Scottish winters and running

We're embracing a bit of hygge this winter. I've been a bit obsessed with this Danish custom since first learning about it on Radio 2 and have been upping the use of candles, in particular battery-operated ones (which I recently discovered exist, much to the amusement of a work colleague whom I'm convinced thinks I've only just recently swapped my animal skins and cave dwelling for a shot at life in the 21st century). Asides from the candles, there's a lot of mince pie eating, hot chocolate drinking and walking about wearing a fluffy dressing gown. Hygge is rife in our household.

One small drawback: this doesn't exactly make it easy to go out for a run. When I do manage to get out of the dressing gown and put on all the running clothes I possess, there's that awful moment when I open the front door only to be greeted by a blast of cold wind reminiscent of being slapped by twenty thousand miniature snowballs. Not exactly hygge.

However, cold weather doesn't hang around for long during a Scottish winter. One day you're wearing as many layers as a Schichttorte (see image below), the next you're contemplating wearing shorts. Last week the temperature was hovering around zero degrees Celsius but, within the space of a day, it had shot up by 15 degrees. This is a fair temperature for us in summer, never mind winter.

So basically, every run is a surprise at this time of year. I've found myself chasing my visor which has blown off my head, crunching through frozen mud, skiting across black ice, wishing I'd worn a hat on days when the wind is so cold I get brain freeze and frequently returning home with mud splatters on my face.

Some people might ask: so why on earth bother? Why not just stay home and enjoy the hygge? It's a fair question. Well, sometimes I get the combination of layers right - one extra layer to stop that initial shock when I leave the house, but not enough to overheat. And once I get going it feels good to be out of the house - away from walls - breathing in fresh air and enjoying the small amounts of daylight that we get at this time of year. In the past I used to hate the darkness of winter, but since I've taken up running I've not noticed it quite so much. Maybe it's because I've made such an effort to get out when I can, whether it's zero degrees Celsius or pouring with rain. Or perhaps it's because it's not so dark after all - what with all the Christmas decorations making everything sparkle.

Whatever it is, I still enjoy coming back home. After some stretches and a shower it's straight back into hygge-mode. A warm fire and a hot chocolate feels just that little bit cosier with a cold nose.