On the spot: the treadmill of your dreams

December 5, 2013

By Sonia Mendes

Notice a correlation between the rapidly-dropping temperature and your dwindling desire to train outdoors? You’re not alone. As we head into the heart of winter, it doesn’t always feel like a wonderland from the runner’s perspective. And while the hard-core runners among us aren’t fazed by the biting winds, snow and icy conditions, it’s simply not always feasible to train outside.

The treadmill offers up the ideal, indoor alternative, but choosing the right one can seem daunting. After all, nobody wants to fork over a pile of hard-earned cash for the wrong piece of equipment; that just makes for a space-sucking, dust-gathering clothes rack. So before you buy, do your homework – or better yet, let us do your homework for you.

Cushioning

One of the advantages offered by a well-built treadmill is a cushioning system, which can significantly reduce the impact on your joints compared with road running. To determine the level of cushioning you need, consider what type of running you’ll be doing. “If your training will include lots of distance, speed work, intervals or hills you may want to consider more cushioning,” advises Marla Brillinger, president and co-owner of Body & Soul, a personal training and lifestyle center located in Vancouver. Some treadmills even offer an adjustable cushioning system, so different users can choose the deck firmness/softness they like best.

Price

When push comes to shove, the price tag may play a big factor in determining which treadmill you choose. But like anything else, the pricing varies greatly. And while you can probably find an entry-level treadmill that comes in just under the $1,000 mark, keep that wise, old adage, ‘You get what you pay for,’ in the back of your mind. “Don’t go cheap,” says Brillinger. “At the same time, you don’t usually need a commercial-grade model either.” Top-end treadmills can run you up to $3,000 or more, so you’ll need to decide what price range is realistic for you.

Tread belt (Running Surface)

Most treadmills on the market today offer two-ply tread belts, ranging in size between 14-24” wide and between 45-63” long. If you’re planning to do the majority of your training on the treadmill, you’ll want a larger belt – nothing smaller than 18” wide and 55” long.

Keep in mind that while a treadmill with a smaller belt might have a pleasingly small price tag, if the tread belt is undersized you will find yourself hitting your feet on the front or sides of the machine or even tripping – neither of which are terribly conducive to a good workout.

Programmable features

Before you shop, put some thought into what sort of features you require during your workout. Do you need a heart rate monitor? What about built-in programs, such as hill training and intervals? Is having a speed decline feature important to you? “People often get swayed by all the fancy bells and whistles,” cautions Brillinger. “But do you really want or need all of that?”

Horsepower

The treadmill motor, which delivers power to the tread belt system, usually falls in the range of 1.5 to 3.0 horsepower. But here comes the age-old question: does size really matter?

The answer is yes – and no. Bigger does not necessarily mean better – some manufacturers use bigger motors to power their treadmills because they have a poorly-designed tread belt and need a bigger motor to power it. That said, you’ll want to find a treadmill that offers at least two horsepower – anything less and you could have mechanical problems due to overheating or motor stress.

Continuous or Peak Duty Motor?

While you shop, you might find your head swimming with treadmill terminology, such as motor ratings that are continuous or peak duty. Fear not – these are actually terms that are thrown around interchangeably, and there’s no standardized motor rating in the industry (bottom line: don’t worry about it).Notice a correlation between the rapidly-dropping temperature and your dwindling desire to train outdoors? You’re not alone. As we head into the heart of winter, it doesn’t always feel like a wonderland from the runner’s perspective. And while the hard-core runners among us aren’t fazed by the biting winds, snow and icy conditions, it’s simply not always feasible to train outside.

[Originally appeared in the January 2010 issue]

TORW: Why do you love this race? [video]

AttheRaces

November 29, 2013

With the Ottawa Half-Marathon selling out in record time, the chances of other Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend events following suit are high.

But don’t let us convince you of registering…we think last years’ participants do a much better job of sharing the love and telling you why you should run this race:

We’re all on the same journey

MarkSutcliffe

November 28, 2013

Mark Sutcliffe reflects on running with elite athletes

It’s often said that one of the great things about running is that ordinary athletes participate in the same races as Olympians, world-record holders and other elites. You’ll probably never play in the same hockey game as Sidney Crosby or enter the same golf tournament as Tiger Woods, but you can run the same marathon as Wilson Kipsang, as some 400 Canadian runners did when he recently set the new world record in Berlin.

Running the same course on the same day as the world’s best has some appeal for me, but I’ve never been very focused on the elite athletes in the races I’ve entered. For one thing, you usually don’t get to see much of them. In my first marathon, I was a little past the halfway point, starting a 20-kilometre out-and-back along the Rideau Canal in Ottawa when I heard the finish-line announcer across the water welcoming the leaders. I was travelling the same route as the winner, but we were running two completely different races.

For me, it’s sharing the journey, and not the course, with world-class runners that is inspiring. When I talk to an elite athlete, I’m often amazed by how much of their approach and experience is similar to mine or that of any other runner.

Just a few days after both she and Lanni Marchant broke Silvia Ruegger’s marathon record for Canadian women, I chatted with Krista DuChene. She ran her first marathon in roughly the same time as my personal best; today, she would finish roughly an hour ahead of me, enough time to go to her hotel, shower, grab a snack and return to watch me cross the line.

But even though I couldn’t keep up with her for longer than half a kilometre, I can relate to Krista’s story. She juggles training along with work and family commitments, just like so many of us. She sometimes gets up in the wee hours of the morning because it’s the only time of the day when she can run.

If you’re training for a marathon, you might not run quite as hard or as often as an elite athlete, but your training programs will look somewhat similar. If you’re a recreational hockey player, you don’t practice several times a week like an NHL star.

And as I and so many other runners try to hit a qualifying time so someday we can go to Boston for the first time, Krista is trying to meet the time standard so she can compete in her first Olympics. She’s now thinking ahead to the cycle of marathons during the qualifying period to give herself as many opportunities to run as possible. She’s looking at course profiles, local weather and other factors at several marathons to give herself the best chance of succeeding. I’ve been going through exactly the same process.

Even for elite runners, finding the right marathon isn’t just about the course and the weather; it’s also about fitting it in around the rest of your life. Olympic marathoner Eric Gillis and his wife are expecting their second child so that’s a factor in his plans for another fast marathon. You can’t run your best if you’re getting up every night to change a diaper.

As Krista says, when the margin of error is small, you need almost everything to fall into place perfectly for you to meet your goal. Since there are many factors beyond your control, you try to influence as many of them as you can. That’s true whether you finish a marathon in two and-a-half hours or in five.

Like me and thousands of other runners, Krista and Eric are simply trying to run the best race they can on one specific day. We travel at different speeds. But we are all on the same journey.

Mark Sutcliffe is the founder of iRun and the author of Why I Run: The Remarkable Journey of the Ordinary Runner.

Listen to the iRun Podcast and follow Mark on Twitter: @_MarkSutcliffe

Browse Mark’s columns:
I’m still learning it all
The freedom of running
More than encouraging

Workplace Run Club

FEETured blogs

November 28, 2013

Ottawa Health day speech — Kaser was invited to speak at Ottawa Health Day in October. She was also recognized with an award for being an innovator in healthy living.

“iRun for mental closest cleaning” – Jenny Kaser, Ottawa

In the November 2013 issue, you met the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority’s workplace lunch-time run club – now check out all of the details, from their Special Speaker Series, to how they accommodate different paces, to their fundraising endeavours on their blog, Workplace Run Club!

We caught up with club-founder and blogger Jenny Kaser for a quick Q&A.

Kaser was invited to speak at Ottawa Health Day in October. She was also recognized with an award for being an innovator in healthy living.

iRun: Do you eat before or after the run?
Jenny Kaser: After. I have a tricky stomach so I have oatmeal at7:30 and then only drink water until after my run

iRun: Brown-bag or buy?
JK: Always brown bag! Healthier, cheaper!

iRun: What’s your favourite run-day lunch?
JK: Yogurt, banana, small container of oatmeal from breakfast, left over chicken/bok choy stir fry (my partner is an amazing cook, a competitive cyclist and Asian so I get goooood meals).

iRun: Post-run clean-up: on-site shower? Baby wipes? or…?
JK: We are so spoiled here—we have showers on-site. The first year I ran, our workplace did not have showers and it was summer when I started. I learned how to use a towel, a washcloth, soap, a bowl and lots of baby powder (but not sure that’s good for you).

iRun: Funniest thing overheard on the run?
JK: HA! Great question! This is from years back when I ran with Karen Meades, the gal who got me started. I only knew her as the Director of Finance, a very professional woman. I didn’t know she was very down-to-earth with a great sense of humour. She surprised me by saying, “I always picture myself crossing the finish line looking like this (she did this wonderful, confident, upright long stride), but I’ve seen videos of myself and in actual fact, I look like this (she hunched over, tongue lolling out, panting, with a pathetic shuffling gait).” Karen does races like Atacama Crossing and MDS so really, it’s no wonder!

Winter Came Early

Ben Kaplan

November 26, 2013

By: Magi Scallion

Winter came early this year in Golden, BC. The nordic trails opened on November 8, with 15 km of groomed trail. This is two weeks earlier than they’ve ever been able to open before.

Early winter is great news for me as I was struggling with an aging body throughout the fall. I can’t really say that I was injured because I didn’t actually hurt any one thing. It was just like all of my muscles – especially in my lower body – were really tight. I knew that I needed to stretch to improve the situation (or, even better, get a massage) but I was so tight that I felt like stretching didn’t get me anywhere! Needless to say, I was a little frustrated.

I was doing all I could to expedite the return to full running – I shortened my projected runs, did some walking, tried mixing in some other exercise – like rollerskiing and cycling, but nothing seemed to be working. I was like a caged tiger!

For some inexplicable, to me, reason, the arrival of snow has made a huge difference. I went skiing for my first time on November 8 and that created a huge turnaround in my health. I’ve been able to run pain-free since. I think it might be the softer motions (softer even than rollerskiing) that brought my health to a better place. It may also have been using my entire body of muscles to propel myself in a relaxed fashion that helped things along.

This just reminded me how important the change of seasons is. No matter how much of a shock the first few days of -15C are, they are here for a reason and your body needs the seasonal fluctuations to recover, heal, regenerate and come back stronger.

I will curtail my running for the next few months – aiming for 30 minute runs, 3-4 days a week – and mix in a lot more cross country skiing for fitness (1+ hours, 5 days a week). I am sure my body will be happy to return to some epic running come spring!

***

Born in Nova Scotia and emigrating to British Columbia via Ontario and Alberta, Magi has been running the entire way. Primarily defined as a cross country ski racer, Magi has competed nationally and internationally in that sport. The highlight of her career was competing in the World University Games and the World Cup races in Canada in 2007. Cross country skiers rely heavily on running for cross training and Magi has become an accomplished trail and mountain runner, representing Canada at the World Mountain Running Championships in 2005 and the winning numerous national championships medals.

Today Magi runs for fun… and it’s a lot of fun! Epic mountain runs, city cruises with friends, and more keep her happy and occupied outside of work and school.

The ‘Oops’ Factor: Race Directors’ Cut

RHellard

November 22, 2013

So far, all of the ‘Oops’ Factors have been for runners and participants. This edition is dedicated to Race Directors, specifically new Race Directors hoping to build their event instead of destroy it with not-so-well thought out logistics.

Some of these are simple enough to understand. Some will enlighten the participant as to why things are done a certain way. Some, hopefully, will be “Ah ha! moments” that will help improve an event for future editions.

Put yourself in the shoes of participants who are going to your website to learn more about the event. Does the flow of the site make sense?
Try to minimize the number of ways information is disseminated to participants; inconsistencies are common when there are too many versions of the same information out there.
Make sure you have enough volunteers with assigned tasks before the morning of the event.
Directional signage should be set up so a not-so-familiar-with-the-course person can follow them—often RD’s or Route Coordinators know the route too well, and assume things are obvious to all, but they are not. Send a friend out to see if the signs all make sense to them as well as to you.
On out-and-back routes, remember water stations get hit once in each direction, and therefore require twice as much water and cups.
Photo by Ian Murchison
On a fairly hot day, water stations are only partly for hydration. Participants use them mostly for cooling off—a small cup to drink and another to throw over their head. Plan your supplies accordingly.
It has been my experience that planning post race food quantities when it is simple bagels or fruit should be limited to a third of the number of participants (i.e., 300 runners = 100 bagels, 100 bananas, 100 oranges.) Not many people take one of everything. Post race burgers and beer would be different!
Having said that, do not leave food to be freely accessed by runners or others; monitor how much runners are taking, especially if packaged or bottled, as people will take liberties.
Volunteers who are handling food should always wear sanitary gloves.
Figure of eight shaped routes are a bad idea.
On multi-loop courses, it is important to make sure the front end of the pack does not catch the back end of the pack (in the case of waves or multiple events with staggered start times).
In an event with several waves or race start times, leave a lot of time between the different start times—calculate 3 minutes per kilometre for the front end of one wave and 6:30-7:00 for the back end of the wave ahead, and set your schedule accordingly.
A race announcer’s job is also to keep participants informed of the time to departure, and of which event is departing. “The 10K starts in 5 minutes! Everyone should be lined up now and ready to go!” as opposed to “the race is about to start!”
NEVER, EVER start an event early. People plan to be on the start line for a certain time, and waiting for a minute is one thing, but arriving at the start line at the scheduled time to find everyone down the road is not acceptable.
Courses with right turns are easier to marshal than left turns which require stopping traffic.
All volunteers should know as much as possible about the event, or how to get that information.
Simplify registration as much as you can.
Speaking of registration, expect a rush to pick up kits, and a line-up 30 minutes before kit pick up actually opens.
Always remember that most participants care about four things: not getting lost; accuracy in measurement; efficient timing and results; and properly set-up aid stations. If you take care of these four things, your participants will be satisfied, and your event will likely be considered a success.

Rick Hellard, head coach of Zone3sports in Ottawa, is a lifelong running addict. He’s also made or seen just about every mistake under the sun, making him a world-class expert in oops-prevention.

Follow Rick on Twitter!

Tammy Butler found her Strong

Why I Run

November 21, 2013

Congratulations to Tammy Butler of St. John’s, NL, who found her strong and won the Grand Prize of head to toe Saucony apparel and footwear! Thanks to everyone who shared their Story of Strong! Canada has an amazing community of runners!

Last year, I decided to run my first marathon as a member of the Arthritis Society’s Joints in Motion Training Team which took place on March 17, 2013. This meant that I had to train in Newfoundland over the winter months for a spring marathon. As a person with sports-induced (and environmentally triggered) asthma, recently diagnosed (in my 30’s), running has been my way of saying “yes, I can” to all of those that say “you can’t …” or “you shouldn’t”.

I managed to train outdoors until around mid-January, when I was forced to move my runs indoors due to a bout of bronchitis. I figured a couple of weeks inside would have me all fixed up. But that would not be the case. It turned out that I would have to train entirely indoors as my ‘bout’ of bronchitis lasted three months, finally letting up just a week before I was to depart for Rome, Italy.

Let’s just say that training for a marathon on a treadmill is most certainly THE BEST mental training you could possibly do for such a challenge. After running 30 and 32 kilometers on a treadmill, in my basement, by myself, with nothing but my tunes (I drift if I watch tv) … I was ready for an outdoor marathon in any city, let alone in Rome!!

I raised $6,500 dollars for The Arthritis Society while working full time and training for my marathon. Running in Rome was an amazing experience and certainly the place to go for a first marathon. The cobblestones were a little more than I bargained for, but I had an amazing first marathon experience. I felt completely relaxed before the race began and just enjoyed everything around me throughout the marathon, taking photographs the whole way! After the marathon, I was shocked to hear the words “I could do that again” come out of my mouth as I stepped out of my hotel room shower! I felt so good at what I had accomplished! The words were out before I realized I was going to say it … so, training on a treadmill must have done the trick!

Since completing my marathon that mental training really has stuck with me. Post-marathon I ran my fourth Tely 10-Miler (July), participated in a 5K Mud Immortal Obstacle Course (September), and ran my fourth Cape to Cabot 20K Road Race (October). I plan to run the Deer Lake 67 Ultra Marathon (67K) next August and my fifth Tely 10-Miler and Cape to Cabot 20K in 2014!

My asthma may slow me down, but I will not let it stop me from taking on new challenges and making improvements on old ones!

[Related: There once was a great bunch of poets…]

Maple Balsamic Roasted Beets and Squash Recipe

Ben Kaplan

November 15, 2013

By: Angela Simpson

It took me a long time to jump on the beet bandwagon, but my kitchen has seen a ton of beet action this fall. This nutrition packed veggie is a superfood for runners, and one that you might want to consider adding to your diet for optimal running performance. Extensive research has been conducted on runners who drink beet juice, and findings suggest that consumption can lead to better endurance and faster times. Credit for this performance-enhancing effect is attributed to nitrate, which can also be found in cauliflower, spinach, broccoli, and collard greens.

While beet juice is the focus of most of these studies, eating the whole vegetable will also provide you with plenty of disease-fighting antioxidants, fiber, iron, magnesium, and calcium. (Just don’t wear a white shirt when you peel them!)

Ingredients:

5 small/medium beets, washed and peeled and cut into chunks, about 4 cups
1 small winter squash such as acorn, buttercup or delicata, peeled, seeded and diced (about 3 cups)
1 tbsp each olive oil and maple syrup
1/3 cup dark balsamic vinegar
1/8 tsp each coarse sea salt and black pepper
1/2 tsp herbs de provence (or your choice of dried mixed herbs)

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400F.

2. Heat some water in a pot and place a steamer basket over top. Put the beets and squash pieces in the basket and steam for 5 minutes. (You can skip this step if you like, but you will need to roast the vegetables for 30-45 mins.)

3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

4. In a small bowl, stir together the olive oil, maple syrup, and balsamic vinegar.

5. Transfer the vegetables into a large bowl and pour the balsamic mixture over top. Toss to coat and allow the vegetables to soak up some of the liquid for 5 minutes.

6. Spread the squash and beets in an even layer on the parchment paper. Sprinkle with sea salt, black pepper, and herbs.

7. Roast in the oven for 15 minutes, then remove and flip the vegetable pieces over. Insert them back in the oven for 3 minutes on the high broil setting.

8. Serve hot.

Makes: 4-6 servings, as a side dish

Prep Time: 15 mins

Cook Time: 18 mins

***

Angela is an avid runner, fitness instructor, foodie, healthy living blogger, and owner of her business, Spin 360 Health Coaching. Having been overweight, unhappy and insecure as a teenager, Angela took control, changed her unhealthy habits, and adopted a clean eating lifestyle that she continues to maintain today. Her goal is to support, inspire, and motivate others to improve their health and be their best.

You can learn more about Angela on her blog, Eat Spin Run Repeat. You can also get your hands on her free e-book, Creating a Whole Foods Lifestyle (complete with 10 squeaky-clean recipes!) by subscribing to email updates.

Keep up-to-date- on what Angela is up to through social media::

Twitter: @eatspinrunrpt
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/EatSpinRunRepeat
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/eatspinrunrpt
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/eatspinrunrpt

Mark Sutcliffe: On Running and Being a Mizuno Sponsored Athlete

Ben Kaplan

November 15, 2013

By: Karen Karnis

Mark Sutcliffe can remember crossing a finish line once, early in his racing career, and hearing the announcer referring to everyone as athletes. Now that he’s been running for over 15 years and has 18 marathons under his belt, he recognizes the importance of runners seeing themselves as athletes – but at the time he said it felt really strange.

Now he feels the same way about his relationship with Mizuno. “It’s funny for a guy like me to think of myself as a sponsored athlete,” he says. “I had fun with my running buddy, Bob – I purposely wore something different every time we ran together and said, ‘Hey, have you seen the latest from Mizuno?’” he laughs.

It might seem odd that he would find that strange – after all, he is the founder of iRun Magazine, author of a book called Why I Run, has a weekly radio show about running, and is in the process of writing a new book celebrating the Ottawa Marathon – he seems like exactly the kind of person who would have a sponsor.

But as he puts it, he’s not a remarkable runner. He’s just an ordinary runner on a remarkable journey – like most of us. He took up running because he read something in a book about how people need three to 4 units of 30 minutes of exercise per week to stay in shape after age 30. So he ran on a treadmill at the gym. And then he ran a 5K loop through his neighbourhood.

One day in late 2002, when he reached the 4K mark of his 5K loop, he wondered to himself, ‘what happens if I run 10K today?’

And what happened was that it felt fine, so he decided to run the half marathon at Ottawa Race Weekend. Even then, he didn’t know that running would become such a big part of his life. “I’m not a person who subscribes to any particular self-help philosophy, and I am not ‘searching for something,’ but it’s accurate to say that running changed my life. It just changes your whole outlook,” he says.

“The biggest thing is that you are entirely under your own power from start to finish, and that’s incredibly empowering,” says Sutcliffe. “That is a metaphor for so many things. The thing we try to teach our kids is that there are talented people, but no one is born a concert pianist. You have to put in the time and the effort, step by step, and if you do that, you can accomplish a lot of things. And it’s the same in running. You start out as the kind of person who can’t run a marathon, and you turn yourself into the kind of person who can.”

It was that simple insight that led Sutcliffe to start iRun. It began with his running column in the Ottawa Citizen. “I got a lot of feedback from runners, way more than about my business column,” he says. “There was nothing for Canadian runners at the time – everything was from the US and it was all in miles.” And so, in 2008, the first issue of iRun was published.

Now the busy father of three, who is the CEO of Great River Media and host of two television shows and two radio shows, has his sights set on the holy grail of running: the Boston Marathon. “I’m a minute and a half away from qualifying,” says Sutcliffe, acknowledging that with such a small margin, everything from location and weather to nutrition and shoe choice, will have to be perfect. “I’m at the top end of my capacity, I think, so there’s this almost ridiculous level of tweaking,” he says.

He’s glad he’s got Mizuno to help. Not only does he love the clothing enough to wear it even when he’s not running, he’s a fan of the shoes. “I don’t want to diminish my own efforts or anything,” he says, “but I’ve run 3 marathons in Mizuno shoes and got a PB twice. That means I have run two of my fastest marathons in Mizuno.”

My Review of Mizuno Breath Thermo Gear

Ben Kaplan

November 15, 2013

By: Elise Yanover

I won’t lie and say I love to run in the winter. I prefer to run in the summer and spring, when the light of day happens early (I am an early runner, usually out by 6 a.m or slightly before), the dressing is quick and easy and I get to sweat from the heat. But if I want to keep up my run training then I must find a way to be warm.

I have suggested that we move to California, but so far the rest of my family is not coming with me. I guess this means I am here to stay in Toronto at least for now so finding good cold weather run gear is of paramount importance!

Enter Mizuno Breath Thermo……..

My very first Mizuno purchase a few years back was a Breath Thermo base layer top. From the very first wear I was in love with this top. I told everyone I came in contact with to buy this top for their base layer. I remember running in – 14 C on one particular day with just the Breath Thermo and a light jacket. I was so toasty. Toasty in a good way. Not overheated toasty, just comfortably warm. Following is my review of the new Breath Thermo and other Mizuno gear available for 2013 Fall/Winter Season.

BG 3000 tights

These tights fit great. Not too tight, not too loose, just right. Flexible through the legs so there is good freedom of movement. I wore them on a day that was 4C, but felt like I could go as cold as just below zero before using the Breath Thermo lined tight (which I have not yet worn as it has not been cold enough, but I am sure they will function great too.) The BG 3000 is a Dry Lite wicking (non Breath Thermo) tight,. They exude heat from the outside in. This is one thing I can say about all Mizuno gear whether Breath Thermo or not, you feel warm without being wet. It feels like the wind, and cold just slide past you. There is also a great back zip pocket below the waist band. It is big enough to fit my old version IPOD Nano without having to shove it in. There are zippers down at the bottom of the ankle for ease of getting in and out of the tights. The tights have some stylish stitching on the leg as well. The stitching comes in pink, purple, or grey on the all black tight. On the Mizuno website, the tights are listed as having anatomical knee support which just adds to the great fit and functionality of these tights.

Breath Thermo Wool V- Neck top (Base layer

As stated before this is probably my favorite piece of run gear for cold weather running and over the years the design has gotten even better. Wearing on it’s own, or under another top for colder weather it just is so comfortable and warm without being bulky or causing overheating. I don’t like being overheated when I run, so I look for lightweight but warm gear. I tested this first on a 3C day and wore it under a race tech T-shirt. It was perfect again, feeling like the heat travels from inside out. It was a nice tapered fit and long enough to tuck into tights or leave un-tucked. On a cold day below 0C, it could easily be worn under a thicker top, vest or lightweight running jacket.

Breath Thermo Wind Top

New FAVORITE top. Is it a top? Is it a jacket? This was my first question to my Mizuno fairies when I received it. The answer: it can be both! It has a windstopper front and a breath thermo inside. I would think that if it was snowy or rainy it would just repel the drops vs. soaking through.

For me to put on a jacket to run in, it has to be below -5C or so. I just layer tops usually and may wear a vest if windy. I put this top/jacket on for an early morning run in -2 C (windchill -4) and it was perfect. I got slightly over warm for a brief time not going into the wind, but then as all good wicking material works, it then goes from being warm to being perfectly comfortable . This top did the trick. Not to mention it looks great! It can be worn over a light long sleeve, or if it is very cold over a breath thermo layer. It is so attractive in fit and color, that it could even be worn as a fashion pieceJ. Did I say I LOVED this top?

Breath Thermo Head Pip (hat)

One key feature of this super comfy hat is that it stays on ! One issue I have with hats especially since I still wear a ponytail when I run in winter is that the hat does not always stay on my head and covers my ears during a run. I have worn other hats and each time I stop at a stoplight I need to pull it back over my ears. Not with this hat. It is loose enough to not feel constricting, yet snug enough to stay on with movement, even with my ponytail. In keeping with the Breath Thermo model it keeps your head warm without overheating and needing to rip it off mid run. I would even wear it as a fashion hat on non – running days, except I am picky about that stuff and tend to keep running for running. It is also because I am afraid I will misplace my key run gear if I wear it outside of running!

Breath Thermo Gloves

So many people I talk to about fall/winter running, say their hands get so hot they have to take off their gloves. Me, ……. I need gloves when it is 13C and below and once it gets to 2 or 3C, I need ski gloves! So I am not the best judge of what will keep your hands warm. However, I will say that on the days that the Breath Thermo Gloves were worn (again, for me this is 8 C or above) they did a great job of keeping my hands warm. The nice thing about these gloves too is they have a wind protector on the outer shell. Like all other Breath Thermo products, they heat from the inside out and wick the sweat perfectly. They also have a reflective logo on the outer portion for visibility on darker runs. These gloves fit very comfortably and could also be worn under another warmer layer as a liner as they fit tightly enough to do so. Hmmmm…I think I can wear them under my ski mitts!!!

So there you have it. My review of some fantastic cool weather gear. Check out the Mizuno website’s apparel section for further details and the full product range.

There is no reason to hit the dreadmill when the weather turns colder. Mizuno Breath Thermo is available to keep the heat in and the dampness out and look great. What more could one ask for? Get out and embrace cool weather runs!!

Now about that move to California? ……… 🙂

***

Elise is a long time competitive amateur triathlete and Physiotherapist with 20+ years experience treating runners and athletes of all kinds. She also has an online coaching business for runners and triathletes looking to reach that next distance goal or PB. She is very passionate about biomechanics in running and does gait analysis and shoe recommendations as part of her practice. Elise also has a self admitted running shoe and apparel fetish. She is mom to an active 10 year old girl and is married to a man who also runs and races.

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