I have a couple different pair of the glove/mitten combo things (like fingerless gloves with a flip-top) in two different thicknesses. My hands will still sometimes be cold for a while, but usually warm up. With the fliptop I can also keep my hands from getting sweaty and ending up colder.I will use the handwarmers for long runs (2+ hours) in temps around 0 or below, just because my body goes through so many cycles of hot and cold on those types of runs.
20,000 miles behind me, the world still to see.
These don't show it really well, but give you an idea of the kind of top-pop mittens I use. Note there's no gloves inside to confuse the issue and make them hard to use. Left just has my hand out of mitten but it's still around my wrist. Right has the main part of mitten tucked back under the wrist, out of the way. The usual way has my hand completely in the mitten, which is the way I start, but I didn't think to take a picture of that. Just getting these with an iphone with a flip cover in daylight was challenging.
As I warm up or need to access something like my camera, I can flip the mitten back. I've got a couple pairs of these in different weights and breathability. My experience has been that some sort of wind protection works best as my hands dry out and get cold in a regular fleece or wool (ragg wool).
These mittens work for me down close to 0F, and I've got another pair that works reasonably well down to about -20F as long as I'm moving. If I'm stopped taking pictures (like of a race), then I may need more. I've got some REI regular mittens that work well for that and may resort to handwarmers at those temps, esp. if taking a lot of pictures. If I'm moving right along at 0F, I may find my hands want to breathe a bit more so pop them out for some fresh air, then put them back when they want more warmth.
These are particularly nice in short days where it may start cold, warm up, then get cold again as sun sets or weather changes.
There's a runner in Oregon who had a small business selling these, but I haven't seen her website recently. She mostly did a lightweight mitten with a rainproof cover, but she worked with me on these heavier mittens. She sent me samples of material from the shop where she got her materials. I believe they also had descriptions of the material to know how windproof they might be. Yes, we take our gear seriously up here. It can make or break a nice winter day.
Happy Thanksgiving.
Drink up moho's!!
I would bet you have a blood circulation issue as mentioned already. Try the handwarmers and see if that helps. You might want to get your circulation concerns addressed with the doctor as well.
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/raynauds-disease/DS00433
5K Specialist
I have some cheap $5 gloves that I purchased from Target last year. I am in Texas. It doesn't get too cold here.
Personal Bests:
800M - 2:38 (5/28/13) | 1 Mile -5:54 (5/28/13) | 3K - 11:55 (12/29/12) | 2M - 13:00 (12/1/12) | 5K - 20:00 (4/12/13) | 13.1M - 1:37:24 (2/3/13)
Thanks, that will be very helpful to the OP.
Dave
Return To Racing
If your gloves are big enough or stretchy, try making a fist inside the glove and leave the glove fingers loose for the first mile or two until you warm up.
Chasing the bus
I wear a pair of seirus hi viz ski-type gloves. They keep me warm to -20. Of your glove combo already does not keep you warm, I'd be thinking circulation, and handwarmers.
“You're either on the bus or off the bus.” ― Tom Wolfe, The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test
There are a lot of good ideas here, thanks!
I checked that link and am pretty certain I have no issues with that (there were some rough looking photos in another link I saw!). Luckily for me, the temps around here have returned to the normal low 20's/30's which I have covered. That will afford me the time to go out and actually try some on, as opposed to blind shopping on the internet.
Looking at the array of gloves I have, it seems that I need a product to run in single digit wind chills, or temps in the teens where there is a steady wind.
This one pair I would have never bought in a million years had I seen them in person beforehand, they are basically goretex without any insulation. I should have paid more attention to that but saw the words wind blocker and let my guard down, since I detest the winter wind with every fiber of my being.
That is a thirty dollar mistake I will never make again.
I have Reynauds and my hands are cold all year long. In the cooler/colder months the fingers
turn colorless and can go completely numb. This will be my 14th winter of outdoor running
in Canada and I run outside all winter in temps as low as -15F. Not much keeps me home on
the dreadmill but it can be painful if my finger aren't warm enough.
What works for me is double layering with a thin pair of mittens underneath and a pair of
big fluffy double layer mittens on top. It doesn't always keep my hands warm in the temps I run
but at least they aren't as painful when I get home.
Nothing like skin against skin to help stay warm.
I'm just going to leave that hanging in the air. You do have way with words.
Short term goal: 17:59 5K
Mid term goal: 2:54:59 marathon
Long term goal: To say I've been a runner half my life. (I started running at age 45).
I have a pair of the mizuno breath thermo gloves. They're good for down to about 15F, colder than that and I wear a 2nd pair of gloves.
... This one pair I would have never bought in a million years had I seen them in person beforehand, they are basically goretex without any insulation. I should have paid more attention to that but saw the words wind blocker and let my guard down, since I detest the winter wind with every fiber of my being. That is a thirty dollar mistake I will never make again.
Those are typically used as an overmitt, at least the ones I've seen. It's not unusual for really cold temperatures to use two layers - one insulating and one windproof and maybe waterproof. The inside layer can be removed to dry out when in camp or at home or whereever..
That's what I like about my mittens, I can easily invert them to dry them out.
(We were about +13F, 30 mph = -6F windchill today, but it depended exactly where you were because the winds come out of various glacial valleys)
Mittens are the way to go. Make sure the liner is also a mitten (and not a glove). Keeping your fingers together will help to keep them warm. I bought a pair of Brooks Utopia 2-in-1 mittens last year, and they have worked well for me.
I second the rec for these Brooks gloves. I have a lot of trouble keeping my hands warm too (though I'm a lefty, so I my watch makes my right hand colder :P), I just end up with two throbbing bricks for hands at the end of runs in the cold. In certain weather, my hands just never warm up. I also have Raynaud's to make it more fun.
Those gloves are crazy warm. I did a lot of 15+ mile long runs last year in sub 20 degree temperatures, and they helped a lot.
My wildly inconsistent PRs:
5k: 24:36 (10/20/12)
10k: 52:01 (4/28/12)
HM: 1:50:09 (10/27/12)
Marathon: 4:19:11 (10/2/2011)
I have the same issue with my left hand, I have tried hand warmers and they help a little. One thing I have noticed is once my hand starts sweating it's all over, so I wear cheap jersey gloves inside mittens and carry extra pair of jersey glove with me. When my hands starts getting cold I changed out the jersey glove with a dry one and it will usually warm back up for a few more miles.
Barking Mad To Run
What you need to do is learn to run with your hands down the front of your running pants....then you not only keep your hands warm but also....
There are a lot of good ideas here, thanks! I checked that link and am pretty certain I have no issues with that (there were some rough looking photos in another link I saw!). Luckily for me, the temps around here have returned to the normal low 20's/30's which I have covered. That will afford me the time to go out and actually try some on, as opposed to blind shopping on the internet. Looking at the array of gloves I have, it seems that I need a product to run in single digit wind chills, or temps in the teens where there is a steady wind. This one pair I would have never bought in a million years had I seen them in person beforehand, they are basically goretex without any insulation. I should have paid more attention to that but saw the words wind blocker and let my guard down, since I detest the winter wind with every fiber of my being. That is a thirty dollar mistake I will never make again.
"Do what you can, with what you have, where you are." Theodore Roosevelt