What do I do about a long run if the weather is bad?

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image courtesy of GoERIE
Running in the snow can be a lot of fun. Go here for our past blog post: Enjoy a Snow Run.

Snow running may be okay, but black ice and windchills below zero are a no, no. The risks outweigh the benefits. Lots of runners are wondering what to do if the old man winter shuts down a run. Should I run 16 miles on the treadmill? How about 6? Yikes, no!

If you do not regularly run long distances on the treadmill, I don't recommend it. And you if plan to run your race on the road, I don't recommend spending much time on a treadmill period. But there are several other options for you to consider:

  • push your long run to the following weekend. 
  • push your run to Sunday.
  • split the long run distance in two, running half Saturday afternoon and half Sunday (weather permitting) 
  • combine a treadmill run with some runner friendly cross training cardio. e.g. if 10 miles is on your schedule and it takes you 90 minutes to run 10 miles, then you will do 90 minutes total of the following three activities: treadmill run + elliptical + water run (30 min each).
What the heck is water running? It's exactly as it sounds - you run in the water (like treading water but you actually lean forward and try to cover some distance). You can wear a belt, but if you don't its more challenging. You can push off the pool floor, but you don't have to. I recommend water shoes if you do - some pool floors are rough on the feet.

Stay safe and good luck!