How cold is too cold?

Today is one of those days where I planned on running and I didn't.  So I'm feeling so extraordinarily guilty about, I'm turning to the Internet to justify my reasons.

It was 10 degrees outside today, but the wind chill made it feel like -5.  I had planned on running after classes, but I was shivering inside my wool coat, and my toes were thoroughly frozen.  So yes, I could have taken the miserable route and have gone running, but instead, I'm now curled up under my covers, looking up cardio kickboxing workouts.

I chickened out today.  But my question is, how cold is too cold?  At what point do you decide to let the weather get the better of you?

Snow and Ice and Everything Nice

I really admire the people who go out and run no matter what the weather.  Maybe their area is more mild, or maybe they are just immune to the cold.  Whatever it is, it took a lot of planning and a great deal of willpower for me to go for a run this very frigid January.

 

Polar Vortex and Cardio Kickboxing

I never thought I would have to experience another winter as brutal as Polar Vortex of 2014.

2015 is coming pretty close, though.  The new year started off with record low temperatures.  I forgot to turn on my heat before going to bed one night and I think I woke up with frostbite.

You can imagine I was looking for any opportunity to run outside, and yesterday, with the temperatures rising into the 20s, I snatched my chance.

Unfortunately, when I stepped outside, I slipped in the slush got pelted by a flurry of ice pellets.

I decided to do the smart thing and skip the run, but I was still feeling horribly guilty about my lack of cardio as of late.  So I asked an athletic friend for alternative solutions, and she suggested cardio kickboxing.  I had never tried it before, but it sounded fun, and more appealing than falling flat onto icy pavement.

When I got home, I played the first beginner's cardio kickboxing workout I could find.  While I was doing it, I thought the workout was too easy.  I wasn't horribly out of breath.  I'm also not the most coordinated person ever, so I was moving like some spastic circus monkey, and I figured there was no way I could be getting any fitness benefit from that.

By the end of the workout, though I was dripping sweat.  I could feel some soreness creeping into my shoulders and triceps.

Today, my range of motion is pretty limited.  DOMS is hitting me hard.  It's the good kind of soreness, the kind that lets me know muscles are getting stronger, and making me excited to try another workout.  I'm pleasantly surprised.

It looks like I found something to do while I wait out this winter.