Crisis? What crisis? It's an oppor -- oh, screw it

You can look on the current economical climate as a terrible crisis or a wonderful opportunity. Or both simultaneously. Financial experts such as Warren Buffet or Motley Fool are saying this is a great time to buy stocks. That's probably true, though it doesn't help much if you've just lost your job because some idiot higher up the food chain has decided to panic and shut down your whole division.

Photo: decade_null

Similarly, with all this cold weather, shorter days, longer nights, the northern hemisphere is getting into Summer-recession mode. It's more challenging to run around outside and exercise in the evening after work. There must be ways around this.

I've thought up a couple of ways to make sure I don't lose my exercise momentum.



What, I can't use a teaser like that? I'm trying to be more like Crabby. It works when she does it...

Trouble getting up in the morning?

Have trouble getting up in the morning? Try a light alarm like the bio-brite. The one I have, 15 minutes before the alarm time, the light starts to come on. (According to their website, it's not just an alarm clock, it's a "Quality Dawn Stimulator." So there.) The light gradually gets brighter, until at alarm time, it is bright enough to wake me up. At least in theory. Unless I'm really tired. If all else fails, an audio alarm will go off.

Other light alarms come with a scent feature, where a pre-selected scent such as cinnamon or coffee will progress from a faint whiff to a full-fledged smell. I think I'd feel cheated if I woke up smelling coffee and then had to go make it.

Too dark to go outside and run?

Not to get too cheerful or anything like that, but this blogger found she quite enjoyed running in the dark. Maybe once I get over my twisted-ankleophobia, I might try it.

Have you tried a headlamp? I've been looking into getting one of these. I figure that I might look like a geek, but at least I'd be a highly visible geek. Presumably the drivers won't get so distracted that they veer off the road when they pass by. There are a lot of brands, so it's hard to know which one to choose. However, the charmingly named Running with Slugs was quite impressed with his headlamp.

And if your dog is up for it, you can get your pet a pup-light, so that the other dogs and humans can see you coming. (I think this is a really practical idea for people who have to walk their pups at night in a non-streetlight environment. All the same, I think my dog would find it embarrassing. I tried to get her to wear a coat once; she was mortified. Things like this don't fit into her view of Proper Dog Attire.)

I looked to see if there were any good winter exercise tips out there. There's a lot of stuff about making sure to wear layers yeah, yeah but not much else.

One website recommended that if you want to exercise outdoors in the winter, move closer to a ski resort. Not especially helpful advice if I want to keep my job. (I wouldn't think most people could ski after work. How many ski resorts are close to major population sites? Any Denverites out there looking to brag?)

It also recommended not taking your clothes off after exercising. That's going to make the post-run shower a little strange, and it won't do much for my social life, but it will certainly avoid post-exercise hypothermia.

Probably once the weather gets positively Canadian I'll start to rethink my stand on exercising outdoors. Until then, please don't laugh when you pass me on the side of the road, little headlamp bobbing up and down as I go. (The Merry bobblehead! Latest offering from the Cranky Fitness store. Get yours before they're all gone!)

Seriously, or as seriously as I ever get, anyone planning any devious ways to fit outdoor exercise into the upcoming season?