QT: Is Suffering Through a Run in Bad Weather Really Necessary?

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We all know that we can’t control the weather.

As a general rule, planned races happen no matter what the weather conditions are.

While we would all prefer ideal weather conditions on race day, that’s simply not realistic.

So how do you make sure you’re ready to go on race day, no matter what the weather gods throw your way?

Turns out, that’s something of a layered question…

To Train or Not To Train…

I was on a consult call with a runner recently, and we were talking about how he was going to handle the last 10 days or so of training leading up to his first marathon.

He told me what he was thinking, and honestly, his plan sounded spot on.

But then he said something that simultaneously made me smile and also made me think.

The gist of his statement was that if the weather was really crappy on one of the days he was thinking about running, he’d just shuffle the days or skip that run completely.

He said he’d run in all kinds of crappy weather before but wasn’t sure he needed to “practice” bad weather running again between now and his race.

To Suffer or Not to Suffer…

I’ve heard so many runners talk about training in crappy weather because you might have to race in crappy weather.

And to a certain extent, I can’t argue with that logic.

But the more I think about it, the less I’m buying it.

I’m honestly not sure there’s anything tangible to be gained by going for an hour or two in miserable weather conditions at this point.

On race day? Sure, I’m going to get it done.

But for a random long run in October? Or November? Or any other month of the year?

An Argument For Suffering

Near as I can tell, there is at least one compelling argument for getting out there in some miserable weather.

And that would be to test your gear.

If part of your plan would be to wear certain rain gear or cold gear or whatever gear in a race in miserable conditions, it’s not a bad idea to put said gear through the paces once or twice.

But outside of that?

I don’t know.

Maybe I’m just too old to feel like I need to prove something to myself by running on a rainy day when temps are just north of freezing.

You Do You

Look, if you disagree with me on this one, that’s cool.

As is pretty much always the case around here, I’m not going to say this is any sort of one-size-fits-all scenario.

If you want to grind out your miles on a day when the conditions are terrible? Go for it.

And you’re right, you might have to do it on race day so there’s nothing wrong with practicing for those conditions.

But if you’re on the fence? If you’re not keen on the idea of being cold and wet for a couple of hours (or more) when the weather and your training plan don’t exactly line up in the way you might prefer?

There’s nothing wrong with sitting that one out.

QT: Is Suffering Through a Run in Bad Weather Really Necessary? Click To Tweet

How Do You Handle Bad Weather for a Training Run?

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