Winter is Coming - Cold Weather Garage Gear

[Bench905]

We hit about 22° F the other day in PA and I train in an uninsulated free-standing garage. With others in the same situation, how do you handle the cold when training?

Gloves - Don't really care if I get the sissy mittens comments, but when it gets below a certain temp and you're grabbing onto steel, I need to wear gloves. I have Mechanix Winter Impacts right now - not sure if there's something better. For others in the same situation, what gloves are you wearing?

Shoes/Socks - I regret not buying the Reebok Nano 4.0 Honor Pack N which was an wetsuit-esque insulated shoe for cold weather/dampness. I just saw a used pair of those go for $158 on ebay...crazy. Anyone have any good training shoes that are above average warmth? I'm usually rocking the Crossfit Lite TR shoes in the winter...they are a little warmer than a pair of Nanos.

[jamalfudge]

I live in the northeast and my patio is my home gym. I only use gloves between sets. Other than that my best tip is layer up blow 25*.

[kram1979]

I just go this & it's worth every penny:
https://www.tylertool.com/milwaukee-...IaArFwEALw_wcB

Also qualifies for a free battery which is a plus if you have Milwaukee M12 tools. I usually have to take it off by the time I get to my work sets.

[Deep-Voiced-One]

I also live in the northeast and have my primary/main lifting equipment in the garage uninsulated (accessories inside the house on the lat machine are a real treat at the end of the workout).

I usually wear long johns underneath my loose fitting windbreaker pants on the really cold days and a coat with a hood with some heavy sweater if real cold (LL Bean makes an awesome 50% wool shirt that I purchased a few years ago from their store and it's real warm), as for shoes I usually just wear my Chucks inside the garage and rub my hands together and breathe in them to create heat and then place them on the bar...though weather wise it's inconvenient, I find lifting in a coat actually still keeps the bar supported quite nice on the back during squats.

Actually if things go smooth and as planned I'll be moving into the downstairs apartment...kinda wishing a first floor could support my main lifts and main equipment centerpieces, but not sure due to a basement underneath and being on first floor joists...I would have the ceiling height of one of the rooms perfect and being warm already is great, just would hope it could hold me and my lifts...if not, I know an accessory functional trainer will certainly be in that room at some point soon and maybe a mid back leverage row, or treadmill.

[jamalfudge]

Leaving the barbell indoors overnight is also a smart move.

[rlundregan]

I'll often wear either mechanic's gloves or baseball batting gloves when it gets too cold to handle a freezing steel bar, so I'm right there with you. Not sure that I would worry too much about warmer shoes, if it is really an issue then maybe a wool blend or synthetic fleece sock would be worth considering.

Otherwise, I just wear some kind of sweatpants and layer a short sleeve t shirt, long sleeve t shirt, and a sweatshirt, all synthetic materials. Sorry I can't give specific recommendations for brands or particular performance fabrics, I just buy whatever is cheap at Walmart, Target, or Boscov's. The only real consideration that I give to my clothing choice is on squat day, I usually avoid wearing a hoodie on that day because the hood interferes with bar placement.

I have a small garage heater, it isn't really very effective. Perhaps a bigger kerosene heater would be better.

I often lose motivation to get out there when it gets really cold (10 degrees or so). I've toyed with the idea of bringing a set of Ironmasters and a bench into the basement along with one or two other pieces to make sure that I do SOMETHING during the cold snaps. Other equipment to bring in might be a KB, GH Roller or ab wheel, maybe a trap bar and pieces of stall mat if you have the space. This might not work as well for you, I think you enter competitions from time to time. I'm just looking to stay strong enough to open the pickle jar.

[DVG93]

I live in the northeast (Canada) so I put my equipment in the basement

[Cleveland33]

I told you to buy that patio heater two weeks ago - they use those at bars when they don't even have walls, it would be perfect if you put it right in the middle of your gym area.

[DVG93]

Hopefully you dont mean a propane heater inside an unventilated garage

[lsi1]

my rack is on my back porch. My wife allowed me to tarp it in partially but it can still get kind of windy out there. I just wear basic layers and use a $5 pair of polar grip gloves below 35 degrees or so. Basic chucks for me just have to keep moving in between sets to stay warm.

[dragon360]

So I've trained in an non insulated garage with the door open to a low of 18F. I wear gloves between sets and all warm up sets. the Mechanix work well. I also wear longjohns under my sweatpants. Usually only wool as it seems to work the very best. My upper body is layered with a thermal undershirt, long sleeve and thick hoody. I wear a windbreaker between sets. I use a small oil heater when i am inside to cut the temp sometimes but many times not. A hat is always a key item as well. I used a buff.

The two best pieces of advice other than the above is - I took out a thermos of either hot tea or coffee which I sipped throughout the workout. It's heating affects are awesome.
The last I learned from studying the old kings of iron. When they worked out in the cold, they used heat rub on their body. Think a Tiger Balm or Blue Heat. On the back, shoulders, elbows, knees etc. Absolutely amazing. I know work out indoors and still use it to a degree to warm up and loosen my creaky joints prior to workout.

Hope this helps Bench. with a gym like that, it'd be a shame to let the cold stop you!

[Blueblob]

For gloves I picked up a pair of UA, similar to these at an outlet store http://www.cabelas.com/product/Under...E&gclsrc=aw.ds

[ampire]

Get some legit wool socks, I like GoodHews because they fit into athletic shoes well.

[Bench905]

Thanks for the input, guys. Was hoping this could help a few people and not just me.

Last year, the cold stopped me once or twice when it went into the teens or below..and it was due to my extremities - feet a little bit and hands a lot. No issues with my core temps - usually wear a compression long sleeve top, t-shirt and hoodie. If that's not enough, I have some ColdGear.

Pulling bars into the house isn't really a possibility. I use my pro-style dumbbells a lot and I'm not moving them. And maybe 7 different bars.

The problem with gloves is that once you grip a bar, you're compressing the insulation and that's not how insulation is supposed to work. Cleveland mentioned that maybe I should try those handwarmer muffs that the NFL QBs wear between sets with a reusable handwarmer. I might try that with thinner gloves. The mechanix winter impact are too thick for my liking and still don't even help that much once the insulation gets compressed. I've tried the disposable handwarmers and they take too long to get hot and didn't even work that well. And I'm not paying $1/workout.



Insulation/Heater is a bigger issue - I have a Heat/AC unit on the second floor that's wired for 240/30 or 40A...so I could install an electric garage heater on the first floor once unplugging that. But without insulation, it seems like a waste. Insulating/drywall is way more money than I can spend right now - have way too many other house projects. And even if I did insulate/drywall, there's the two big uninsulated garage doors right in the front.

[rpark]

The problem with gloves is that once you grip a bar, you're compressing the insulation and that's not how insulation is supposed to work.

You need to think thin gloves, something like biker or runner gloves with no padding.

[rlundregan]

I picked up a pair of Rawlings batting gloves. They aren't insulated at all, nor would I want them to be if I was going to grab a bar while wearing gloves (and I would still go barehanded for deadlifts). Anyway, the Rawlings almost have a sort of compression fit--they seem to fit more closely than the 1 or 2 other brands that I bothered to try.

I don't think it makes a lot of sense to fart around with a heater until you get your garage insulated--and I totally get that you may have other, more pressing projects to do. Whenever you do get around to it, you might consider something like astrofoil on the garage doors--not perfect, but not bad, either:

https://www.amazon.com/Reflectix-BP4...70_&dpSrc=srch

[ampire]

I would think that just enough glove so that you aren't contacting the bar directly with bare skin should be helpful. Maybe wear large mittens during the rest/recovery between sets that you can cram the thin gloved hand into.

[urbanlifter]

No thanks, if it were me I would still install a NewAir G73 or greater and run that badboy in the winter. It may not be drywalled but it's still a closed area, and the heat that pours out of that machine should have a significant impact regardless. Then when more funds become available you already have the heater installed, then you can drywall and insulate which is really not that expensive to begin with.

https://www.amazon.com/NewAir-G73-Ha.../dp/B000TK2SWO

[irongrandpa]

No thanks, if it were me I would still install a NewAir G73 or greater and run that badboy in the winter. It may not be drywalled but it's still a closed area, and the heat that pours out of that machine should have a significant impact regardless. Then when more funds become available you already have the heater installed, then you can drywall and insulate which is really not that expensive to begin with.

https://www.amazon.com/NewAir-G73-Ha.../dp/B000TK2SWO

This is my recommendation also. You can turn the heater on 15 - 20 minutes before you lift and it will help tremendously. And as Urban said, when funds are available, insulation and drywall aren't that expensive compared to other household upgrades especially if you do it yourself. My garage is attached to the house but wasn't insulated and finished out for several years and having some heat in there still allowed the garage to be at least 40 - 50 when it would get into the teeens outside. I finished all the walls with insulation and drywall last winter and now you can keep it warm without much heat at all. As you mentioned, the garage door is the biggest heat loss I have now, it's a steel , insulated door but still doesn't have the insulation factor that a finished out wall does. I know your garage is bigger and free standing , mine is 24 x28 and I have less than $1000 in all the materials and that included some copper plumbing I installed at the same time. My walls were block , so I framed those out ( free, left over metal studs from a job), insulated , hung the drywall myself, and had a friend help with the drywall finishing. Another thought,( I can't say how much it will help, or the cost) is seal the entire garage with plastic. It wouldn't help insulate but it may help slow down heat loss from a heater. But , as I said, I don't know if the cost is worth it or not. Sorry for the long post, but having a good heater in there will help more than anything you can wear.

[Bench905]

Thanks for the advice guys. Ordered a 8000m suit

[rlundregan]

Thanks for the advice guys. Ordered a 8000m suit

Hehe....a friend of a friend got an 8000m suit for a trip to the Himalayas, then got dysentery the first trip he took in it. Couldn't return it by that point....

[CliveWarren]

You do realize Rogue makes a barbell warmer?

https://www.roguefitness.com/rogue-barbell-warmer

[Schaffer88]

I lift in my partially insulated shed. I layer up and have a small space heater that I plug in.


Usually I sip on a cup of hot coffee with my water between sets.

[Deep-Voiced-One]

I forgot to mention it, but yeah a hot meal then after that digests, drinking tea, or coffee does help before, or during the workout out in the cold...I also like to cut a piece of ginger root, peel the skin off and boil it in a pot of water, then drink it down (it has a great warming and circulatory effect in the body and even helps the immune system work optimally).

[thejosef]

I don't have NEAR the square footage as you Bench, but air conditioning my space, including insulating and sheetrocking the walls, has been one of the best "additions" I've ever done for my space. I'm sure it would get pretty expensive, but how long do you plan on staying at that location? If it's long term, I would seriously consider at least pricing it out.

[Domicron]

your bars are stored on the wall, right? would it work to store them in the middle somewhere and turn on a space heater before your workout? if you get one of the older models you can leave it plugged into a wall outlet timer or those newfangled wifi outlets and turn them on 30-60 minutes before a workout (or however much time you need to warm them up). or maybe a heated blanket draped over them?

other than that i would definitely not recommend lifting in the nude...all those seats on the fancy equipment you have are probably cold as hell on your balls...

[EricAtl]

Bench, you have one of my most favorite gyms, definitely a lot of time and money invested in it. Training in extreme, or even moderately extreme temps is just no fun. I think a heater, like the one posted will help. Maybe some other members can chime in, but I wonder how much it would cost to spray foam the space. You could do so without dry walling it, and save that project for later.

[Bench905]

I don't have NEAR the square footage as you Bench, but air conditioning my space, including insulating and sheetrocking the walls, has been one of the best "additions" I've ever done for my space. I'm sure it would get pretty expensive, but how long do you plan on staying at that location? If it's long term, I would seriously consider at least pricing it out.

It's on my list, but it's probably 2-3 years away at least unless I do it piecemeal. Trying to do master bathroom and patio in the next 1-2 years and if any $ went to insulation/drywall of the garage, it would not be a good scene!

Bench, you have one of my most favorite gyms, definitely a lot of time and money invested in it. Training in extreme, or even moderately extreme temps is just no fun. I think a heater, like the one posted will help. Maybe some other members can chime in, but I wonder how much it would cost to spray foam the space. You could do so without dry walling it, and save that project for later.

Thanks! I think I might do one of those heaters. If I wasn't already wired for 240V/30A, I probably wouldn't. But even if I insulate/drywall, I'd probably buy that same type of heater anyway...so I'd just remount it.

[Rottweiler59]

I bought a small commercial heater from eBay used. It's brilliant its doesn't blow hot air out as such just warming but warms the air. I only need it on 10 mins tops at the start of my workout. I train in a double garage uninsulated.
Can't remember who else said it but I've bought some kit into the house in a spare room for those days I really can't be bothered to go into the Cold badly lit garage.
I've got some parralletes for dips inverted rows. A doorway chin bar, cheap suspension trainer, some furniture sliders for leg curls and a few bands. Can easily get a quick warm workout in

[THErunCMD]

I lift in my garage. The best investment I have made to stay warm was buying the house somewhere where my face doesn't hurt to be outside .




....couldn't resist