So what are your favourite running conditions and times ?
When I started C25K it was during our first lockdown and most of my running was around 10:30 or 11:30 am
This was great as I didn't have to work , I could get up around 08:00 to 08:30, have a light breakfast and go out a couple of hours later !
We did however have some really warm days during that time and I often came back from my C25k run rather hot and sweaty !
But I thoroughly enjoyed it .
Later in the program and later in the year I was persuaded by my vrb Jools2020 to try an early run !
I did this and really enjoyed it once I'd got out of the door !
I found the getting out of bed and getting out of the door the hardest part !
But it was worth it , the runs were joyful.
So I now had early runs and mid morning runs in my toolbox 🙂
Then we come to the weather !
Again, talked into it by Jools 🤣 I went out about 10:30 one day while it was raining .
Did I like getting wet ? No !
However , once I WAS wet I actually enjoyed the run 😁
So we now have wet or dry , early or mid morning ! But I had never at this stage run in the afternoon or evening .
I have since done a mid afternoon just the once !
I had intended to run early but had a fight with the Duvet Gremlins ! And then after breakfast the weather wasen't looking too good but after lunch it cleared up and I was feeling guilty for not running , so, I gave time for lunch to settle and then went out around 3:30.
It was another enjoyable run !
Since all the lockdowns ended and I'm working again (part time 😁)
I notice im always going for morning runs !
I am also very particular regarding the weather !
For me the ideal is a dry morning sunrise run with a temp of around 13 or 14 degrees as I did today .
I remember when you bought your first pair of running tights 😀
Well, you know I like running early. Very early in the summer. But I love running when it’s one of those cold, windless winter mornings, say 0 - 2 degrees; wearing running tights, gloves and lightweight jacket, oh yes! Im looking forward to those crisp morning runs. I probably won’t run if it’s raining, but don’t mind drizzle or being caught out in the rain if I’m already out there, for some reason that always makes me laugh, especially getting caught in a downpour!
Like Instructor57 I’ve never run in the evening. I don’t think I’ve ever run in the afternoon either, although some of my longer runs might well have finished in the afternoon as I take so long to complete them 😀
I’d finished a run last Winter, in my tights and hoodie, and I usually like to stop the Strava recording before I get to my house in the interest of extra security. So I was walking that last part and looking at my phone when two young women came around a corner.
They looked as if they’d been to an all-night rave. As young fashionable women sometimes do, they were dressed in coloured sparkly tights and each had one of those short, bum hugging skirts which just about finish below their cheeky bits. Despite the cold, they each had a low cut, cleavage revealing loose top, but no coats.
I couldn’t clearly hear what the first one said in sotto voce but I think it was,
I have run at most times of the day except for the really early morning or very late at night.
Running in the dark in the evening is an experience in itself. You often see things reflected in the torch that you wouldn't normally.
Crisp winter runs are very enjoyable. As the days get shorter I tend to move towards running at lunchtimes.
I won't start wearing tights (♫ We're men. We're men in tights. ♫) until it's close to freezing. I have long socks for when it's slightly warmer.
Hot summer runs are difficult at first, but after about three weeks you can get acclimatised.
And my opinions of rain are the same as Jools2020 and Instructor57 . I'll not go out if it's raining already, but don't mind if I get rained on whilst out.
My favourite running conditions are when the weather is dry, a temperature from +7 to +18C, the coldest temperature I have ran in is - 6C at a parkrun, brrr, the warmest at the same parkrun 3 months earlier was +19C, my times were almost the same:30:56/30:55, I run the vast majority of my runs before 10am.
I’m big on breakfast so my ideal time is a few hours after, practically just before lunch. Only very hot weather makes me run before breakfast. Having once suffered heatstroke - seriously unpleasant - I’ve become very cautious about it.
I don’t start a run if it’s actually tipping it down but you’re right, it’s not so bad when it comes on during an enjoyable run. The worst precipitation experience I had last winter was a hail shower driven by a gale force cross wind. Like being sandblasted. 😁
Yes, I could certainly eat a big breakfast 😁 but I have to try and resist and just have porridge !Oooh hailstone in a cross wind sounds nasty , you would need to turn around and run the other way so both sides are blasted equally 🤣
I'm also in the Midlands (Shropshire) Yes haha I wasen't sure how to react the first time .
It was mainly the wet feet I didn't like 😐
Hmm! Food for thought there actually. Sometimes I run over a grassy shortcut with quite long grass which gets my feet wet in the early morning dew. I really don't like running with wet socks and feet.
In fact, that has made my mind up to re-schedule should the Shropshire rains cross into the next county 😃
As I'm still a beginner, I'm changing my mind about my favourite time to run. I started out running at 6am that went to 5am on my working days. Then as it got darker I chose to run around 7.30pm. Now it's getting dark around that time so I go on the treadmill when I get in about 4.30pm. I'm a fair weather runner, I don't like the rain, it makes my hair curly! I'm looking forward to cooler runs though!
I started with morning runs during lockdown, then adapted to running evenings when I started back at work, then changed to lunchtimes and currently run morning and evening Monday to Friday due to a car issue. But I don’t have a preference now, I enjoy pitch black dark, daylight, whatever. The same is true of weather, if it’s hot, cold, raining, snowing, I’ll be out in it. Although I do have a preference with weather, give me loads of rain and massive puddles and I’ll run with a big stupid grin on my face the whole time.
For clothing, I wear shorts and a T-shirt year round.
Thanks for this I started mid afternoon but I was on annual leave, then with working at home tried to fit it in. Read the post about morning runs so know I get up about 6-6:30 get ready and head out. Still combine it with dog walks but go for a slow walk first about 10 minutes then start the session. I use the fields so I know when it gets darker in the morning I will have to find a road route, but oh there are hills, hopefully my stamina will have built up enough to cope with them. Great winter tips I just want to keep going so don’t want to put off by the weather. As the saying goes there’s no such thing as bad weather only bad choices in clothes 👙
I love the morning runs (once I'm out of bed ) Even in the cold , once you start to run its surprising how you soon warm up !
Most of my running is on road and I'm not a big fan of hills 😁
I don't have a huge running kit but basically a thin and a heavier pair of shorts , a pair of running tights , a few running vests a few t shirts and long sleeve running tops , one with a hood , one very light hi Viz jacket and one apparently waterproof jacket (not yet tested ) , a pair of gloves and a snood 😁
Oh, and 1 pair of road shoes and 1 pair of trail shoes
Mid afternoon and wet for me… which is handy where I live 🤣
I also like a run that starts at sunset and goes into complete darkness, there’s something special about the dying of the light. I would probably like sunrise too, but I am never up and available to run early enough,
Yes, when I started running it was ridiculously hot day after day, even running at 10pm, so I sought out the rain showers and took advantage of them. The only time I avoid the rain is winter now.
Night runs are awesome! My local woods is full of deer and they clearly don’t expect a human to be running around. This thread has made me excited for the onset of winter 💪🏼
Yeah I always run alone. Once a deer crashed through the bushes in front of me, I must admit that startled me a little bit! Other than that, I really enjoy it, it’s nice and peaceful.
I did all of c25k during lockdown one last year early evening after working at home all day. It was a great way to destress.After graduating, and inspired by some of my lovely vrbs on here, and beautiful warm summer weather, I started running before work first thing in the morning doing the Magic 10 plan. I absolutely loved it and running early set me up perfectly for the day. I seem to have become a bit too lazy lately to manage this but I do miss it
Weekends are definitely time for a lie in and I can run anytime from mid morning to early evening depending on what else I have on. Mainly centred around when and what I eat.
I've never run after about 7pm and I don't really like running in the dark. I much prefer offroad, which maybe unsurprisingly, Mr B won't let me do in the dark.
Weather doesn't really worry me, unless it's above mid 20s. The woods where I love running best are always a few degrees cooler.
Rain is OK. Light drizzle is refreshing, unless accompanied by high humidity. I hate wind. A lovely bright sunny cold wintertime run is perfect, unless it's icy underfoot. But we don't seem to have many days like that - only grey, cloudy dank and depressing. Running on days like this really lifts my spirits.
I just like to run. And 18 months ago I would never have recognised myself as someone who would say that.
I haven't run for almost 2 weeks now due to an issue with my back and as soon as I feel able I'll be back out there whatever time of day, whatever the weather.
I am not a morning person. Never have been. It takes all my effort and energy to get out of bed in the morning and get to work 😴🥱I come to life about mid morning 😂 but am at work by then so have to wait until later to run. I tend to run about 5pm but it can be as late as 6.30 pm depending on work and life ‘stuff’. I enjoy running at the end of the day,even though I’m usually shattered, as it blows the day away and helps me leave the stress behind. I always feel much better by the end 😊.
As for the weather, I like it cool but you can’t beat a bit of winter sunshine to warm the bones and lift the spirits. I would start out in the drizzle but not when it’s pouring down, but I quite enjoy getting rained on while I’m out. I got soaked to the skin twice in one run last week and loved it 😂. Once you’re wet and bedraggled what have you got to lose?
When winter arrived last year I used the treadmill, more because of the dark nights than the cold. I’m running with a buddy this year though so we’ll brave the dark nights together.
When I was doing C25K and consolidating (started in January, so you can imagine), I would go out in ANYTHING (even, on one memorable occasion ice, but never again). I'm a bit more picky now, and prefer cool & still - like you, I don't mind the rain. I work full-time and have a longish commute, so my mornings are early enough, but once I retire (oh happy day), I hope to be getting out in the mornings a lot more. I try to get in a couple of evening runs of about 5k, then a slightly longer one at the weekend, ideally Saturday morning. I don't seem to get a lot of time for running at the moment & there's so much going on that I feel as if my evenings aren't my own, but I have a nice new job which is a bit less full-on than my last one, so I have managed to fit in a few lunchtime ones, which is lovely. The only thing is I work in a University, so I'm surrounded by fit young things bounding past me (gits 😫😁) but do I care? Nope - just glad to be out there!
Yes, I certainly have become a bit more picky !During the program I was just amazed that it was working, I couldn't wait for my next run and move on in the program!
I only had 1 run with a lot of ice around and yes, not in a rush to repeat it !
Sometimes I wish I had the get up and go to run after work as it's mentally exhausting (I'm a driving instructor) perhaps it might help me relax .
Haha love your comment about the fit young things (gits) 🤣
Like you I started at 10:30 ish, then switched to 9am. This changed to 8am during summer 2020 because we had that heatwave. I'm still running at 8am, and trying to dodge the school run. When schools were reopening the local school, which backs onto the park I run in, had staggered opening times and from different gates, so I was meticulously planning when to avoid which gate - lol. I've recently started road running, going up hills and to the common near me, which means I avoid the primary school run (with its associated scooters and younger siblings in buggies) but now have to navigate older school kids and commuters who are glued to their phones (sigh).
I prefer running when it's warm. The cold I can cope with if I put an extra layer on, but really I much prefer running in spring/summer. I have arthritis in my wrists which plays up in the cold, but have just bought myself a pair of wrist warmers in shocking pink, so I'm sort of looking forward to the winter when I can try them out! If it's raining hard then I delay going out, maybe for the day because I'm really not keen on running in the rain, or if the ground is slippery.
Anyway, my time is fairly fixed now at 8am, and let's be honest here, it gets me back in time for a second cup of tea in front of a TV programme I like.
LolYou are bringing back so many memories. My husband has ran a few marathons and did encourage me to try C25K.
Sooo we agreed we would start whilst on holiday in Fuerte Ventura (3 yrs ago) . It was great weather was lovely and warm but soon realised it was easier to go out running around 6am as it was cool. If I went out running after 8am it was too hot & would come back disillusioned.
On arriving home felt good & night before organised running gear etc. Woke up next morning it was raining. Could feel myself beginning to talk myself out of running. However hubby reminded me I wasn’t made of sugar🤣🤣🤣
I now find if I’m in the right head space I will go out running no matter what the weather is.
The feeling of completing the run makes you feel great for the rest of the day.😊
Ooooh that’s a loaded question! Once I got over the shock of getting up at silly o’clock to beat the heat, early morning runs are fab, but it’s dark now, so have to add that to the equation. Mind you, I was under the duvet this morning thinking come on weather, just get colder, so I can have a lie-in occasionally at the weekend! I hate the heat, makes me go all funny. Once we get colder weather, I’ll be able to run at lunch during work rather than first thing. But my absolute favourite would be a very cold sunny morning, about 9:30, at the weekend. Got there eventually in a roundabout way! 😊😊😊
Have to say I NEVER thought I’d be moaning about perfectly pleasant days in the grand scheme of things! 🤣. Well, on run days at least, for fear of sounding like a right old curmudgeon 😁.
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