There is so much to love about Spring Running: more sunshine, flowers, leaves on the trees, birds chirping away. It’s not all daffodils and lilies, though! Best to be prepared for the curveballs Spring might throw you — or just prepare for Spring in general!
Protect your eyes!
It’s the rare day I run without sunglasses on, no matter what the season. It happens — sometimes when it’s raining or it’s so cold they’ll just fog up. If you’ve gotten out of the habit of wearing sunglasses — or never started — Spring is the right time to get back in the habit!
Did you know cataracts often start forming at age 40, but generally don’t start impairing vision until after age 60? My eye doctor has already told me a couple of years ago that I have cataracts, but at least then they didn’t require surgery. Pretty sure my vision hasn’t changed much since then, but still, I know that day is coming.
Wearing sunglasses is one of the ways we can hold off those cataracts from forming.
Don’t put away the Winter clothes just yet
This depends on where you live; if you’re in the South you’re probably pretty safe putting them away. We can get snow in April (often as an April Fool’s Day joke — not joking!) — even into May. When it comes to weather and dressing in Spring, you need to be prepared for just about anything.
Take an inventory of your shoes and your Spring running clothes
Is it time for some new running shoes? Do you have any idea how many miles are on your shoes? Do you have any annoying aches and pains? It might be time for a new pair — or two. I like to rotate through a couple of pairs year round, for a variety of reasons. If you get caught in a Spring downpour or run on a muddy trail, that means you’ll always have a fresh, dry pair ready to run in.
Do your Spring running clothes still fit? Or maybe last season you thought you’d find a Spring running jacket in the end of the season sales, but you didn’t. Maybe it’s time for a new bra or socks. Just take stock of what you have and start to fill in any holes!
Get ahead of the allergies
Thankfully I don’t suffer with allergies, but I know it’s pretty debilitating. Start your allergy medicine (of course also consult with your doctor) before you’re really suffering. Starting sooner rather than later helps to calm your immune system down and keep inflammation down.
Schedule your runs for when pollen is lowest:
- Later in the day
- Cooler, wetter days (oh joy!)
One switch I’ve made this year was to crack a window year round. Even on the most bitterly cold days — although not at night, and not all day. Because COVID loves poor air circulation. Unfortunately, letting that fresh air in lets the pollen in too.
Be mindful of having the windows open in your car for the same reason. Not to mention those little pollen carrying quadrapeds, aka our dogs and cats who go outside. Of course they need to be outside at times, but if you let them sleep in bed with you, you may make your seasonal allergies worse. Click here for 10 tips to help you live with allergies and your pets.
Now that the weather is nicer (maybe! hopefully!), what about races?
Spring is one of my favorite times to race. Races are sparse in Winter in these parts – but that oh so fickle weather can also you get you. Not to mention the Pandemic still chugging along.
Take stock of how you trained through the Winter. Are you really race ready, even if all you want to do is have fun? Consider building a base if you haven’t run as much during Winter. Have you kept up with strength training? Now is definitely the time to get back to it!
Consider hiring a coach to help you ease back into racing. We’ve got some great ones in these linkups!
You may also like 5 Spring Running Tips here
What’s your Spring weather like?
Do you have RL racing opportunities?
Any tips with for the runners with allergies?
Linking up with Zenaida Arroyo and Kim @ Kookyrunner
This week I am also joining up with the new Runners’ Roundup linkup.
Chocolaterunsjudy 
Oh, I remember a relay marathon race in Switzerland in April a few years ago. It snowed ALL day and we were frozen while waiting for our turn to run. That was definitely a spring race gone wrong, haha!
Kai suffers quite a bit from allergies. We will return to Switzerland at the beginning of May and he’s going to be suffering until the end of June. Great tips about running later in the day – we will try that!
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My husband really suffers with allergies, too. My brother & dad do/did too — guess I was lucky, although I know they can also start at any time in your life.
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That’s interesting. I was just at my Eye Doctor and I asked about cataracts since many of my friends have add surgery. I don’t have any…yet. But he said everyone gets than unless you die first. Ha Ha. I asked about sunglasses prolonging things and he said there’s no medical evidence to provide that it’s true. The good news about cataracts is that you won’t need contacts or glasses after the surgery. Anyway, he’s a doctor so I do believe him. I do wear sunglasses because my eyes are sensible to tight (even on cloudy days).
Spring is very fickle so one day you’re in a tank top and the next day tights. Very hard to pack for a trip.
Still loving the flowers that will bloom (but we have lots of deer so who knows what will grow.) lol
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I’ve yet to be in a tank top, although I did lay out one for tomorrow. I’ll be wearing a jacket over it in case though!
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I wore one yesterday and will tomorrow.
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I think it’s far enough into spring that I can put away my winter running clothes. Yay! As much as I love all of the spring flowers, the pollen here in May is terrible so I’m not looking forward to the rivers of pollen we will have then (when it rains there will literally be yellow streams in the roads). Usually Zyrtec will take care of it and if I need more I’ll buy some Flonase.
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Where you live I can imagine you can put away winter stuff! We can get snow in April!
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Running in the Spring is perfect, except for the allergies. And of course I was a little late starting my allergy routine this year so I’m suffering now. Fingers crossed that this year’s allergy season won’t be too bad.
Love the tip about not putting away your Winter running clothes. I had to wear Coldgear for my outdoor workout on Saturday which was the first day of Spring, lol
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I do think i can put away the really heavy winter stiff though. 😊
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My doctor gave me an inhaler to use before going out for a run. It does seem to help open up the airways. My allergies haven’t been as bad the last couple of years, which could be because I started taking Zyrtec and I also take Benadryl or Claritin every day. Getting ahead of it seems to help.
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That’s great you’ve been able to get ahead of them! I know they can be miserable.
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Great tips Judy! I saw something on the news this morning about how masks are helping people with allergies 🙂 You just have to be careful to wash it more often.
I just switched over my winter running clothes last week and then we got a little surprise snow, ha! Fortunately I only moved out the REALLY warm stuff, so I was okay.
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Interesting about masks & allergies. I should tell my husband to wear one more often.
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I ran Zion Half one year in April and it was unseasonably cold. I froze my butt off. Spring can be sneaky like that.
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I’m just impressed you ran Zion! That is tough! We spent time in Zion before a half in Park City. Running there was hard!
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Spring is really hit and miss in Iowa. I remember prom dress shopping with one of the daughters, and there was a fresh layer of snow on the ground. I have to admit…I have snuck in a few runs with just one of my “winter” base layers (flannel-lined) and it has felt perfect (even with shorts on the bottom LOL). Yes to sunglasses, year-round! They help prevent wrinkles as well #WinWin 😉
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Very true about the wrinkles!
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Now is the time that races start slowing down. Lots of 5Ks, but that’s about it until October.
I rarely leave my house without sunglasses. It’s just too bright here.
And I always need new shoes. In fact, I am going on Thursday.
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I need new shoes too but usually get them online.
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Luckily I don’t have allergies so no problem there. I don’t wear sunglasses because I cannot see clearly with them on and I am afraid I will trip and fall. I don’t put my Winter clothes away because there is no room here but I agree that you never know and might need it again. The weather here is weird.
Thank you for linking up with us!
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I’ve got to have my sunglasses! But seeing is definitely more important.
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I love spring running! But you’re right- its not time to put away the winter running gear just yet. I almost always wear sunglasses when I run in the daylight.
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At least I haven’t had to wear the heavier running jackets recently. 😊
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Such a great point about sunglasses. So many people don’t take care of their eyes until it’s too late. I’ve been reckless with mine but the last year, I’ve been quite good about wearing mine especially on those bright days. We are heading into Fall, it’s already getting darker earlier and feeling a lot cooler.
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I don’t have great eyes so I’m always protective of them!
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Great tips! Since my late winter is equal to most people’s spring I’ve already done most of these things. I always rotate a couple of pairs of shoes and track the mileage. I have a pretty new pair already waiting to be put to use!
I always wear sunglasses but I hear you about taking care of your eyes. I don’t have cataracts but I have some issues with floaters and debris in my eyes which can impair my vision.
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I wouldn’t know I had cataracts starting if the eye dr hadn’t told me.
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Ah, I always feel left out when people talk about these seasonal things! Your post did remind me that I probably need new shoes.
I never walk out the door without my sunglasses, even when it’s rainy! Crazy Floridians.
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Even in TX I felt we had 4 seasons. Some were just shorter & milder. 😊
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My allergies have been fierce the last 2 weeks! All the trees are blooming and you can literally see the pollen flying around. I know it will only last a few weeks but wow it’s challenging
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We’re still waiting for the first leaves. 😊
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