Marathon Weekend 2026

Oh good! Edited to add: not good you’ve been dealing with that since August, but good you’ve got a pro on board
For sure!! It’s definitely helped…just slow going sadly. Ive been thinking since your post…I might revisit the gait analysis with multiple pairs of shoes and see if she can discern anything.
 

Good morning RunDisney All-Stars! Welcome to this week's edition of Sundays are for Disney (SAFD). This morning's question comes to you early, as I get ready to head out for a local marathon this morning. The weather is turning cooler and I'm debating how to dress for a 40 degree start. It's right in that uncomfortable too cool for shorts/short sleeves, but not cold enough for tights/thermal shirt zone. How do you change your running accoutrements as the temperature drops?

SAFD: I tend to get cold easily, so I generally stick to shorts/short sleeves until temperatures hit 55 or so, then I start to change things up. From 40-55, it's generally shorts and a long sleeve shirt, adding gloves once it gets below 50. Below 40, the tights and thermal shirts come out, along with a fleece headband to keep my ears warm. I will say I tend to over-dress a bit, as I hate being cold and would rather be a bit too warm late in the run than too cool early on.
 
SAFD: I am in the "what do I wear" dilemma this morning. It is 42 right now, but likely to drop a few more degrees before it gets light and I start my run. I find that 35 degrees in October seems warmer than 35 degrees in January and February. So right now I am wearing shorts in this weather. But come the winter, I will likely be wearing pants. I too tend to overdress, preferring too warm over too cold. I can't ever seem to find gloves/mittens that keep my hands warm if it is below 35!

Under 50 is where I start to bundle a little bit. Above 50 it is generally t-shirt and shorts.
 
SAFD: As someone once said, the cold never bothered me anyway. I'd rather be cold than hot and I tend to heat up fast when I run. I rely on easily removable layers like arm warmers, hats/ear bands, gloves, and temporary/tossable fixes like hand warmers and mylar. I'll stash the former in a pocket or my waistband to put back on if/when I slow down or I need them after the race. It has to be pretty cold for me to cover my legs, but I will toss a thin legging on under a skort now and then. Last MW's 5K is the only time I can recall wearing full weight leggings for a race, and it was legit cold and I was walking most of it since I was doing Dopey.

I packed arm warmers at the last minute this past week and I did end up using them for the W&D 5K. I never removed them, but I did fold them down to my wrists for most of the run and pulled them back up post-race.
 
SAFD: I run in full-length tights or capris most of the time, and I'm generally a cold person (as I sit on my couch, under a blanket, drinking my coffee...the same as I do in the summer) so being "too hot" is usually not a thing for me. I tend to overdress, but in layers so if I *have* to, I can take things off and stash them along my route or tie them around my waist. I am 100% team fleece headband because it won't hold onto moisture if it's wet (from the *s* word) but doesn't hold all of the heat onto my head. I get touchscreen gloves from costco. I have a vest. And I have a variety of UA coldgear long-sleeved tops. One is a turtleneck and tends to be my go-to if it's windy.

My ultimate cold-weather hack is to just run on the treadmill because it's annoying to try to figure out what/how many layers to wear, and it's just more laundry to wash in the end.
 
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SAFD: In addition to the absolute temperature I take into account the wind and run duration as I tend to get warm on longer runs regardless of temperature (also - is the temperature forecast to change during my run). Ideally I’d have tossable layers like when I do a rD race but since I can’t afford to be throwing clothes away every weekend I try to dress for how I think I will feel for the majority of the run.

This weekend is a good example. Identical conditions yesterday and today. 43 degrees, sunny, light winds at the start. Yesterday was a 5 mile run. I don’t have as much time to warm up so I went out with running pants, jacket and gloves (gloves came off near the end). Today is 10 miles. I will run in shorts, no gloves and the jacket will be a decision after I step outside.

One thing I always do for cold runs is to do my warmups inside before heading out. That way I start getting my body temperature up before I hit the cold.
 
SAFD: Cold weather? What’s that?

Seriously though, the coldest weather I’ve ever run in is during last year’s marathon. I started with leggings and arm warmers, and ended with shorts and a T-shirt. Also had a balaclava and gloves. The balaclava got discarded on the way to MK, leggings in MK, arm warmers on the way to AK, and gloves in AK.

If it’s colder than 40 degrees, I will either wait for it to warm up or run on the treadmill.
 
SAFD I’m generally in tshirts and shorts down to the mid 30s. My issue with the cold is fingers followed by my head so you’ll see me in shorts and gloves at 45 with a hat added at 40. If there’s rain I’m in rain gear or not depending on temp but if it’s cold rain I’m inside. It goes through my bones too quick.
 
SAFD: it depends on when the cold weather is happening--the first cold days of late fall are a lot different than the first less-cold days of early spring, despite the temps being the same.

When it first starts getting cold, I tend to jump into my long leggings and long sleeves right away. And when it gets properly winter cold, I've got insulted leggings and cropped insulated jackets (which sounds odd, but my torso is short and long jackets just ride up anyway) and I just keep running no matter how cold it is.

Once winter breaks a bit, I break out the capris and t shirts, and once it's about 50 and sunny, I'll switch to tank tops.

I did layer up quite a bit for MW25, with a long sleeve shirt under a tshirt, and long insulated leggings, or at least long leggings, under my skirts.
 
Marathon weekend is now on the clock!!!
This will be my first time attending a race weekend and not running in it. I'm excited to hear tips on spectating. We'll be chasing around a marathoner and plan to hit all four parks to clap and cheer.
 
SAFD: My general rule is that below 55, I switch to long sleves and shorts. Once it drops below 50, then I will use running pants as well. Where I struggle is on long runs where I know the temps will warm up by the end, but I find a quarter zip long sleeve helps me regulate pretty well. I also started using arm sleeves the last couple years and like them as I can pull them off if I start to get warm and stash them in a pocket. In the getting older isn't for the weak cacatgory, in the last couple of years, I have discovered I have Raynauds Syndrome so now I also add running gloves below 40 and running mittens if below 30.
 





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