Lowest temperature worthy of a shirtless run?

well I can say for my teammates and I;

30F - shorts, long sleeves

40F windy cloudy - shorts t-shirt

40F sunny - shorts no shirt

We have people on this board from the south who complain when it is 32F. Hard to imagine them outside when it's 40F with shorts and a T-shirt

it was 58 here in northern IL when I ran (shirtless of course).

In the summer/fall I would definately be wearing a shirt in the 50's. But in the middle of winter is a different story. When you get used to the temps being around 20, a day like today feels like a summer afternoon.

Anything 50+ is short sleeve and shorts, 60+ shirtless. 40s is at least a long sleeve and shorts, possibly gloves if its low 40s and windy. Below 40, hat and gloves with long sleeve over a shirt. Sub 30 degrees and its time for some tights or pants.

are so full of it. I can't believe so many people here claim they do 40 shirtless. I'm from a tough part of the country and no one goes shirtless under 60, except as some form of joke or to avoid chaffing.

I run in Michigan, always have, and I think I have built up a pretty good cold tolerance. People are making some ridiculous responses here. Just cause you can do it doesn't mean you won't look like a maniac running around shirtless when it is 45. I would say 60 if it is a hard workout, or raining (to avoid a heavy, chafing shirt), otherwise 70+. Below that a cotton shirt is not uncomfortable. It's not like I'm ashamed of my physique, but I'm out of place enough as it is running 10mph down the sidewalk.

I wear pants on days I could wear shorts a lot just to keep the muscles warm. Not a bad thing.

here's my 2 cents:

yes, if it's been really cold lately (20's), and then bam, you get a 50-55 degree day, sure, one can go shirtless and not be cold. But to do it in the low 40's is just silly. As the guy above put it, sure one can do it, but if you are, you are doing it mainly just to think or show that you are tough or something, not for comfort.

And the reality is: if you are going shirtless on any day below 50, you are going to look like a tool, no matter how much you tell yourself you are not. If you are super skinny, you look pathetic and people will laugh at you, and if you are really buff, then you look like you are starved for attention and trying to desperately show up and people will, again, you guessed it...laugh at you (I guess if you are in between you won't get as negative a reaction). Above 60..... you still might get laughed at but at least it won't seem abnormal. Above 70 or 80, again, it will look like you want attention, but at least it is totally acceptable.

(and don't get me started on runners who wear shorts when it is in the 30's. It' asinine. One's legs get cold, and there are a million different types of light, flexible, long running pants that will keep you warm. It's completely dumb to not wear long pants in the 30's).

German Muenster wrote:

(and don't get me started on runners who wear shorts when it is in the 30's. It' asinine. One's legs get cold

Speak for yourself, I've never gotten back from a run and thought "man, my legs are really cold". Never. The first thing to go is always the hands, then the ears and nose then the "other extremities". I live in the northeast and have honesly never felt the urge to wear pants while running.

50+ could go shirtless (I rarely do unless 80+)

40-50 gloves and a t shirt, shorts

35-40 gloves, hat, t shirt, shorts

15-35 gloves, hat, jacket, shorts

Below 15, gloves, hat, jacket, shorts, sock

60 or above is my standard. although if it's between dec & mar, i will go shirtless if it's above 50. 50 degree days feel so much warmer during those frigid winter months.

lived in both north and south wrote:

Anything 50+ is short sleeve and shorts, 60+ shirtless. 40s is at least a long sleeve and shorts, possibly gloves if its low 40s and windy. Below 40, hat and gloves with long sleeve over a shirt. Sub 30 degrees and its time for some tights or pants.

I pretty well agree with that. I ran in regular running shorts, w/ no extra nut protection in 15-17F a few times - ouch - that was scary.

100F

bumm wrote:

60 or above is my standard. although if it's between dec & mar, i will go shirtless if it's above 50. 50 degree days feel so much warmer during those frigid winter months.

Where are you from?

I think that is a key factor...along with how well one personally handles cold weather.

Having lived in WI all my life, I'm very tolerant of cold weather. I'd say I utilize an actual winter-jacket/shell a handful of times during the winter (typically towards the front end of winter when I'm not yet fully acclimated to the cold). It's not meant to be a 'bad-ass' thing - it's just that I'm personally comfortable in cold temps. To each his own I suppose. Oddly enough, I like winter more than summer in terms of climate. You can fend off the cold on a run, but you can't escape the heat...

I don't understand Farenheit.

I think i've only taken my shirt off once in any kind of run.

Captain Wisco wrote:

Oddly enough, I like winter more than summer in terms of climate. You can fend off the cold on a run, but you can't escape the heat...

yes, you can say that again.. The winter you can toss on some extra clothes and ditch them along the way if that's what it takes to get you out the door, but the heat, my lord the heat.

I live down south and from April through October you can get a total smack down from a hot day. I've lived here and run here all my life and it's not something you really get used to, you just cope as best you can.

Because we live and run so close to over heating it doesn't take much heat and humidity to kill a good training day or worse yet, race day. I basicly live to run in the Fall, Winter, and early Spring.

I have a new practice of always wearing at least a siglet no matter how hot it is. Train how you race. When we can start racing shirtless, I will train shirtless.

EZ10Miler wrote:

I live down south and from April through October you can get a total smack down from a hot day. I've lived here and run here all my life and it's not something you really get used to, you just cope as best you can.

Could you acclimate better if you turn down the A/C?

Mike Romer, a walkon at the University of Oregon back in the late 80s early 90s, used to go shirtless rain or shine, hot or cold. I think his lower threshold was about 28 degrees, perhaps a little bit lower.

If you are tremendously insecure and feel the need to show off your "bod", then anything down to mid 50s is shirtless weather

People with some semblance of self-esteem are concerned only with the comfort factor and generally keep shirts on until the temps get up mid-70s at the lowest

it depends wrote:

If you are tremendously insecure and feel the need to show off your "bod", then anything down to mid 50s is shirtless weather

People with some semblance of self-esteem are concerned only with the comfort factor and generally keep shirts on until the temps get up mid-70s at the lowest

False. I'm comfortable shirtless when it's above 55 and sunny in the spring, more like 60 in the summer. If it's humid out, meaning dew points in the 60s, there's no way I'm wearing a shirt. That just makes me uncomfortable. Trust me, it's not that I'm showing off, there isn't much to show off in my case.