Dressing appropriately - for chilly weather

It can be challenging to dress appropriately for a run when the weather is chilly, not cold. On a run you heat up within a few minutes and even a light-weight long-sleeved top can feel too warm; but short sleeves may be just a little too cold.

While I was away my friends at Hi-Tec sent me their new thermal underoos to try (Hi-Tec Coolman Seamless) -  a long-sleeve, close-fitting, thermal top and leggings.

Last week I went for a walk with my mom. It's quite chill in the evenings now and on walks I tend to get quite cold because my mom's pace is slower than mine. I put on the top and added my favourite-favourite running garment ever, a sleeveless The North Face Hydrogen Vest, which a friend from the US gave me about two years ago. It's from their Flite Series -  a range of really light-weight running apparel. The Hi-Tec thermal top is a snug fit and not something I feel comfortable wearing without a layer over it.

This TNF vest has a thin windproof fabric on the front and mesh on the sides and back. I think I wore it almost every day last winter, with a light long sleeve top (or short sleeve with armies) because it just works so well. We really don't get cold enough here (in Jo'burg) to run with more than this. This style doesn't seem to be available any more - there is a men's one, not women's.

Well, within five minutes, even in the chilly air, I was cooking. And throughout the walk I was a bit too warm, even after unzipping the vest. I'm going to have to let these Hi-Tec thermals wait a bit until it is really, really cold because this base layer really is effective.

I usually run in the evenings when there's still a bit of warmth from the day -  a bit. At the moment I'm fluctuating between short sleeves (I warm up within minutes) and a very light long-sleeved top (yesterday this was just too warm but last Saturday morning it was perfect). I'm probably going to start wearing my armies again, with short sleeves - when I get too warm I just roll them down.

For the next month, during this season transition, it is still going to be hard to judge what to wear to run but as soon as those winter cold fronts start to hit then those thermals will come out.