Love it or hate it, winter running poses several unique challenges, from speed workouts on icy roads to low motivation from seasonal affective disorder. In this episode, we discuss training modifications, running gear, and nutrition approaches for training in the cold and snow.

✨Join us on Patreon.com/treadlightlyrunning or subscribe on Apple Podcasts starting in December, when we’ll be releasing special subscriber-only content!

In this episode, you’ll learn:

✅ How to deal with cold hands and Raynaud’s syndrome

✅ How to layer for winter runs

✅ Shoe choices for winter running

✅ When to run on the treadmill in winter

✅ How to handle race training during the snow and cold

✅ Do you run slower in the cold?

✅ Dealing with low motivation and seasonal affective disorder

✅ How to balance running and winter sports

✅ Hydration on winter runs

If you enjoyed this episode, you may also like:

🎧 Your Guide to Cold Weather Running (ep 42, 24 Nov 2023)

🎧 Your Treadmill Running Questions, Answered (ep 87, 11 Oct 2024)

🎧 A Science-Backed Guide to Hydration for Runners (ep 92, 15 Nov 2024)

Tread Lightly Running is hosted and researched by Amanda Brooks and Laura Norris, MSc. Production, show notes, and graphics by Laura Norris.

Let’s stay connected:

➡️ Tread Lightly Running Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/treadlightlyrunning/

➡️ Laura Norris Running on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lauranorrisrunning/

➡️ Subscribe for weekly evidence-based newsletters, straight to your inbox, on https://lauranorrisrunning.substack.com/

➡️ Run to the Finish on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runtothefinish/?hl=en

➡️ Thousands of running gear reviews and training guides: https://runtothefinish.com/

Base building is not very exciting – but it is highly effective, whether your goal is to run a faster marathon or 5K. While often conflated with an off-season, a base building phase is a distinct and crucial training phase. This phase of lots of easy miles develops both aerobic fitness and tissue tolerance, so that you can later build race-specific fitness with lower risk of injury and greater adaptations overall. In this episode, we discuss the adaptations of base building, how to structure a base building phase, and more!

✨Join us on Patreon.com/treadlightlyrunning or subscribe on Apple Podcasts starting in December, when we’ll be releasing special subscriber-only content!

In this episode, you’ll learn:

✅ What is base building and why is it beneficial?

✅ Is base building solely easy running?

✅ How long should a base building last?

✅ Sample workouts for a base building phase

✅ The role of long runs during a base build

✅ How often should you run during a base building phase?

References:

🔬 PMID: 40913707

🔬 PMID: 40878015

Tread Lightly Running is hosted and researched by Amanda Brooks and Laura Norris, MSc. Production, show notes, and graphics by Laura Norris.

Let’s stay connected:

➡️ Tread Lightly Running Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/treadlightlyrunning/

➡️ Laura Norris Running on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lauranorrisrunning/

➡️ Subscribe for weekly evidence-based newsletters, straight to your inbox, on https://lauranorrisrunning.substack.com/

➡️ Run to the Finish on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runtothefinish/?hl=en

➡️ Thousands of running gear reviews and training guides: https://runtothefinish.com/

Will running in the “grey zone” cause you to flounder - or appropriately dosed amounts let your fitness flourish? This remastered episode, originally from January 2024, provides a nuanced discussion on how moderate intensity running can be beneficial in the correct doses - but why you don’t want to train every day in this zone.

✨Join us on Patreon.com/treadlightlyrunning or subscribe on Apple Podcasts starting in December, when we’ll be releasing special subscriber-only content!

In this episode, you’ll learn:

✅ What is the grey zone in running?

✅ The benefits and detriments of running in the grey zone

✅ How to use the talk test

✅ When to use zone 3 training

✅ Should you do all of your long runs at marathon pace?

✅ What is polarized training (hard days hard, easy days easy)

✅ Marathon pace/zone 3 workouts

✅ Zone 2 vs zone running when you are a beginner runner

If you enjoyed this episode, you may also like

🎧 Why 80/20 Doesn’t Work For Every Runner (12 Dec 2025)

🎧 Why You Need All Training Zones to Improve a a Runner (29 Aug 2025)

🎧 Does Zone 2 Actually Matter for Runners? (6 June 2025)

References:

🔬 PMID: 33344993

🔬 PMID: 36900796

🔬PMID: 35661059

🔬PMID: 26578968

🔬Skiba, Scientific Training For Endurance Athletes

⁠https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fspor.2019.00070/full⁠

Tread Lightly Running is hosted and researched by Amanda Brooks and Laura Norris, MSc. Production and graphics by Laura Norris.

Let’s stay connected:

➡️ Tread Lightly Running Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/treadlightlyrunning/

➡️ Laura Norris Running on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lauranorrisrunning/

➡️ Subscribe for weekly evidence-based newsletters, straight to your inbox, on https://lauranorrisrunning.substack.com/

➡️ Run to the Finish on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runtothefinish/?hl=en

➡️ Thousands of running gear reviews and training guides: https://runtothefinish.com/