Hong Kong Stay Warm Running Tips

After running my way through more than one winter in New Hampshire, I considered myself a Winter Warrior. It took some practice though. I had to learn how to embrace the frigid temps, wicked winds and foot after foot of snow. There were actually piles of snow everywhere on my last run before we moved to China. Eventually I could layer up with all my favorite gear (like Polartec tights - affiliate) and run in the middle of a snow storm if I wanted to.

My idea of cold has changed a lot in the last 2 1/2 years. Cold for me now is anything under 60F degrees, ha! At it's coldest, the temperatures in Hong Kong can dip between 30F and 40F but they don't stay there very long. No matter what your cold feels like, I think it's important to think about how to stay warm.

Here's how I keep warm on cold weather runs in Hong Kong ---> remember it's all relative:

1. Long sleeve tee or capris - when the temperature drops, the first thing I change is my running outfit. My first go-to change is to try a long sleeve tee with shorts because once I get used to running in shorts I don't want to give them up. If it's too cold for the shorts, I'll dig out my running capris.

2. A hat - I usually hate wearing hats, but they really do work for keeping warm. Since I don't have to worry about my ears freezing, I can usually throw on any old ball cap to do the trick.

3. Heavy duty layers - on the rare really cold day (like my recent feels like 47F 5K), I pull out the winter training gear and layer up. This year I have a new favorite warm top (affiliate) from Athleta. I actually have a ton of gear in storage in Massachusetts, but I didn't think I would need any of it here.

4. Arm warmers/compression socks - sometimes it's only feeling chilly at the beginning of the workout and that's when arm warmers come in handy because you can roll them down once you warm up. Compression socks are great for those in-between shorts and capris temps (or for those of us hanging onto our shorts a little longer). I actually don't remember to wear either of these often enough.

5. The treadmill - when all else fails and I reach my cold weather tolerance limit, there is always the trusty treadmill at the fitness center. I'm pretty sure that only a cold wintery rainy day will force me to run indoors while I'm living here.


How do you stay warm on cold weather runs/days where you live?

I'm linking up with Lacey and Meranda and Rachel for the Friday Five 2.0 and Nicole for Fit & Fashionable Friday 

Three Running Guilty Pleasures

Sometimes I think running is my guilty pleasure since none of the friends I've made in my Hong Kong neighborhood are into running or have stopped running because of a bad knee, ankle, hip. Being able to run and get that "me time" definitely feels like it should be a guilty pleasure because it makes me so happy.

When I think about it, my running guilty pleasures (the things that I like that maybe not everyone else does) not only make me happy, but also motivate me. 

1. New Running Gear

Spending money on new running clothes that I absolutely do not really need but find a way to justify is definitely a guilty pleasure. Fortunately mrC does not give me a hard time about this. I only feel guilty until I actually go for a run in the new gear though. Like today - it was really cold and I almost gave in to my body's desire to stay in and stay warm, but then I remembered that I had a new top from Athleta (affiliate) to wear along with a new pair of Lululemon tights. Since they both kept me warm and cozy, I can now justify the purchase.

2. Reality TV

One thing I loved about running on the treadmill (which could be my least favorite thing at times) was watching trashy TV. There's nothing like a good reality tv show to make the miles fly by. Since I used to have the basement TV (or laptop) to myself, I never felt bad for watching multiple episodes in a row. Especially Real Housewives of ANYWHERE. I love the ridiculousness of these shows because they are real, but not really real. If I could get the Bravo app to work without a cable subscription, I would still be watching whenever I run on the treadmill.

3. The Runfie

This is sort of my way of saying, hey look how far I ran today! Or look where I got to run today! I'm 100% a visual person and I love taking pictures, so I love my selfie run pics. It's fun to scroll through my Instagram and reminisce about runs at the Cape or with littleC in Budapest. It's totally a walk down memory lane. I also love looking at other people's pics too. Seeing their photos can motivate me to get out there if I'm in a run rut.

Every runner has guilty pleasures right? Music, food, pricey race photos, bubble baths...it can be anything. You can check out the Tuesdays on the Run link-up with Patty, Erika, and Marcia  for a bunch of us sharing ours this week.

What is one of your running guilty pleasures?

Hiking: Discovery Bay to Mui Wo via Tiger's Head

Just two days after hiking Dragon's Back, the kids decided that they wanted to tackle Tiger's Head ---> a peak that looms over us here in Discovery Bay. The name Tiger's Head comes from how the peak looks from the top - what do you think? Does it look like a tiger is watching over DB?

The best way to describe our hike from Discovery Bay to Mui Wo via Tiger's Head, is to break the 9km into three parts:

The first 3km was all climbing and I mean serious climbing right up to Tiger's Head peak at about 460 meters. It is hard work (made easier than our first time by the cooler weather) and in some places it feels like you are going straight up. But if you take breaks, it is completely manageable.

Lucky for us, we had a beautiful day to hike. The reward for the climb is the amazing views, especially once you push past Tiger's Head up to the ridge of Lo Fu Tau Country Trail.

For the next 3km we followed the Lo Fu Tau Country Trail across the ridge to its beginning. This part of the hike was pretty easy since the trail was mostly flat. We soaked up the views and the sun and didn't even let the crazy trail runners bother us ;)

Along this part of the trail we found the famous rock formations: turtle rock, sword sharpening rock and peach rock. According to online articles, none of these are man-made although they look like it.

The final 3+km began around the junction of Lo Fu Tau Country Trail and Olympic Trail. We took a short snack break at the pavilion before starting our descent into Mui Wo.

On this part of the hike there is lots of shade, at times it felt like we were walking through a forest. We spent a few minutes at Silvermine Cave and Silvermine Waterfall Garden before finishing up in Mui Wo.

We celebrated our hard core hiking skills with lunch at our favorite spot in Mui Wo, The Kitchen.

Other Discovery Bay area hikes:

Hiking Discovery Bay: Lookout Point Loop

Hiking: Mui Wo to Discovery Bay

Hiking: Tiger's Head - Lo Fu Tau

Weekly Wrap - Pile on the Miles

We spent the better part of the two week holiday packing in all kinds of touristy activities while both middleC and littleC were here together. Now that middleC has returned to the US, things have slowed down a bit. Fortunately, littleC also has a passion for all things fitness.

I'm super excited to be kicking off 2018 with a couple of good runs after taking an unintentional break (my last run was the Santa Night Run). Without setting any specific goals, I do hope to continue my healthy running streak. If that means I end up logging more miles than last year, great. If not, also great. As long as I'm running I'll be happy.

And being able to run with littleC while she is here definitely makes me happy! On Wednesday I took her on my favorite 5K loop along the water and through the park. It was a tough run for me. I had trouble getting a comfortable breathing rhythm and ended up with a very painful side stitch.

On Friday, I ran that same route but stopped at the fitness center to meet mrC and littleC for an hour of fun tennis. This run was much, much better. I have a couple of ideas for why that is: 1) I ran faster (true), so I had less time to think about how hard it was (ha), 2) it was cooler (66F versus 72F), 3) I got about 3 inches of hair cut off so I was lighter on my feet (haha) 4) (and probably the most likely reason) it was just one of those good run days.

The rest of the week looked like this:

Monday - Sightseeing with the kids: Big Buddha and Tai O fishing village

Tuesday - More sightseeing: ding ding tram to a rooftop lunch and a spin in the Observation Wheel

Wednesday - Took middleC to the airport and family 5K

Thursday - GRIT class

Friday - Two mile run and one hour of tennis

Saturday - rainy day bowling

Sunday - Rest day

Most of the weekend was rainy and a winter monsoon (strong winds) is causing Hong Kong temperatures to drop rapidly starting today. It might actually get below 50 degrees!

How was your week?
Did you have guests over the holidays?

I'm linking up with Holly  and Wendy for the Weekly Wrap!

3 Accomplishments and 2 Goals

Happy Friday! I'm jumping into the Friday Five 2.0 Linkup with Lacey and Meranda and Rachel and talking goals and resolutions today.

Before I can set goals for a new year (which I do not always do), I like to reflect on the previous year ---> what did I do? what did I achieve?

1. I ran over 200 miles! Almost all of them on my Wave Sky (affiliate). For someone who had a meniscectomy and has very little cartilage remaining in one knee, this is a BIG deal. And when I see that the previous year (which I will now call the year of the cranky knee) I only ran 29.25 miles, I'm so happy that I figured out a way to bring running back into my life.

2. I ran THREE races (recaps here, here and here)! As soon as I was able to run 5Ks on my own and after joining a night running group, I started seriously looking for races. Finding 5Ks in Hong Kong with a relatively flat, road course was harder than I expected ---> many are on trails with rocky downhill terrain.

I love seeing the smile on my face!

3. I tried new things: SUP racing, archery, GRIT ---> loved them all! Archery was a fun group activity to do. SUP racing was the most exciting and seriously hard work to go just 500 meters out and back. I'd love to do it again. GRIT has become my favorite workout class. I love the cardio and strength combo.

EXTRA:  I'm pretty proud of the variety I kept in my workouts. Running, hiking, yoga, SUP, Bodypump, Bodystep, GRIT, strength training, HIIT workouts, sprints. I have my favorites, but I was open to doing any and all types of workouts in 2017.

So, my goals for 2018 are pretty simple.

4. Be happy where I am. I'm going to continue to do what feels right and good on any given day. I'm going to run when I feel like it, not to meet a schedule. I will accept what I can do today, not worry about what I did in the past.

5. Keep moving. No matter what, I want to stay active. I love getting out and doing things. I will keep doing the things I love, but I will also keep trying new things. Anything that comes my way.

What accomplishment are you most proud of from 2017?
What are your goals and/or resolutions for the new year?