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December 13, 2005
Ankles are still itchy, but I found socks
At 4 PM I bundled up and headed out the door. After 30 seconds I could feel the cold air on my raw ankle skin. It was annoying to turn around, but I knew I shouldn’t run another 40 minutes with my ankles exposed. The only thing is that I don’t have many choices of long socks. I usually wear short cotton socks-and by “usually,” I mean always. I have never worn running socks before. Today I knew I had to try it out but I only had two choices, both gifts from a college roommate: Lance Amstrong Livestrong socks or socks with the state of TX on the ankles. I went with the first pair I grabbed-the TX ones. The longer socks and the tights covered my ankles and I was able to run much more comfortably. I didn’t notice any real difference from the cotton socks so I was pleased with that. I would definitely wear running socks again.
I did a 30 minute loop involving Commonwealth and Harvard Ave. and then added on for 10 more minutes to amazingly end at my doorstep after almost exactly 40 minutes. I have been wearing the puffy REI mittens I bought last year after I moved to Boston and they are a lifesaver. In Virginia I would go on these 10 mile runs with flimsy cotton gloves and would always end up with my hands in fists, curled into the palm part of the glove to avoid frostbite.
When I went to work today the temperature was about 13 degrees and according to weather.com it felt like -2 degrees. It was flurrying a tiny bit. My coworkers just cannot believe I bike. They all (all of the time, which is actually really really nice of them) offer to drive me home. Here is what they have to say (repeated each time I go to work):
-Do you have a helmet?
-Do you have a hat?
-Are your hands cold?
-I can’t believe you’re biking.
-Are you crazy?
-Isn’t it dangerous?
The one receptionist NEVER says anything when she sees me drag my bike in every day. She has taken it in stride. In fact, she made her own little exercise room at work with a treadmill and lots of other equipment (she lives in an apt so can’t store the stuff there.) I also met with a new professor today and he saw my helmet and said, “Oh, you bike?” not something like, “You know it’s cold out, right?” which I thought was very cool of him.
The thing is, I don’t think people realize that for me it’s not bike vs. car or bike vs. public transportation. It’s bike vs. walking, which is no great shakes either in the cold, just much longer. It’s really not so bad if you’re dressed appropriately. What is bad is that the shoulders of all of the roads are reduced b/c of the snow. My new pet peeve is drivers who stay too far to the right of the lane so that you can’t get by them.
PS. I think my skin must just be really susceptible to the cold. I had a winter running shirt on today that (obviously) covered my stomach. But when i got home I put my hand on my stomach and couldn't feel it (my stomach). I looked and my stomach was all red. I guess the cold air got up under my shirt. The good news is I can feel my stomach again now, but I guess I have to be careful about combining chilly air with my ankle and stomach skin.
Posted by Audrey at December 13, 2005 05:41 PM
Comments
Being a hater of all things cold, I wear higher socks in the winter and highly recommend the Defeet Aireator (sp?) socks. They come higher on the ankles and have cool patterns.
Blondie
Posted by: Blondie at December 13, 2005 08:10 PM
before your (wise) mother tells you: wear longer socks, and tuck your shirt in.
:-)
Posted by: Danny at December 13, 2005 08:11 PM
My belly gets red and itchy from running in the cold too...from about the naval to my waist. Still...better than the hot I think...
Posted by: Rob at December 14, 2005 06:06 PM
That is weird. I have always noticed that my stomach is cold when I run but it's never gotten red and irritated like that.
It sounds like it is SO cold there!
Posted by: Barb at December 14, 2005 06:15 PM