When it’s dark and cold it’s easy to want to stay inside and wrap up warm. However, the winter months are a great time to be clocking up your miles.
With the shorter days it means you’ll likely be exercising in the dark, so it’s important you know how to stay safe.
Run 4 Wales Race Director, Steve Brace, is a double Olympian having represented Great Britain in the men’s marathon in the 1992 and 1996 summer Olympics. He’s also a former winner of the Paris and Berlin Marathon and ran his marathon PB of 2:10:35 in Houston in 1996.
He shares his advice around what you can do to help keep you safe when running in winter:
Choose your route carefully: When running at night always choose a well-lit path and avoid any secluded areas. If you’re running on a road, make sure you face towards incoming traffic. Always tell someone where you’re going and what time you’re expecting to be back.
Dress sensibly: The winter nights are both cold and dark meaning you need to make sure to dress accordingly and ensure you can be easily seen.
Layers that can be removed as your warm up, as well as gloves and a buff should help protect your extremities and ensure your run is still enjoyable. Wear thick socks, 2 or 3 tops, a fleece if you’re prone to the cold and something to warm your legs. Once you get in, undress as quickly as possible to avoid the post-winter run chills.
If it’s dark outside, bright reflective clothing will help you be seen by other road users. Wearing a headtorch is also a good idea as it not only adds an extra visual to be seen by traffic but can help you see what’s ahead of you, ensuring you don’t trip over any uneven pavements or tree roots.
Ditch the headphones: It’s important to be aware of your surroundings – and even more so when it’s dark. Leave the headphones at home so you’ll be able to hear any danger coming, or, if you really can’t run without your favourite music or podcast, try using just one headphone instead.
Be prepared for an emergency: It’s a good idea to take a mobile phone and a small amount of money with you, as you never know when you might need it.
Run with others: It could be a running club or it could be arranging to run with a friend, but try to go for a run with others. If you’ve made plans with other people, you’re not only far less likely to want to cancel and let them down, but it’s also much safer to be out with someone else too.
Warm up: To avoid risk of injury when exercising in the cold, make sure your body is prepared and thoroughly warmed up ahead of your run. Before you leave your front door, do something that will help get your blood circulating such as running up and down the stairs or doing some active stretching.
