Question & Answer with LRC Athlete Rick Shema
Rick Shema has been part of the LRC since we launched and recently relocated from Hawaii to Pennsylvania. We caught up with Rick to hear about his running background and pick up a few pointers for running in cold, wintry conditions.
Q. How long have you been running and what is your favorite event/ race distance?
A. I first started running in high school in the mid 1970s. I began running on the cross country team (which earned 2nd place in Pennsylvania State HS championships!) and learned lots of the technical details about running. The team averaged 50 miles per week and the races were 3.2 miles. All of our cross country training sessions were outside – it didn’t matter if it was sleeting, snowing, blizzards and below freezing – looking back, that’s how I became accustomed to running in cold weather.
Q. Advice for surviving winter training/ workouts/ races, especially from a PA perspective?
A. My advice for surviving winter running workouts is to get a treadmill (LoL)! But if you have to run outside in the freezing cold do it safely! Here are a few pieces of advice, things that help me to run outside – especially when it’s less than 40 F/ 4 C outside with no wind.
a.) Be mindful of wind chill, frostbite, and hypothermia. Hypothermia can set in with air temperatures below 60 deg F (16 deg C). I stay as dry as possible and layer up or down. I run in clean clothes to prevent fibers from clogging with dirt that can reduce fabric breathability. After completing a workout, I take off sweaty, wet clothes. To prevent frostbite, I cover as much skin as possible with clothing (gloves, hat, scarf, & a turtle -neck) and apply balm to my face particularly nose, ears, and chin. Frostbite can occur within 30 minutes on exposed skin with a temperature of 0 F (-18 C) and wind speed of 10-15 mph. See the wind chill chart below courtesy of National Weather Service.
b.) A good warm up is essential for me. I’ll do a dynamic warm up (inside if it’s close to freezing outside) and a short run in lots of layers including a hat, gloves, scarf! After warming up, I shed enough clothes to the point of being cool and not over sweating. Then I’m ready to begin the workout section of my run.
c.) Test running surfaces for slippery conditions, particularly black ice. If it’s been raining and below freezing – the perfect conditions for black ice – I usually run more flatfooted so that my body weight is over the top of my feet. Heel striking can lead to increased chance of slipping. If there is a lot of black ice I don’t workout.
d.) Stay close to home and let someone know where you are going – checking back in with the person after your workout ends. Living in a very rural area I run small loops straight out of my front door, which keeps me close to home just incase something happens.
Q. What do you enjoy most about running/ working out in the winter?
A. I love getting out in the Pennsylvania mountains – enjoying a crisp air run in the fall and winter seasons. The beauty of fall foliage changing to snow covered trees and ground energizes me. As far as I can remember, I’ve taken great pleasure in all four seasons in mountain woods and lakes. Observing nature is fascinating and keeps me grounded. Finally, running in winter is a way to get out of the house and get some exercise. I don’t like gyms or cardio equipment for indoor work outs.
Q. Looking ahead to 2020, what are your main goals?
A. My main goals are to stay healthy, improve my 5K and 10K race times, and increase my endurance to run races more enjoyably.