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What Should I Wear? |  |
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See the Index for more topics, information, hints and tips.
Here is the process that I follow when I'm trying to decide what to wear on a run.
First go to Weather Underground. Look at the 10-Day Weather Forecast. You can mouse over the graph to check the conditions at any time of day or night. Note the cloud conditions, wind speed, and temperature for both the beginning and end of your run. The temperature range is more important the longer you will be running. Where I train in Texas, it is fairly common to have a 10 to 20 degree swing in temperatures over an hour or two. If you are out for 5 or 6 hours it could be a lot more. If you are going to be climbing a mountain remember that the temperature drops about 3 degrees per thousand feet of elevation gain. If you are going to be near a big body of water or a mountain it will probably be windier than if you are in a forest or residential neighborhood. If there is a chance of rain note the predicted amount. If it is only a few hundredths of an inch – no worry! In mountains the weather may change very quickly with very little notice. Know the local weather trends and be prepared.
Armed with all this information go to Runner's World - What to Wear. Put in the information including the type of run and how you feel (I choose In Between). This will give you a list of clothes to wear. You can rerun it, changing the conditions slightly to see how the clothes change. Use this until you are content with the results.
I’ve found it to be pretty accurate. Dress using the clothes it suggests and see how you feel on the run. The next time you may want to tweak the values a bit to adjust for your body (maybe you like to be colder or warmer).
Just before you head out go to The Weather Channel and check out the radar. Look at it in motion to see what direction any storms are traveling in – they can come at us from any direction in this area of the country.
