There’s NO Reason To Freeze
I used to dread skiing for a couple of reasons: Firstly, fear. Admittedly I still have a healthy fear of skiing. And, secondly, I ALWAYS get cold. I have horrible circulation, which means I don’t get great blood flow to my toes and fingers. As a result, my hands and feet are always cold.
Basically, before we moved to Colorado I never wanted to ski unless it was 40 degrees and sunny. As you might imagine, those days are rare.
Now, I have a whole new relationship with skiing, and I enjoy it SO much more! That’s because I have figured out how to stay warm on the slopes!! And, I’m going to share ALL of my tricks with you.
Before I dive in, if you want to refresh your ski wardrobe, but not break the bank, check out Topshop’s line called SNO here.
Keeping Your Feet Warm
Let’s start with your feet, which is one of the problem areas. There are a few things you can do to stay warm.
- I would make sure you have boots that really fit well. Ill-fitting boots will not do you any favors in terms of staying warm and toasty.
- Consider heated socks. I wear heated socks on really cold days and put them on the lowest setting.
- I would also consider getting boot warmers. Do you see my boots above? There are small boxes attached to the top of the boots. These Hot Tronics FootWarmers control the heated soles inside my boots. Of note, Salomon does have a pair of boots with built-in heaters. Those boots do not work for the shape of my feet. If you get these Hot Tronics, you can probably skip heated socks. But, make sure you buy decent thin, wool ski socks.
- Boot gloves are another option. I have these too, but rarely use them because I don’t like putting them on my boots.
- Old school toe warmers that stick to your socks can always work in a pinch. I just don’t like the way those feel in my boots.
I sometimes wear both heated socks and my heated boots on really cold days.
Keeping Your Hands Warm
Keeping your hands warm is often another effort in futility. To keep your hands warm I recommend wearing mittens, not gloves. The warmest mittens are made of down. And, heated gloves or mittens are a game-changer!
You can always throw the disposable hand warmers in your mittens and those work really well for about 4 hours+. If you want to go this route, I would bring a backup pair in your jacket. You don’t want to buy these on the mountain as they will be double, maybe triple the price.
Last year I invested in heated mittens. The options are lean and I will be the first to admit the aesthetics of my heated mittens are not the best. Mine are large for my hands. BUT, your hands stay warm!
Don’t forget about your kiddos. I would HIGHLY recommend buying them mittens and putting the hand warmers in the mittens. We do not invest a ton of money in their gear since they grow out of everything so quickly. They also lose things all the time. You can find some affordable ski mittens for kids here.
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Keeping Your Head Warm
I can’t believe I used to ONLY wear a hat! Ski helmets are a must for safety! The other beautiful thing about wearing a ski helmet… they keep you VERY warm!! Game-changers! If you want even more warmth, you can wear a balaclava under your helmet. On frigid days, pull your hood up over your ski helmet and add a neck warmer over your balaclava.
For those that love music and/or need to be able to answer the phone, I highly recommend adding a Bluetooth headset to your helmet. It’s AWESOME!
Keeping Your Body Warm
For your body, ideally, I would wear a base layer that is merino wool. Merino wool will wick away moisture and keep you warm. If it’s a really cold day, I would wear insulated ski pants, a cashmere sweater or second long-sleeve layer, and finally a warm ski jacket. My jacket above is by Sportalm. Arc’teryx makes ridiculously warm jackets. Helly Hensen, Kjus, The North Face, Spyder, Outdoor Research, are other notable ski gear brands.
If you want to shop luxury ski gear brands, be sure to check out this post.
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Photos by Josh King
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This is great! I also have an issue staying warm on the slopes and avoid skiing because of it. but there’s another situation where i struggle on a daily basis and that’s walking the dog! i’m not worried about looking overly stylish, but i’d like to at least look presentable. we have a lot of dog owners in the neighborhood and i often find myself trying to avoid them because i’m dressed like a human stray. any tips would be greatly appreciated, particularly when the weather is cold, snowy or rainy (i’m okay in the warm summer months). Love your content! Thanks.