Hello runner friends!
Welcome back to the Bass Pro Fitness Series
MIDWEEK M😊TIVATI😊N blog!
But to encourage you to run outside as I'm a fan of doing, consider that taking your workout to the great outdoors has a lot of benefits. For one thing, it will make you tough. For real. No matter how much you know it's good for you and that you’ll be glad when you’re done, it takes grit and gumption to bundle up, get out the door and face the wintry blast day after day, not to mention the darkness that comes with early morning or evening runs. But besides getting physically stronger, you’re also building mental steel. When you’ve battled snow and slop, gloom and biting winds all winter, the challenges of distance, hills and speed will seem tame come spring. Now if this has you saying, "But Melissa, I'd really prefer to stay inside and binge watch Netflix while running on the treadmill," consider these four additional benefits before taking a vow to exercise indoors until Spring.
1. Feel happier, train harder. Do you feel a bit of a hermit during winter? Dark evenings and bad weather can leave us not only feeling lethargic and low, but experiencing Seasonal Affective Disorder. The good news is that outdoor running boosts serotonin levels, leaving us feeling happier and more energetic. The result? You’re likely to be more active for the rest of the day. And taking your run outdoors helps boost your mood even more: One study published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology found that people who exercised outdoors reported increased energy, decreased feelings of depression, and were more likely to repeat their workouts. And repeated workouts are the way to train harder.
2. Free up the fat stores and prevent weight gain. According to evolutionary theory, our bodies are actually primed to store more fat (and preserve existing body fat) over winter. Which means weight gain! But we're not living in frozen caves or having to survive off our fat reserves. So it’s thanks but no thanks to evolutionary fat storage. By running more over winter, we could actually prevent the seasonal metabolic slow-down and keep our energy expenditure ticking nicely. So if your winter goal is to prevent excess fat gain, there are legit reasons to bundle up and head outside for your workouts. Science tells us that simply being cold burns more calories than being pleasantly-comfortable, because the body expends energy trying to keep warm. In fact, studies show that shivering can increase metabolic rate by as much as five times! I'm not suggesting you shiver your way through every workout this winter, but by embracing the outdoors, you could stay significantly leaner than if you train indoors. Aim for non-shivering thermogenesis (feeling chilly, but not shivering) which can boost metabolic rate by up to 30%. That means you can make it through this season without gaining a ten-pound layer of insulation. And consider this as well... running in the cold burns extra calories during and after because your body has to work extra hard, not just to perform the cardio but to keep you warm too. Your basal metabolic rate then remains up after your workout as your body attempts to get back to a normal temperature.
3. Running in Cold Weather Means Faster Paces with Less Effort. Minus any tricky footing, most speed records are set in colder weather. According to an extremely in depth study, the best race performances appear to happen around 40 degrees and for every 5 degree rise in temperature, performance drops by 2.7 seconds per mile. This was based on the top athletes, so it’s likely higher on the rest of us. Not only might you feel it’s easier to run faster during the winter, but it could be the reason for so many spring PR‘s. It turns out that the shivering, the searing lungs, is training your body to use oxygen more efficiently!
4. Cold runs can be some of your most peaceful and treasured runs. I wanted to end with one of the greatest benefits of running in the cold—serenity. There is just something so peaceful and calm about the winter when everything is cold, still and quiet and you can see your breath each time you exhale. In fact, my all-time favorite time to run is when it's snowing. I love the feel of the snowflakes falling on my face and the sound of them softly hitting the ground. These are moments that make me smile, moments that I commit to memory and make me aware of how great it is to be alive. They are also moments that remind me that I have a Creator who not only opens the heavenly storehouses to make this all happen but gives me the ability to get out there when most people are struggling to get out of bed. And another bonus of running outside this time of year? If you run when the sun is going down, you get to see a beautiful sunset and the neighborhood Christmas lights coming on. Pretty spectacular sights right? So remember that running in the cold has its perks. It’s beautiful and invigorating in ways that summer runs never could be... so be grateful for all the things that cold runs bring!
So there you have it friends. This change of season doesn't have to change your routine if you choose to look at the many benefits of winter running and keep your workouts outside. This will not only have you smiling as you soak up that Vitamin D but will allow you to wear that new shirt, 1/4 zip, and/or hoodie that you earned by running one of the 2021 Bass Pro Fitness events... something that will most definitely put a grin on your face. So get out there and embrace the cold my friends. Winter is calling!
Happy Running!
No comments:
Post a Comment