6 Running Safety Tips

snowy-road

Even though it’s technically spring, in Boston there are still piles of snow everywhere and many sidewalks obscured. I’ve never run on a dreadmill and don’t have access to one; instead, I’ve been hitting the pavement and doing my best not to get run over while also not injuring myself on the ice and snow. I wanted to share some general safety tips that are good for these conditions (and many generally too):

1. Run in the road if you need to. If the sidewalks are icy and the roads are clear, run in the road, staying as tight to the shoulder as you can. It’s not optimal, but running on icy sidewalks seems crazy to me. I’ve seen people do it and wipe out.

2. Run against traffic. Run against traffic so you can see what’s coming and be defensive if need be.

3. Pick routes with wider roads. One of my usual routes has narrow roads and many unshoveled sidewalks. It just feels a little too dangerous at some points, especially if there’s traffic moving in big directions. So while the sidewalks are icy, I have picked different routes where the roads are wider. Even though the sidewalks are still unshoveled, there’s room for me to run in the road with cars moving in both directions.

4. Wear bright colors. I usually wear black but I’ve been wearing a red vest to improve my visibility.

5. Run during the day. Or wear reflectors at night. I’m a day runner; it just feels safer to me and works better for my schedule. But if you can only run at night, wear reflectors (and run against traffic)!

6. Skip headphones or lower the volume. Maybe this is an easier recommendation for me to issue since I don’t wear headphones when I run, but I feel like when you’re on the road, it’s important to be able to hear what’s going on around you. If you can’t live without your tunes, turn the volume down so music is background to your run, not all that you hear.

Stay safe out there and let’s hope for a spring thaw in the East!

Image credit: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

1 Comment

  1. Marie /

    I love these tips! I’ve got to take your advice and wear brighter colors. I need to get over my embarrassment and get me some neon yellow!!

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