Running in the winter presents a funny challenge: you have to stay warm enough to keep your muscles moving, but not bundle up so much that you weigh yourself down. Add to that you have to stay warm while you're warming up, without the bulk of your run becoming unbearable because of the layers you piled on. What's a runner to do?
Don't resign yourself to running on a treadmill this winter just stay comfortable. Nothing beats a run through freshly fallen snow or crisp, fall leaves- if you are properly prepared, of course. Check out the following cold weather running gear designed to keep you warm from head to toe--each with a little something extra:
1. Need a single layer that's light as air? Check out Run Swiftly Long Sleeved Shirt from Lululemon
. 
Slip this on when a tee just ain't gunna cut it. Don't worry if it's snowing cause this impossibly thin shirt will add an extra layer of unbeatable insulation under outerwear without feeling like you're wearing another layer.
2. Want to kick it up a notch with a full zip? Check out Moving Comfort Foxie Full Zip
. 
This jacket is designed to protect like a coat, but fit like a thin jacket. Bring your protection from the elements to the next level with the high neck to keep out the wind, rain and snow and thumb-loops to create a seal. Slide on
Moving Comfort's NoChill Gloves
and you'll be warm and cozy all the way to your fingertips. With the NoChill gloves, your first and second finger tips and thumb have tiny grippers, and a tiny, secret mesh pocket on the palm to hold a house key or anything else you want to conceal (I'm not judging).
3. Looking to wrap your neck but don't want to run with a scarf? Check out the Moving Comfort NoChill Half Zip
. 
This unique pullover not only has interesting features like figure-flattering ruching down the sides, but it has a big, huge cowl neck that zips halfway down. For less coverage unzip it and let it lay flat, but on blustery days, wrap your favorite scarf around your neck then zip up the neck to hold it in place for hassle-free scarf running. I smell a new Olympic sport...
4. Need that perfect jogging hoodie? Check out the Quantum Hoody
. 
Over at Icebreaker, where they are so serious about layers they rank them, the Quantum Hoody straddles the line between under- and outerwear. From their Technical Mid Layers collection, this hoody is ideal over a tee, under outerwear or both. Heck, with its lycra and fitted design, you can even get away with wearing it with jeans.
5. Never been able to run in a jacket but always wanted to? Check out Lululemon's Bundle Up Jacket. 
It's warm, soft AND thin. It's packed with goose down to keep you warm and dry without adding bulk, so despite the fact it has a hood and double the front closure, you won't feel weighed down or encumbered. The best part? The Luxchange hood, one of Lulu's many signatures, cannot only be zipped out on warmer days when you need less coverage, but zips into ANY of Lulu's other Luxchange garments. It's like the outfit that keeps on giving.
6. Does heat keep escaping out of the top of your head? Put a lid on it with Moving Comfort's NoChill Beanie
. 
It's ultra-lightweight, stays put while you run and even has a little hole you can slip your pony tail through to avoid hat hair.
7. Get ear aches when you run in the cold? Check out Lululemon's Run Brisk Headband. 
I've tried skipping the ear buds, which left me alone with only my thoughts (shudder) and all the headbands I've tried smash my ears into my head, creating a whole different type of ear pain that rivals the original. The only heandband I've found that keeps out the wind and chill while completely covering my ears gently enough to not permanently implant them in my ear canal is this headband. Impossibly soft, I find myself sometimes pulling it down over my face so I get a little more skin contact in.
8. And don't forget your lower half! Check out Mizuno's Breath Thermo Layered Running Tights
. 
Yoga pants ain't gunna cut it when the cold weather hits. Invest in a pair of running tights, which fit like leggings but have the insulation to cut the wind and keep your legs just as warm as the rest of you. Mizuno's Breath Thermo Layered Running Tights are double layered where it counts; inside the front thigh and over calf.
9. Want something that makes more of a statement? Check out Gaiam's Zippy Pant. 
They've got reflective tape so you are visible from head to toe. Combine that with the compression seaming and contrast color piping strategically placed to accentuate your positives and you can't go wrong.
Kelly Turner is a Seattle-based ACE-certified personal trainer and professional fitness writer. She began writing after becoming frustrated with the confusing and conflicting fitness information in the media and the quick-fix, gimmick-centered focus of the fitness industry itself. Her no-nonsense, practical advice has been featured on DietsInReview.com, FitnessMagazine.com, Yahoo! Shine, and she has a regular fitness column in The Seattle Times. Kelly has her own blog at
www.kellyturnerfitness.com or follow her on Twitter
@KellyTurnerFit.
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