Cold Weather Marathons - What You Need to Know

15 Tips for Training for and Running a Great Cold Weather Marathon

Running a marathon can be a difficult and daunting task even in the best conditions. But, when faced with extreme temperatures it can seem almost unconquerable, especially for a novice runner. Many marathons are run in the spring and fall to avoid the intense summer heat. During those times, though, one might be faced with very cold temperatures. If you are planning on running a marathon in potentially cold conditions, there are many things you can do to make the experience as easy as possible:

1. Buy larger shoes: When running in cold weather, it is often necessary to wear thicker socks or more than one pair of socks. This fact, added to the fact that your feet will swell over the course of 26.2 miles means that you should buy slightly larger running shoes than used during warmer times of year or for shorter training runs.

2. Buy warmer shoes: Now is not the time to buy the lightest shoes you can find. When running a cold weather marathon, you will want to stay away from shoes with predominantly mesh uppers and look for shoes with leather or even Gore-Tex uppers.

3. Plan training routes effectively: As you plan your cold weather training routes, keep the wind in mind. Especially on longer out-and-back training runs, try to create your route so that you're running out into the wind and returning with the wind at your back. By the middle to end of your run you will be sweaty and a strong cold wind blowing into you will rob your body of heat.

4. Stay hydrated: This can be easy to overlook in cold weather. You will still be sweating and using large amounts of fluids even when the weather is very cool. It is just as important to stay hydrated in cool temperatures as it is during warmer runs. Cramping and dramatically lower energy will quickly result if you don't stay properly hydrated.

5. Warm up and cool down: It is very important to do some type of warm up before all your cold weather training runs and races. Cold, tight muscles are easily strained or torn and need to be loosened up before running, especially before any harder effort run.