Cold Weather Workouts
As the weather get colder…and colder…and colder…where was I going with this? Oh right, it's cold outside. It would be easy to call it quits and spend the winter on the treadmill dreaming of green leaves, shorts, and the gentle warmth of the spring sun. But we can't do that. For a number of reasons. First, the treadmill is boring. Like, fork in the eye boring. Second, staying inside deprives the body of vital vitamin D, which, among other health benefits, makes us fell not-crappy all the time. I think we can all agree that's a good thing.
But we need to remember to dress for the weather. Breathable, technical fabrics, layered correctly, provide the perfect level of warmth without sacrificing movement or, just as important, style. Look good, feel good, right?
So get outside, even when it looks like Ernest Shackelton wouldn't. Run, do some body weight movements, even grab a kettlebell. It's good for you.
Here are some ways to keep from getting frostbite while doing so:
Zoot RUNfit Jacket (ZootSports.com)- I've been running with this jacket for about a year now. It's gotten me through a lot. Cold can be tough, but this jacket is tougher.
2XU Thermal Run Tights (2XU.com)- If you've got it, flaunt it. Rock the tights.
Nike Thermal Running Pants (Store.Nike.com)- And if you can't, these will work, too.
Patagonia R1 Hoody (Patagonia.com)- An essential layering piece. Cool colors but warm where you need it.
Accessories (Note: Important!)
Patagonia Lightweight Glove Liners (Patagonia.com)
Patagonia Cap 4 Beanie (Patagonia.com)
Q: SO WHY WOULD I WANT TO STAY SO WARM DURING WORKOUTS?
A: Well, that's a great question. The easiest answer is so that we can avoid hypothermia, where the body temperature drops too low to allow for normal bodily functions to occur which includes, but not limited to, neuromuscular and cognitive function decline. WHOA...That is not good at all and through simple solutions like wearing the appropriate clothes, we can prevent a lot of that. When our body starts to sense a temperature drop, it will divert energy and heat to keep our core body temperature up as much as possible while pulling heat away from our extremities like hands and feet. This can get dangerous especially if we are in an activity like jogging, where our feet and hands are being desensitized because of the cold. The vasoconstriction, or tightening of the blood vessels to reduce blood flow to the muscles also reduces blood flow to the nerves which means we do not respond very well to gravity, ground reaction forces, mass and momentum. Because of our loss of proprioception, we may be more prone to injury.
Q: WAIT...HYPOTHERMIA? CAN YOU GO INTO MORE DETAIL ABOUT WHAT IT IS AND WHAT CAUSES IT?
A: Hypothermia "a decrease in the core body temperature to a level at which normal muscular and cerebral functions are impaired." - Medicine for Mountaineering.
This is caused by a a number of factors which include:
•Cold temperatures
•Improper clothing and equipment
•Wetness
•Fatigue, exhaustion
•Dehydration
•Poor food intake
•No knowledge of hypothermia
•Alcohol intake - causes vasodilation leading to increased heat loss
Q: SO I SEE THAT THE FIRST TWO FACTORS ARE COLD TEMPERATURES AND IMPROPER CLOTHING AND EQUIPMENT. IT SEEMS THAT I CANNOT CONTROL THE TEMPERATURES, BUT I DO HAVE CONTROL OVER WEARING PROPER CLOTHES.
A: Yes! Great observation and you see the wisdom in Read's selections where he is recommending the ZootRunFit Jacket which is a great outer shell that will keep too much heat from escaping. The 2XU Thermal Run pants, that will "wick away" the sweat from the body which you know is important as the body starts to sweat to cool itself down from the exertion but gets into a dangerous situation when we are soaked with sweat in cold weather. We cannot stop the sweating but can control the effects with layering of clothes. Finally, the gloves and beanie are important as well. Most will be wearing socks but many will neglect wearing gloves which are super important as the hands are the most distal part of the arm and will be low on the priority list of blood flow if the core temperature needs to be regulated.
Q: OKAY, I UNDERSTAND HYPOTHERMIA AND I WILL DO MY BEST TO STAY WARM BY DRESSING PROPERLY BUT I'D STILL LIKE TO KNOW THE SIGNS OF HYPOTHERMIA. WHAT ARE THEY?
A: According to the OUTDOOR ACTION GUIDE from Princeton University are 3 stages of hypothermia: 1) Mild 2) Moderate and 3) Severe. With Severe Hypothermia being the most life threatening.
Signs of hypothermia are the "-UMBLES" of stumbles, mumbles, fumbles, and grumbles which show changes in motor coordination and levels of consciousness
b. Mild Hypothermia - core temperature 98.6 - 96 degrees F
•Shivering - not under voluntary control
•Can't do complex motor functions (ice climbing or skiing) can still walk & talk
•Vasoconstriction to periphery
c. Moderate Hypothermia - core temperature 95 - 93 degrees F
•Dazed consciousness
•Loss of fine motor coordination - particularly in hands - can't zip up parka, due to restricted peripheral blood flow
•Slurred speech
•Violent shivering
•Irrational behavior - Paradoxical Undressing - person starts to take off clothing, unaware s/he is cold
•"I don't care attitude" - flattened affect
d. Severe Hypothermia - core temperature 92 - 86 degrees and below (immediately life threatening)
•Shivering occurs in waves, violent then pause, pauses get longer until shivering finally ceases - because the heat output from burning glycogen in the muscles is not sufficient
to counteract the continually dropping core temperature, the body shuts down on shivering to conserve glucose
•Person falls to the ground, can't walk, curls up into a fetal position to conserve heat
•Muscle rigidity develops - because peripheral blood flow is reduced and due to lactic acid and CO2 buildup in the muscles
•Skin is pale
•Pupils dilate
•Pulse rate decreases
•at 90 degrees the body tries to move into hibernation, shutting down all peripheral blood flow and reducing breathing rate and heart rate.
•at 86 degrees the body is in a state of "metabolic icebox." The person looks dead but is still alive.
e. Death from Hypothermia
•Breathing becomes erratic and very shallow
•Semi-conscious
•Cardiac arrythmias develop, any sudden shock may set off Ventricular Fibrillation
•Heart stops, death
Q: WHOA! THE FACT THAT YOU CAN DIE FROM HYPOTHERMIA IS SCARY. WHAT SHOULD I DO IF I AM EXPERIENCING IT?
A: Well, the first thing I will say is that I am not a doctor so I am obligated to say SEEK PROPER EMERGENCY CARE IMMEDIATELY! Do not pass go or collect $200. This is your life and if you have any doubt in your mind, please seek some professional care.
The OUTDOOR ACTION GUIDE suggests the following:
The basic principles of rewarming a hypothermic victim are to conserve the heat they have and replace the body fuel they are burning up to generate that heat. If a person is shivering, they have the ability to rewarm themselves at a rate of 2 degrees C per hour.
Mild - Moderate Hypothermia
1. Reduce Heat Loss
•Additional layers of clothing
•Dry clothing
•Increased physical activity
•Shelter
2. Add Fuel & Fluids
It is essential to keep a hypothermic person adequately hydrated and fueled.
a. Food types
•Carbohydrates - 5 calories/gram - quickly released into blood stream for sudden brief heat surge - these are the best to use for quick energy intake especially for mild cases of hypothermia
•Proteins - 5 calories/gram - slowly released - heat given off over a longer period
•Fats - 9 calories/gram - slowly released but are good because they release heat over a long period, however, it takes more energy to break fats down into glucose - also takes more water to break down fats leading to increased fluid loss
b. Food intake
•Hot liquids - calories plus heat source
•Sugars (kindling)
•GORP - has both carbohydrates (sticks) and proteins/fats (logs)
c. Things to avoid
•Alcohol - a vasodilator - increases peripheral heat loss
•Caffeine - a diuretic - causes water loss increasing dehydration
•Tobacco/nicotine - a vasoconstrictor, increases risk of frostbite
3. Add Heat
•Fire or other external heat source
•Body to body contact. Get into a sleeping back, in dry clothing with a normothermic person in lightweight dry clothing
Severe Hypothermia
1. Reduce Heat Loss
•Hypothermia Wrap: The idea is to provide a shell of total insulation for the patient. No matter how cold, patients can still internally rewarm themselves much more efficiently than any external rewarming. Make sure the patient is dry, and has a polypropylene layer to minimize sweating on the skin. The person must be protected from any moisture in the environment. Use multiple sleeping bags, wool blankets, wool clothing, Ensolite pads to create a minimum of 4" of insulation all the way around the patient, especially between the patient and the ground. Include an aluminum "space" blanket to help prevent radiant heat loss, and wrap the entire ensemble in plastic to protect from wind and water. If someone is truly hypothermic, don't put him/her naked in a sleeping bag with another person.
2. Add Fuel and Fluids
•Warm Sugar Water - for people in severe hypothermia, the stomach has shut down and will not digest solid food but can absorb water and sugars. Give a dilute mixture of warm water with sugar every 15 minutes. Dilute Jello™ works best since it is part sugar and part protein. This will be absorbed directly into the blood stream providing the necessary calories to allow the person to rewarm themselves. One box of Jello = 500 Kilocalories of heat energy. Do not give full strength Jello even in liquid form, it is too concentrated and will not be absorbed.
•Urination - people will have to urinate from cold diuresis. Vasoconstriction creates greater volume pressure in the blood stream. The kidneys pull off excess fluid to reduce the pressure. A full bladder results in body heat being used to keep urine warm rather than vital organs. Once the person has urinated, it precious body heat will be used to maintain the temperature of vital organs. So in the end urinating will help conserve heat. You will need to help the person urinate. Open up the Hypothermia Wrap enough to do this and then cover them back up. You will need to keep them hydrated with the dilute Jello solution described above.
3. Add Heat
Heat can be applied to transfer heat to major arteries - at the neck for the carotid, at the armpits for the brachial, at the groin for the femoral, at the palms of the hands for the arterial arch.
•Chemical heat packs such as the Heat Wave™ provides 110 degrees F for 6-10 hours.
•Hot water bottles, warm rocks, towels, compresses
•For a severely hypothermic person, rescue breathing can increase oxygen and provide internal heat.
Afterdrop
Is a situation in which the core temperature actually decreases during rewarming. This is caused by peripheral vessels in the arms and legs dilating if they are rewarmed. This dilation sends this very cold, stagnate blood from the periphery to the core further decreasing core temperature which can lead to death. In addition, this blood also is very acetic which may lead to cardiac arrythmias and death. Afterdrop can best be avoided by not rewarming the periphery. Rewarm the core only! Do not expose a severely hypothermic victim to extremes of heat.
I hope this was informative from a style and a scientific standpoint. We all want to reach our best and by being smart and working hard, we can get to those goals. Please make sure you dress properly if you are going to do outdoor workouts during the cold months. We hear a lot on the news about people suffering from heat stroke but we also hear about many who are struck by the various stages of hypothermia.
If you have any comments or questions to either Read or I, please send mail to will@3doptimalperformance and I will pass any questions on to Read.
Read is also the designer of 3 great shirts for men that are made especially for athletes focusing on a nice fit. What is great is that Read is donating part of the proceeds to help promote education in Africa. Please visit his site at http://www.readsclothingproject.com/.
Stay warm!
Read Wall and Will Stewart
I'll bet you won't guess what muscle in your body is the #1 muscle that eliminates joint and back pain, anxiety and burns fat.
ReplyDeleteIf this "hidden" most powerful primal muscle is healthy, we are healthy.
Happy to see that you appreciate compression equipment the way I do! It truly is something that many athletes are considering, even though not as many as it should.
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