How to Keep Active and Exercised in Winter

Feb. 5, 2002 — -- Wintry weather can make it challenging to exercise outside, as low temperatures raise the risks for everything from frostbite and muscle pulls to slips on icy sidewalks.

To find out how to face the cold safely, ABCNEWS.com asked three of its sports medicine experts to provide tips on how get the most out of your winter workout without injury.

Dr. David Stone is an orthopedist at the University of Pittsburgh Center for Sports Medicine, Gordon Blackburn is an exercise physiologist at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, and Mike Dupper is an exercise science professor at the University of Mississippi. Here's what they suggest:

1. Dress in Layers

Before you go outside, be sure to bundle up — that means wearing a hat, gloves, and perhaps even shoe liners in addition to regular socks. Experts also recommend avoiding cotton workout gear, because cotton tends to keep moisture at the level of the skin and has a cooling effect. "What we recommend is people wear layers with a synthetic layer closest to the skin, and then they can put wool above them if they want to do that," advises Stone. "People should wear some type of wind resistant outer garment, like Gortex, so that they're preventing what's called "convection," which is where a wind blowing past a person will remove heat from their body."

2. Keep Skin Covered

It's not only important to pay attention to the temperature outside, but it's essential to protect against the wind chill as well by limiting skin exposure. "If the wind chill is under 25 degrees below zero Fahrenheit, exposed skin can freeze in about one minute," explains Blackburn. "So the key is to make sure all of your skin is covered as the temperature drops."

3. Wear Sneakers With Good Traction

To help prevent slips and falls, take a look at the sole and heel to see whether it has enough tread. If it's smooth on the bottom, don't run in them on ice or snow. "Wearing trail running shoes with more aggressive tread than normal sneaker's helps to reduce the risk of slipping," says Dupper.