TempoLife › Features › What to wear for a run or walk by temperature
Dress for the weather
What to wear for running and walking from -25 to +30 C: base, mid and shell per felt-temperature band, with the wind and rain modifiers — a deterministic chart, no weather API.
The modifiers are stated approximations (wind feels about 3-5 C colder, rain about 3 C), not a wind-chill formula. The chart is a starting point; your own experience in your own climate outranks it.
The modifiers
| Condition | Effect |
|---|---|
| Strong wind (roughly 10+ m/s) | Feels about 3-5 C colder — add a shell layer |
| Light to moderate wind | Feels about 1-3 C colder |
| Rain or wet snow | Feels about 3 C colder — and wet base layers must go |
The chart
| Felt temperature | For a runner |
|---|---|
| 25 to 30 C | Easy pace: heat is the limiter. Run early or late, hydrate before, wear as little as decency allows. |
| 20 to 24 C | Shorts and a tee are plenty. |
| 15 to 19 C | Most runners are happy in a tee and shorts once moving. |
| 10 to 14 C | Arms covered at the start; you will warm up. |
| 5 to 9 C | Base plus a wind shell; gloves if your hands run cold. |
| 0 to 4 C | Tights, base, shell and gloves; the first kilometre is the cold one. |
| -5 to -1 C | Two upper layers plus shell, tights, warm gloves and a hat. |
| -10 to -6 C | Insulated tights or double legs; cover the face at speed. |
| -15 to -11 C | Face protection matters at pace; watch for frostbite on exposed skin. |
| -20 to -16 C | Short, easy runs only; frostbite on exposed skin in tens of minutes. |
| -25 to -21 C | Most people should train indoors; if outside, keep it short and covered. |
Layering principle: REI Expert Advice — layering basics (base, mid, shell) · checked 2026-09-03
Frequently asked questions
What is "felt temperature"?
The air temperature adjusted for wind and wet: strong wind strips the warm layer of air around you, and wet clothing cools far faster than dry. The chart's modifiers use the rough rules below — they are approximations, which the page says openly.
Why base, mid, shell?
Because each layer has one job: the base wicks sweat away, the mid traps warm air, the shell stops wind and rain. Three cheap layers beat one thick one because you can shed them as you warm up.
How do I read a band URL?
Put the temperature in the address: /dress-for-weather/5c, /dress-for-weather/m10c or /dress-for-weather/minus-10c. Each band is also linked below.
Dressed right, tracked right
TempoLife logs the run or walk — distance, pace and how it felt — so the wardrobe learns with you.