL and I'm trying to come up with things to do in this frigid weather. Any ideas?
I haven't lived near St. Louis in some time but we used to have a post holiday ritual of going to one of the area college theater shows. If you like such things I am sure there is something going on at Wash U or one of the other campuses....campuses? or campi? I hate English.

tlombard
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Re: Baby, it's cold outside.

Post by tlombard »

Freed Roger wrote:
tlombard wrote:I was stupid on Sunday and figured that I'd just walk to the Walgreens two blocks away to pick up some stuff. That was dumb. The way there wasn't bad but by the time I got back I realized that I'd made a mistake in my choice of gloves. My fingers were totally numb and I could barely get the zipper open and get my keys out to get into my building. Once I got in my apartment and my fingers started warming up, it was extremely painful. I have warmer gloves than the ones I wore on that trip but I didn't feel like digging them out of my bag and the ones I wore were already in my coat pockets. Now the warmer ones are in my coat pockets and the nicer, thinner gloves are in my bag. I won't make that mistake again.
Most my name-brand coats hats gloves have been xmas gifts. I am not sure if some of these things are meant only to be a base layer or inside layer . I have a columbia winter jacket that I surmise is just meant to be an outer shell because it has almost nothing to it.

Someone gave me thin blue North Face gloves that really had no function. I am not sure what they were designed for, but they almost hurt with warmth more than they helped. Tight fitting, doesn't mean airtight. Also seemed to impede circulation of warmth to my fingers.

I end up wearing my Walgreens gloves if I want to stay warm, and my off-brand winter jacket.
I've worn the same jacket for over a decade during winters and it has been fine even though it really is only a jacket. I think layering helps more than anything. When it's really cold, I'd simply wear a hoodie under it and be perfectly warm. I have an old Columbia for skiing that does a great job too. Unfortunately I lost the fleece portion of the system a long time ago so I have to resort to the hoodie with that too.

I finally caved and bought a new coat at Burlington the day after Christmas because it was time. I had been using a paperclip on the zipper for two years for both the main zipper and one of the pockets and then I noticed in the fall that the stitching on the back of the collar is coming undone and you can stick you fingers clear through between the collar and the back. The new coat is some brand I've never heard of (Zeroexposur made in China) but the thing sure is freaking warm. It was worth the $70. Other than making the poor choice in gloves on Sunday, I have not been cold since.

As for gloves, I have an old pair of Dakine ski gloves that I love. I either go with them or a cheap pair of Thinsulate gloves that I picked up somewhere and they do a great job. Those are the warmest by far.

It also helps that I have fur and blubber.

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Tim
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Re: Baby, it's cold outside.

Post by Tim »

Bridges are closed due to ice. Expecting 3 inches of snow this afternoon. Wife's Walgreens was shutdown and she was sent home.

In Charleston, SC.

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Jocephus
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Re: Baby, it's cold outside.

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Gashouse
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Re: Baby, it's cold outside.

Post by Gashouse »

I'm the project engineer on a construction project that is happening now. I have to be outside with the contractor for 1-3 hours everyday. When I get back in the office I'm almost worthless sometimes. The cold takes my energy away. Good times.

We had relatives from Miami visiting between Christmas and New Years. With highs either below zero or barely above zero, it was too cold to take the kids out sledding, skating, or XC skiing. Bummed about that.

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Jocephus
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Re: Baby, it's cold outside.

Post by Jocephus »

Gashouse wrote:When I get back in the office I'm almost worthless sometimes. The cold takes my energy away. Good times.
the last few months i've been doing a morning workout thingy usually around 6:50ish and I cannot find the energy in the morning to do it lately. hate it. doesn't help that my apartment is drafty as hell either but still. the energy loss is real.

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