exercise in cold versus room temperature

by **talusfinder** » Sat Dec 18, 2010 5:20 am

I routinely run in cold (-15c ) windy conditions on steep, snowy, slippery trails. I love it, and feel like I get a much better workout than in the summer. The slipping and sliding is a great workout and conditions muscles that wouldn't get worked any other way. After the first couple of cold runs, I think my lungs are more acclimated to the cold. While I do not know how well the caloric consumption compares to working out in more moderate conditions, you certainly gain a great deal of "mental" training and fortitude by working out in the cold. Getting out of a warm bed to go run in the cold, snow and wind sure isn't easy (except for my dog, he loves it). No doubt this helps in the alpine environment. Besides, cardio in a gym is seriously boring.

by **kevin trieu** » Sat Dec 18, 2010 7:02 am

KristoriaBlack wrote:Its well below freezing here where I live. I'm wondering is there any advantage to doing my cardio exercises outdoors as opposed to doing them in a gym? Would the cold make it more intense? Would I burn more calories because of the cold? Or does the ambiant temperature have no impact?

Assuming that exercises outdoors is more difficult (or at least unpleasant) in cold weather, do I actually gain something by pushing myself to become accustomed to training in the cold that will give me an edge in an alpine enviroment? Or am I just making myself miserable for nothing?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8xHjC27YvM

by **JJBrunner** » Sat Dec 18, 2010 7:08 am

kevin trieu wrote:
KristoriaBlack wrote:Its well below freezing here where I live. I'm wondering is there any advantage to doing my cardio exercises outdoors as opposed to doing them in a gym? Would the cold make it more intense? Would I burn more calories because of the cold? Or does the ambiant temperature have no impact?

Assuming that exercises outdoors is more difficult (or at least unpleasant) in cold weather, do I actually gain something by pushing myself to become accustomed to training in the cold that will give me an edge in an alpine enviroment? Or am I just making myself miserable for nothing?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8xHjC27YvM

I guess the OP answer comes down to who won in Rocky IV!

by **dougunderwood** » Sat Dec 18, 2010 8:28 am

Burns a lot more energy trying to keep body warm. I wear just about the same clothes in cold weather runs as in summer. This does seem to sometimes upset the locals. Got the police called on me at the local downtown park. Ha! NO, I was decent, but the duck walking and plyometric drill just put me over the top. Not good for the tourist? I have worked in a 25 degree windy cooler and outside most winters for along time. You need to reset how you think about it! Not so cold is it, I feel just fine. The same goes for really hot weather, when the pavement starts to heat your feet, I imagine I'm a warrior running to the next village for some important reason. I know this sounds crazy, but part of being miserable is a mental thing. Just don't take it to far and get sick. If I feel my belly-button itch, my body is getting too hot. If the cold hurts, its time to speed up and get warm. Make it more fun and your preceptons wil be reset!!

The following user would like to thank dougunderwood for this post
John Duffield

by **John Duffield** » Sat Dec 18, 2010 10:16 pm

above wrote:Enviro club members here that have no experience with outdoors do miserably

I think it's very important to dress appropriately for cold and snow.

The following user would like to thank John Duffield for this post
dougunderwood, mrchad9

by **John Duffield** » Sat Dec 18, 2010 10:46 pm

My guess is, they weren't outside long. But I take your point. In a cold environment, there's a lot of mental fortitude to go beyond the discomfort.

My training has taught me, the muscles need to be warmed first. When we climb, we generally do that on the approach. A nice approach, warms the muscles so they're ready for serious stretching. In cycling, they use arm and leg warmers to keep the muscles warm. A cold muscle is one ripe for injury.

by **talusfinder** » Sat Dec 18, 2010 11:10 pm

KristoriaBlack wrote:Back to the OP, this is my thinking, please correct me if it is inaccurate:

So it is true that in the cold you consume more calories. However, the increase in calorie consumption goes towards keeping you warm. Therefore, even though you burn more calories there is no increase in the intensity of the physical exercises, only an increase in the caloric cost to the body.

On the other hand there are benefits to exercising outdoors like the mental training and conditioning the muscles to the slipping and sliding. I didn't consider that as a benefit until now, but that is a very good point. The one issue I have is that it gets dark so early now that I won't be able to run through the ravines except in the dark, meaning I'd have to run on pavement which is bad for the knees. Maybe I'll try marching with a heavy pack outdoors and do the intense cardio indoors. I don't mind mindnumbing: I've become accustomed to tolerating repetative and mindnumbing tasks quite well through my work. I've trained myself to be able to gain immense satisfaction in having the fortitude to do the most boringest tasks known to man and women kind.

I was thinking while running this morning that I think I have better eye-foot coordination than before, which helps on slippery alpine descents, particularly on talus. Also, steep snow with crampons and an axe is easy after running down a 20degree icy trail! I have grown to hiking and running in the dark more and more of late. There are bears and mountain lions nearby, so maybe I'll end up as a news story, but don't worry too much about it. I'm sure there are worse ways to go.

And yes, be sure to adequately warm up, cold or not.

by **Day Hiker** » Sun Dec 19, 2010 12:05 am

by **dougunderwood** » Sun Dec 19, 2010 1:55 am

MOUNTAIN LIONS? Know a Western States runner who wears a smily face on the back of his head. Theory is they won't attack when your looking at them. They do hunt at dusk time and there are lots of them in the hills around here. Seen two so far, one was quite close and I sensed it before I saw it, felt kind of flushed.My hair stood on end and boy did my skin crawl as if for no reason, I turned around and didn't go back to Mt. St.Helena for a long time, also see a lot of hairy scat on some of the very narrow trails around bay area. They breed like feral cats, there are lots of them not noticed by us noisy bipeds./Raised in the woods, dad was a range manager, he had one challenge him face to face, it screamed at him and he pee'd, that was it. I feel safer out there than in with the city folk. Sorry to get off topic! Re.. The last club I had a chance to join was a group of climbers way above my skill level, all they kept saying was "I just got back from Europe." I ended up going for a long night time walk with the bears. :wink:

by Ze » Sun Dec 19, 2010 6:09 pm

You can increase exercise intensity training at cooler temperatures. Say you were running on a treadmill at a constant speed, but you changed the temperature of the room. As the temperature increases, your heart rate will increase, and time to fatigue will decrease.

So you'll be able to run faster (and burn more calories) for a set amount of time in cooler weather.

At some point, lower will not be better.

by **Day Hiker** » Sun Dec 19, 2010 9:16 pm

1000Pks wrote:The nudity and sex ops remain discreet, and even though Club top officers incl. law enforcement would be aware of them, they do nothing.

Club officers and law enforcement? Consensual sex between adults is legal now. Or haven't you heard?

by **dougunderwood** » Mon Dec 20, 2010 8:52 am

Quite a few of the woman I've ran with expressed annoyance and anger at being stared at, whistled at etc. As a man I wouldn't even notice and probably take it for granted. My daugther has the opposite experience and I can see how that kind of crap would get old real fast. Especially the fact that to her anyone over 40 is ancient. I however, have never seen a cloaked runner and probably would stare. They must be vampires, in which case don't need exercise. ////////RE:" I was wearing asics running shorts, just to clear the record!! I promise to cover up and not join any clubs."

by **Morlow** » Mon Mar 14, 2011 11:06 pm

My gym is outdoors in an open shelter and I love exercising out there in the winter. I feel like I get a better workout for some reason.

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