For a lot of the country the past weekend brought us the gift of a blast of arctic air and all the snow that comes with it. Those of you in places where it’s above zero and clear of snow can probably skim this article and use that time saved to send help to all of us that are frozen and digging out cars. For the rest of us that are going to be dealing with more snow this weekend or the slushy remnants of what’s already here, we’re going to give a quick primer on keeping your feet warm and choosing proper winter socks.
When you open your sock drawer right now what do you see? If it’s mostly cotton socks then you should pay extra attention to today’s post. Cotton is a great fabric for a number of reasons, the biggest being that it’s a very breathable, natural fabric. This is great in warm months when the issue is getting heat out and keeping everything cool, but in winter the goal is to keep all of the warm air from your body in. So put away the athletic socks until the only ice you see is in your drink on a patio and break out the wool, thermal insulated, and other synthetic fabrics. These fabrics work so much better than cotton by taking the air that is already warmed up by your body and trapping it in pockets as well as having water wicking properties to keep your feet dry as well as warm.
Socks are important because they have the job of getting water away from your feet, but a pair of breathable, waterproof boots is essential to staying warm by getting moisture generated by your feet out and keeping water from the snow from getting in. Make sure the boots are properly insulated for the temperatures you’ll be facing as well. If you’re going out somewhere where you know the temperatures will be very low and you’ll be in them for a while first off consider, very carefully, using chemical warmers to keep feeling in your toes and second, not doing that.