As winter is officially coming to a start I thought it would be nice to mention a few ways you can make sure you keep warm on your runs and workouts. Keeping warm on a workout is important and you should understand that even when you’re sweating you can still be harmed by the effects of colder temperatures.

That being said it’s vital to have the proper gear when running. Here some of my top picks on items that will keep you warm.

1. Hat, a hat is a great item to combat cold with. Did you know that a large percent of your body heat comes off from your head? Between 7 percent and 55 percent of total body heat can be lost through the head (Parents, vol. 64 (December 1989), p. 242.) So it’s vital to keep that thing warm, wear a hat!

2. Gloves, wearing gloves can really help. When your body becomes cold it conserves heat and energy by giving heat and energy to those vital organs and things closest to your body. So you hands and fingers can sometimes be left to suffer. Wearing gloves can help combat your heat loss.

3. Layers of clothing, wearing layers of clothing is a great idea. Especially on a longer run where you are not going to be able to get more clothing if needed then wearing layers can help prevent cold problems. And in the event you get to hot you can just take it off and keep it with you and put it back on it you get cold once again.

If your a seasoned cold weather runner you’ll know that you tend to get a bit sweaty in all that gear sometimes. The thing not to do in such a situation is to remove too much clothing. The cold temperature will rapidly cool your body and the sweat goes not evaporate (which is the intention of perspiring in the first place) but rather will cool and may turn to ice. So if you take off clothing do it in moderation and you should always make sure you’re able to quickly place that clothing back on it you run into any problems or remain near somewhere you can quickly get warm at.

Also in the even you do get frost bit or any other injury from the cold weather you should immediately seek real medical advice. This article is just some of my ideas on keeping warm and should not be taken a medical advice.