As soon as our days start to get shorter and the weather turns colder, many of us are more than happy to spend the rest of winter cooped up indoors. This can often mean that exercise and training outdoors can get put on hold during winter – but we’re here to tell you that there are so many surprising benefits of exercising outside in winter.
Don’t let the cold weather freeze your training plan! Keep up your fitness regime throughout winter and embrace the cold weather with outdoor exercise, from running and cycling, to even trying something new, such as a winter sport or cold-water swimming. Plus, as your heart will work harder during exercise in the cold, you’ll be giving your cardiovascular system a good workout too, keeping your heart in good health throughout winter.
Discover our top three benefits of training in cold weather and how you can best prepare your body for exercising in the cold.
How to Prepare for Exercising in Cold Weather
It’s important to ensure you’re wearing the right clothing for training in the cold. Remember to wrap up warm and protect your head, hands and feet. Layers will be a great option, as you can remove them if you start to get warm. Before heading out to exercise in the cold, warm up properly to reduce the risk of injury. Some simple arm circles, ankle rotations, and hip circles can do you the world of good.
Remember to stay hydrated before, during, and after your winter training as you may not notice you’re feeling as thirsty as you would when exercising in the heat. Our Klean Hydration Sachets are the perfect companion for your cold weather exercise, as it supports optimal hydration and fluid replenishment.‡
What Are 3 Benefits of Training in Cold Weather?
1. Improves Mood
Keep the winter blues at bay with cold weather exercise. It may sound surprising that training outdoors in the cold weather can boost your mood, but there’s a few reasons why this is possible.
Firstly, as we all know too well, exercise releases endorphins that are responsible for making us feel good – which is often referred to as the ‘runner’s high’. You could reduce feelings of seasonal depression and low mood during winter by continuing your exercise regime in the colder months.
Not only will you feel great after working out in the cold, you’ll also be getting a dose of vitamin D. Although you may get limited exposure to the sun during winter, it’s still important to ensure you’re getting enough vitamin D to support bone health and your immune system.
Exercising outdoors in the cold can help boost your vitamin D levels and your mood, just by simply being outside in nature. Even if you are training in cold weather, athletes should consider taking a vitamin D supplement during winter, such as our Klean-D supplements with 5,000 IU vitamin D per tablet.
