At what temperature do you go from shorts to tights?

I wore tights and long arms in a race at the weekend, everyone ahead of me wore shorts...

It was about 38degrees.

wind pants? Please enlighen me, never heard of these

I would wear half tights racing at that temp.

Full tights or pants for training.

It has to be over 45 or so for me to wear shorts or my quads and hamstrings feel tight.

345elmore wrote:

wind pants? Please enlighen me, never heard of these

Haven't worn them since the 90s. They aren't very breathable:

Defecit omne quod nasciture wrote:

Yes. I make the transition at about 45 degrees Fahrenheit.

Same here.

teddy_farley wrote:

When I was younger, I used to do stupid stuff like trying to go shirtless and shorts all the way until November, regardless of weather, and not wearing tights until December, but I have since come to my senses.

Yeah in HS we had the "20 degree rule". If it was over 20 we wore shorts.

In high school I was an idiot.

At 55 to say 48 degrees I wear shorts but from 45 to the teens I wear tights.

If the wind is 13 mph then tights at 55 because it will be extra cold. When it's single digits or teens I'll consider double tights.

txRUNNERgirl wrote:

shorts and cold weather wrote:

It is 38 degrees here. Is that too cold for shorts?

I ran in shorts in that temp when I was in high school, but now I know better. Sure, you can, but why would you want to?

For me...

Below 40 F = full tights

40 - 49 F = capri tights

Above 50 F = shorts

For me

14C = short shorts

8-13C = long shorts

Winter = Alpine Ski and Golf vacations

Central Florida. 58*F when I started my tonight. Splits and a long sleeve shirt. Could have easily done without the sleeves.

My legs are way less affected by cold that my torso. I'm more likely to wear shorts, tshirt, and gloves below 40. I'll start with a beanie just to take the edge off, but take that off after a mile or so. I take the gloves off after 3 or so.

We only get "bad" weather January and February so I may go full tights, long sleeve, gloves, and beanie at night during that time. But even the. It's very spotty since the fronts we get only last a day or two.

shorts: above freezing

pants: ~20F/-5C to freezing

tights: below 20F

Rarely need long pants in the PNW

I think the lowest temperature where I ever ran in shorts was 8F. It was fine but cold really doesn't bother me. That said, whenever I'm in shorts when it's much below freezing I have all sorts of people that I run past saying, "You must be freezing," or "Aren't you freezing," or some variation thereof. Eventually I get sick of answering them and put on Sporthills or something similar just to avoid those discussions.

Over the Moon wrote:

One of the most noticeable differences between American and Kenyan runners is that the Kenyan predominantly train in full tights. The tendency of US high schoolers and collegians is to strip down to nothing but splits and shoes; in Kenya, the belief is that training in more clothing better prepares one to race in a singlet and shorts.

The only time you'd see a Kenyan running without a shirt and with shorts would be on the track for gut-busting sessions no American would dare attempt.

Moral of the story: just keep your gosh darn clothes on. You will adapt to the artificially warmer conditions and perform better when it comes time to compete, a la Benji Durden.

My general practice is that, in training, I wear some type of running pants/tights when it is below 50F. In races, 40F. I have never understood the fascination with wearing shorts even when it is cold -- I think this is especially true with weekend warrior types.

I go for the thinner tights at 40F. Regular tights below freezing. Also, I usually opt for two short-sleeve shirts + gloves before running in a half zip or jacket.

I go old school and wear sweat pants when it is below 50.

I remember running in those in high school when it was 80. We would do 8 X 440 and I would wait until the last one to take them off so I could blast it about 5 seconds faster than the others. Back then, we ran every rep almost all out and then just stopped until our heart rate got below 120.

I do have one pair of tights I wear under my shorts if all my sweatpants are in the laundry.

A couple years ago I wore a pair of ski pants at an evening 5k in August. My legs were toast for two weeks

i cant believe how thin skinned most of you are. Tights or pants at 45 degrees. Unreal.

Shorts until its mid 20's or wind chill in the 20's.

This depends on factors such as humidity, wind, sunshine.. For me it varies between 2 C and 10 C.

Bob Schul Country wrote:

i cant believe how thin skinned most of you are. Tights or pants at 45 degrees. Unreal.

Shorts until its mid 20's or wind chill in the 20's.

Holy mother of God, at that temp I wear a snow suit.

Real runners don't go from shorts to tights; they put tights under the shorts. If it's really cold, then it goes tights, running pants, then outer layer of shorts.

Soprano wrote:

teddy_farley wrote:

When I was younger, I used to do stupid stuff like trying to go shirtless and shorts all the way until November, regardless of weather, and not wearing tights until December, but I have since come to my senses.

Yeah in HS we had the "20 degree rule". If it was over 20 we wore shorts.

In high school I was an idiot.

Do you guys get tired of talking about the same topics? This thread comes up every year and you all just repeat what you said last year.