Keep a Running Weather Journal: Building Personal Weather Wisdom

Every runner is different. What feels perfect for one runner is too hot for another. The wind that energizes some runners frustrates others. The humidity that destroys one person's performance barely affects their training partner. Generic weather advice can only take you so far—to truly optimize your running, you need to understand your personal weather patterns.

A running weather journal transforms you from a runner who reacts to weather into one who understands it. Over time, you'll develop insights that no app or article can provide: your personal optimal conditions, your tolerance thresholds, your adaptation patterns, and your performance predictors.

Why Track Weather

The Limits of General Advice

General running weather advice is useful but incomplete:

What general advice provides:

• Temperature ranges for clothing
• When conditions become dangerous
• Basic guidelines for hydration
• Common patterns and responses

What general advice misses:

• Your personal heat tolerance
• How much humidity affects YOUR performance
• Your individual adaptation timelines
• Your optimal race day conditions

The truth: "Good running weather" is partly objective and partly individual. You need both general knowledge and personal data.

The Value of Personal Data

Tracking weather with your runs reveals patterns invisible to general observation:

Patterns you'll discover:

• Exact temperature range where you perform best
• Dew point threshold where performance drops
• How much wind actually affects your pace
• Whether morning or evening conditions suit you
• Seasonal patterns in your running quality

Decisions this enables:

• Race selection based on typical weather
• Workout scheduling around conditions
• Realistic expectations for given conditions
• Understanding "off" days versus bad conditions

The Cumulative Effect

The value of weather tracking compounds over time:

After a few weeks: Initial correlations begin emerging After a few months: Seasonal patterns become visible After a year: Complete picture of annual variation After multiple years: Deep understanding of your weather relationship

What to Track

Essential Elements

At minimum, record these with every run:

Temperature:

• Both actual and feels-like
• Captures the starting condition
• Essential for clothing and performance correlation

Humidity/Dew Point:

• Dew point is more useful than relative humidity
• Critical for understanding summer performance
• Affects effort level significantly

Conditions:

• Clear, cloudy, rain, snow, etc.
• General weather state
• Useful for pattern recognition

Recommended Additional Elements

For richer insights, add these when possible:

Wind:

• Speed and direction
• Significant impact on effort and pace
• Helps explain unexpected splits

Air Quality:

• AQI if available
• Explains respiratory difficulties
• Important for sensitive runners

Time of Day:

• Conditions vary through the day
• Helps identify optimal running windows
• Correlates with dew point patterns

Season/Date:

• Enables year-over-year comparisons
• Tracks adaptation through seasons
• Shows long-term patterns

Your Response Data

Weather conditions alone aren't enough. Track how you responded:

Performance metrics:

• Pace (overall and splits)
• Heart rate if monitored
• Perceived effort

Subjective experience:

• How did the run feel?
• Did weather seem to affect you?
• Anything unusual about your response?

Rating system:

• Simple 1-5 scale for run quality
• Helps identify patterns in aggregate
• "Good" and "bad" days become trackable

Simple Tracking Methods

Option 1: Add to Existing Training Log

If you already log runs:

Implementation:

• Add weather fields to your current format
• Most running apps let you add notes
• Simple is sustainable

Example entry:

Date: March 15
Distance: 6 miles
Time: 48:32
Weather: 52°F (feels 48°F), dew point 38°F, partly cloudy, wind 8 mph NW
Feel: Great run, felt light and easy. Perfect conditions.
Rating: 5/5

Apps that support this:

• Strava (description field)
• Garmin Connect (notes)
• TrainingPeaks (weather field)
• Most logging apps have note functionality

Option 2: Spreadsheet Tracking

For more analytical runners:

Spreadsheet columns:

• Date
• Time of day
• Distance
• Pace
• Temperature
• Feels-like
• Dew point
• Wind speed
• Wind direction
• Conditions
• AQI
• Feel rating (1-5)
• Notes

Benefits:

• Enables filtering and sorting
• Can create charts over time
• Data manipulation for analysis
• Export for backup

Tip: Use a weather app to look up historical data if you forget to record at run time.

Option 3: Physical Journal

For those who prefer paper:

Format:

• Dedicated running journal
• Weather section in each entry
• Monthly weather summaries

Benefits:

• Forces reflection
• No technology dependencies
• Satisfying to review
• Become more observant

Challenge: Requires discipline to maintain

Option 4: Voice Memos

For minimal-effort tracking:

Implementation:

• Record quick voice memo after each run
• Include weather conditions and how you felt
• Transcribe weekly or use voice-to-text

Example memo: "Tuesday evening, six miles, about 72 degrees but felt hotter, really humid, dew point must have been in the mid-60s. Struggled after mile 3. Felt heavy. 3 out of 5."

Option 5: Automated Integration

For tech-savvy runners:

Tools:

• IFTTT or Zapier connecting weather APIs to logging apps
• Some apps auto-record weather at run time
• GPS watches that capture weather data

Benefits:

• Removes manual data entry
• Consistent data capture
• More complete records

Limitation: May not capture "feels" data automatically

Analyzing Your Data

Looking for Patterns

After accumulating entries, look for:

Temperature patterns:

• What temperature range produces your best runs?
• Where does performance start declining?
• Is there a clear optimal zone?

Humidity patterns:

• At what dew point does running feel harder?
• How much does high humidity affect your pace?
• Does early morning humidity bother you less than afternoon?

Wind patterns:

• How much does wind affect your actual performance?
• Do you underperform in wind or just dislike it?
• Is wind direction (into vs. with) significant for you?

Seasonal patterns:

• When do you run best during the year?
• How long does adaptation take for you?
• Does your performance follow predictable seasonal curves?

Calculating Your Patterns

Temperature performance curve:

1. Sort runs by temperature
2. Compare average pace or effort ratings by temperature bracket
3. Identify your optimal range and drop-off points

Example findings:

• Best performance: 45-55°F
• Minor degradation: 55-65°F
• Significant impact: Above 70°F
• Cold not a factor until below 25°F

Dew point impact:

1. Sort runs by dew point
2. Compare effort ratings and pace
3. Identify threshold where performance suffers

Example findings:

• Below 55°F dew point: No noticeable effect
• 55-60°F: Slightly harder
• 60-65°F: 3-5% slower, moderate effort increase
• Above 65°F: Significant impact, 8-10% slower

Year-Over-Year Comparison

With multiple years of data:

Questions to answer:

• Is this summer harder or easier than last?
• How quickly do you adapt to heat each year?
• Are you improving your weather tolerance?
• What conditions produce PRs?

Insight value: Multi-year patterns show both weather variation and your personal evolution as a runner.

Applying Your Insights

Race Selection

Use your data to choose races wisely:

Historical weather research:

• Look up typical conditions for race dates
• Compare to your performance patterns
• Choose races that align with your optimal conditions

Example application:

• Your data shows best performance at 50-55°F
• Boston Marathon (April) averages 45-55°F—good match
• A September race averaging 70°F—expect adjustment

Workout Scheduling

Plan key workouts around conditions:

Using forecasts:

• Check upcoming week's weather
• Schedule hard workouts for favorable days
• Move quality sessions when conditions are poor

Example application:

• Wednesday: 75°F, dew point 68°F—easy run day
• Saturday: 58°F, dew point 45°F—long run or tempo day

Setting Realistic Expectations

Your data calibrates expectations:

Before a run:

• Check conditions
• Reference your historical performance in similar conditions
• Adjust pace and effort expectations accordingly

Example application:

• Today: 78°F, dew point 66°F
• Your data: These conditions typically mean 8% slower and RPE +1
• Expectation: Adjust planned paces down 8%, expect harder effort

Understanding "Off" Days

Weather data explains unexplained struggles:

When a run feels bad:

• Check conditions
• Compare to your patterns
• Often "bad day" = "bad conditions for you"

Value: Reduces self-criticism and improves self-knowledge

Common Discoveries Runners Make

Personal Temperature Zones

Most runners discover clear temperature preferences:

Common pattern:

• Optimal zone narrower than expected
• Performance drops more in heat than cold
• "Feels-like" temperature more predictive than actual

Typical findings:

• Many runners perform best between 45-60°F
• Individual optimal zones vary by 10-15°F person to person
• Acclimation shifts these zones seasonally

Humidity Sensitivity

Humidity affects runners differently:

Common discoveries:

• Some runners are highly humidity-sensitive
• Others barely notice dew point until extreme levels
• Knowing your sensitivity improves planning

What you might find:

• You're more humidity-sensitive than you thought
• Or: Humidity doesn't affect you as much as feared
• Or: There's a specific threshold where it hits hard

Adaptation Timelines

How quickly you adapt to new conditions:

Typical findings:

• Heat adaptation takes 10-14 days of consistent exposure
• First hot week of spring is universally hard
• Cold adaptation is less dramatic but real
• Some runners adapt faster than others

Wind's True Impact

Wind often feels worse than its actual performance impact:

Common discovery:

• Runners often think wind affects them more than data shows
• Or: Wind impact is real and quantifiable
• Wind direction matters more than speed for some

Long-Term Benefits

Becoming Weather-Wise

Over years of tracking:

You develop:

• Intuition for how conditions will feel
• Ability to predict performance in given weather
• Calibrated expectations that reduce frustration
• Genuine expertise in YOUR running weather relationship

Better Decision-Making

Data-informed decisions:

Race strategy: Choose appropriate goal times Training adjustments: Modify workouts intelligently Gear choices: Dress appropriately with confidence Schedule optimization: Run at optimal times

Reduced Weather Frustration

Understanding replaces frustration:

Before tracking: "I don't know why today was so hard." After tracking: "78°F with 68°F dew point—my data shows I always struggle in these conditions."

Key Takeaways

1. Personal weather data beats general advice. Your response to conditions is individual.

2. Track conditions with every run. Temperature, humidity (dew point), wind, and your response.

3. Use whatever method works. App notes, spreadsheet, paper journal—consistency matters more than format.

4. Rate your runs. Subjective feel data enables pattern analysis.

5. Analyze periodically. Monthly or seasonal reviews reveal patterns.

6. Apply insights to decisions. Race selection, workout scheduling, expectation setting.

7. Value compounds over time. One year of data is good; multiple years are gold.

8. Reduce frustration, increase wisdom. Understanding your patterns transforms weather from obstacle to known factor.

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Your personal weather data is uniquely yours. Run Window helps you understand current conditions; your journal builds lasting insight into how those conditions affect your running.