Something remarkable happened in the years following the pandemic, and if you spend any time on social media or live in a city with a decent population, you've probably noticed it. Running clubs didn't just bounce back—they exploded. According to Strava's 2024 Year in Sport report, running club participation increased by 59% globally, with the number of new clubs tripling compared to the previous year. By 2025, the app hosted over one million clubs, with hiking clubs growing nearly six times over and running clubs growing 3.5 times. This isn't a minor uptick in a niche fitness trend. This is a cultural shift that's reshaping how an entire generation thinks about exercise, community, and what it means to take care of their bodies.

What makes this surge particularly interesting isn't just the numbers—it's what's driving them. When researchers asked people why they joined fitness groups, 48% cited social connection as their primary motivation. Not speed. Not weight loss. Not even the physical health benefits that have been drilled into our heads for decades. People are lacing up their running shoes because they want to make friends, find community, and belong to something larger than themselves. The phrase "run clubs over nightclubs" has become a generational rallying cry, capturing a fundamental reimagining of how young adults want to spend their time and build their social lives.

This matters for reasons that go beyond the obvious feel-good narrative about humans being social creatures. When you shift the purpose of an activity from performance to connection, everything else shifts too—including how that activity affects your body. Runners who join clubs tend to run longer (group activities averaged 40% more duration than solo efforts), more consistently, and in all kinds of weather conditions. They're showing up for 5 AM runs in January because their crew is counting on them. They're logging miles in rain, wind, and summer heat because the post-run coffee ritual has become sacred. They're building running into their identity in ways that individual fitness goals rarely achieve.

And here's where things get practical: all that outdoor exposure, in all those conditions, takes a toll on skin that most running culture doesn't talk about. The same wind that makes a winter run feel invigorating is stripping moisture from your face and hands. The same sun that lights up a summer morning route is accelerating skin aging. The same sweat that cools you on a humid evening run is disrupting your skin's barrier function. The very consistency that makes run club membership so beneficial for cardiovascular health creates compounding challenges for the body's largest organ.

This isn't about vanity. It's about understanding that your skin is an organ—the largest one you have—and it's working overtime every time you step outside to run. Taking care of it isn't optional equipment like a GPS watch or fancy shoes. It's fundamental to sustainable running, which is what run clubs are ultimately about: running that you can do for years, with people you enjoy, without your body breaking down. The runners who are still going strong in their sixties and seventies universally understand this—they've learned that holistic body care, including skin care, is part of what keeps them on the road.

The Social Fitness Movement: More Than a Trend

Before we dive into the skin implications of this running renaissance, it's worth understanding why run clubs have captured the cultural imagination so completely. The data tells a compelling story. Fleet Feet estimates that approximately 20 million people have started running since 2020, with another 7 million returning to the sport. Running USA's 2024 survey found that race entries now exceed pre-pandemic levels, with 75% of runners planning to participate in as many or more races in 2025 as before. These aren't temporary COVID-era converts—they're people who have integrated running into their lives and show no signs of stopping.

But participation numbers only tell part of the story. The more revealing statistic is this: 58% of survey respondents said they made new friends through fitness groups. Among Gen Z, that number climbs even higher—66% reported forming new friendships through their clubs. One in five Gen Z members has dated someone they met through exercise. They're four times more likely than older generations to want to meet people through working out rather than at a bar. This represents a fundamental reimagining of where social life happens and how relationships form.

The stereotypical image of the lone runner—headphones in, focused inward, chasing a personal best—is giving way to something more communal. Today's run clubs often end at coffee shops or breweries. They have matching outfits (blue is predicted to be the standout color for 2025, according to Strava's trend analysis). They organize social events on Friday nights and long runs on Sunday mornings. The run itself is almost incidental to the community that forms around it. As one runner put it in a recent survey, "I came for the exercise but stayed for the friendships."

Take London City Runners as an example of where this trend is heading. Based in Bermondsey's Beer Mile, they operate an 1,800-square-foot craft beer pub and meeting space—the only running-themed pub in the world, according to founder Tim Navin-Jones. They host regular runs during the week, social events on Fridays, operate like a normal pub on Saturdays, and convene for long runs on Sundays. The pub serves local and international beers alongside artisan coffee, making the post-run hangout just as integral to the club's identity as the miles logged. This isn't an anomaly—it's a template that clubs everywhere are adapting.

The model is proliferating across cities worldwide. Run clubs increasingly combine fitness with food, drinks, and social programming. The average pace at many clubs hovers around 10:15 per mile—deliberately inclusive, prioritizing participation over performance. "We're not training for the Olympics," one club organizer explained. "We're building a community where everyone feels welcome." Women are joining at unprecedented rates, with an 89% year-over-year increase in female run club participation on Strava. The movement is democratizing running in ways the sport hasn't seen in generations.

What drives this phenomenon isn't complicated. People are lonely. The pandemic revealed how fragile many social connections were, and the post-pandemic world hasn't automatically rebuilt them. Meanwhile, social media has created the illusion of connection while often increasing isolation. Running clubs offer something real: shared physical experience, regular face-to-face interaction, and the vulnerability that comes with pushing yourself alongside others. You can't hide behind a screen when you're gasping for air on a hill climb. The authenticity is part of the appeal.

What Year-Round Running Actually Does to Your Skin

Here's the thing about social accountability: it gets you out the door when conditions aren't ideal. The solo runner might skip a February morning run when the temperature drops below freezing. The run club member shows up anyway because their friends are counting on them, because the group chat has been buzzing about the route, because missing means missing out on the conversation that happens over post-run pastries. This consistency is wonderful for fitness. It's challenging for skin.

A 2024 study published in JEADV Clinical Practice documented the range of skin conditions common among long-distance runners, noting that "cold air is often dry, which can deplete the skin's natural oils, leading to dryness, flakiness, and itching." The study identified xerosis (severe dry skin), superficial frostbite, Raynaud's phenomenon, cold-induced panniculitis, chilblains, and cold-induced urticaria as conditions runners develop in cold weather—in addition to the sun damage, chafing, and friction-related issues that occur year-round. This isn't a comprehensive list of minor inconveniences. These are documented medical conditions that affect skin function and require attention.

The researchers noted something particularly relevant for run club culture: these conditions develop through cumulative exposure, not single events. The runner who logs four cold-weather runs per week, every week from November through March, is subjecting their skin to stresses that compound over time. Each individual run might not cause visible damage, but the aggregate effect can be significant. This is exactly the pattern that run club participation creates—consistent exposure that builds fitness while simultaneously challenging skin health.

Cold and Wind Exposure

When temperatures drop and humidity decreases, the air literally pulls moisture from your skin. Dermatologists describe this as the skin's "barrier function" being compromised—the protective outer layer that keeps hydration in and irritants out becomes weakened. Dr. Joshua Zeichner, director of cosmetic and clinical research in dermatology at Mount Sinai Hospital, explains it directly: "If you are exercising outside, cold temperatures—especially when combined with wind—can strip the skin of essential oils, leading to dryness, irritation and impairment of the skin barrier."

The mechanics of this process deserve attention. Your skin's outermost layer, the stratum corneum, functions like a brick wall held together by lipid "mortar." This barrier keeps water inside your body and environmental threats outside. Cold, dry air creates a moisture gradient that pulls water through this barrier from the inside out. Wind accelerates the process by increasing evaporation from the skin's surface. The faster you run, the more wind you generate across your exposed skin—which means the harder you're working, the more you're stressing your skin's protective systems.

Wind makes everything worse through a mechanism runners intuitively understand. As Dr. Neal Schultz puts it, "When you increase the speed of wind across skin, you get greater evaporation, which dries it out more." He compares it to using a fan to dry a wet carpet—the increased airflow dramatically accelerates moisture loss. For runners, this means that headwinds aren't just harder to run through; they're actively stripping your skin of the moisture it needs to stay healthy. A winter run with significant wind exposure can compromise your skin barrier more than a calm-day run at the same temperature.

The extremities suffer most. Your hands, face, ears, and nose are directly exposed to cold air and wind while your core stays relatively protected by layers. Professor Christian Aldridge, a consultant dermatologist, notes that "when the air is very dry, water will leave your skin and then your skin will start to dry. If left and not moisturized, your skin starts to crack, certainly at the peripheries of the body, so the hands and face, tips of the nose and fingers." If untreated, he adds, this can progress to "winter dermatitis"—irritating, red, itchy changes on the skin's surface.

This explains why so many runners complain about cracked hands and rough skin on their faces during winter training cycles. It's not poor genetics or inadequate water intake—it's the predictable consequence of exposing unprotected skin to conditions that actively strip away its natural defenses. The good news is that it's preventable. The bad news is that most runners don't realize it's happening until the damage is already done.

Heat and Humidity

Summer running presents the opposite problem with similar consequences. When you run in heat, your blood vessels dilate (vasodilation) to help cool you down by bringing blood closer to the skin's surface. This increased blood flow, combined with sweating, can cause fluid to leak into soft tissues—which is why many runners notice swollen hands and fingers during hot-weather runs. The swelling is usually harmless but indicates that your body is working hard to manage temperature, and that work has systemic effects.

Sweat itself creates complications that runners often underestimate. While sweating is essential for temperature regulation, the salt and minerals in sweat can irritate skin if left to sit. The evaporative cooling that makes sweating effective also means repeated cycles of wetting and drying on your skin's surface. This cycle can disrupt the skin's pH balance and bacterial ecosystem, potentially triggering breakouts, rashes, or general irritation. Moisture-wicking fabrics help move sweat away from your body, but your face and hands don't get that benefit—they're left to manage this cycle on their own.

Then there's UV exposure. Morning runners often assume the sun isn't strong enough to cause damage before 8 AM. Evening runners figure the setting sun is benign. Both assumptions are problematic. UV rays penetrate cloud cover and remain damaging even when the sun doesn't feel intense. Snow reflects UV rays, increasing exposure during winter runs. Water and sweat can intensify the sun's effect on skin. The cumulative impact of year-round running—even at times that seem "safe"—adds up to significant UV exposure over months and years.

Research suggests that runners may underestimate their UV exposure by as much as 50%. The sensation of a cool breeze or overcast sky creates a false sense of protection. Meanwhile, UV rays—particularly the UVA rays responsible for premature aging—maintain their intensity regardless of how the weather "feels." A runner who logs 200+ days per year outdoors, as many dedicated run club members do, is accumulating UV exposure equivalent to years of more casual outdoor activity.

The Sweat and Shower Cycle

Run club culture creates another skin challenge that individual runners might avoid: the quick-turnaround shower. After a group run, there's often social time—coffee, breakfast, conversation. The pressure to clean up quickly and rejoin the group means hot showers, hasty toweling off, and minimal post-shower skincare. The social element that makes run clubs so effective for fitness can inadvertently work against skin health.

This matters because hot water strips the skin of natural oils just like cold air does. "Long, hot showers and baths strip away the skin's natural oils," notes dermatologist Sheel Desai Solomon. The American Academy of Dermatology recommends applying moisturizer within five minutes of showering to lock in hydration before it evaporates. How many runners actually do this before rushing to meet their crew at the coffee shop? The honest answer, based on conversations with runners, is very few.

The compounding effect becomes significant over time. A runner might expose their skin to cold, drying air during a morning run, then blast it with hot water in a quick shower, skip moisturizer to save time, and repeat this cycle four or five times per week. Over months and years, this pattern degrades skin health in ways that become increasingly difficult to reverse. The damage accumulates below the surface before becoming visible, which is why many runners don't connect their skin problems to their running habits.

Why Runners' Hands Take the Biggest Hit

If you've been running with a group for any length of time, you've probably noticed that your hands bear a disproportionate burden of weather-related damage. This isn't coincidence—it's anatomy and physiology conspiring against you. Understanding why hands suffer so much can help you take targeted action to protect them.

When you run, your body performs a kind of triage with blood flow. The cardiovascular system prioritizes working muscles—legs, heart, lungs—and diverts blood away from less essential areas. Your hands, which don't contribute to the running motion, get deprioritized. The blood vessels in your hands respond by dilating to try to maintain adequate flow, which can cause swelling. Meanwhile, the reduced blood supply means less delivery of the nutrients and moisture that keep skin healthy. Your hands are literally operating on reduced resources.

Add to this the physical exposure. Even on cold days when you're wearing layers everywhere else, your hands often go uncovered or get sweaty inside gloves that you then remove. The temperature swings are dramatic—hands tucked in pockets during the warm-up, exposed during the run as you heat up, then cold again during the cool-down. This cycling stresses the skin's adaptive mechanisms in ways that stable temperatures don't.

The skin on hands is already disadvantaged. It's thinner than skin on other parts of the body and has fewer oil glands. This means less natural lubrication and less capacity to retain moisture. Hands are also washed more frequently than other body parts—after runs, before eating, throughout the day—and each wash removes some of the skin's protective oils. For runners, who may wash their hands multiple extra times per day around their training, this adds up.

Running mechanics compound the problem. Many runners unconsciously clench their fists while running, restricting blood flow to fingers. Carrying water bottles or phones creates constant pressure points. The repetitive swinging motion doesn't help circulation the way you might expect—it can actually encourage fluid to pool in the lower extremities of your arms. Some runners notice their rings fitting tighter after runs, which indicates fluid accumulation in the hands and fingers.

The result is hands that swing through temperature extremes (exposed to air while running, then tucked in pockets during cool-downs), experience circulation challenges, and get washed frequently without adequate moisturizing afterward. It's a recipe for dry, cracked, uncomfortable skin that many runners accept as inevitable when it's actually preventable with consistent care.

The Face Factor: More Exposed Than You Realize

Your face takes every run on the chin, literally. Unless you're running in a balaclava (which creates its own problems with trapped moisture and friction), your face is exposed to whatever conditions you're running through. Wind, sun, cold, rain, pollution particulates—it all lands on your face first. And unlike your legs or core, which are protected by technical fabrics, your face has no barrier between it and the environment.

Research on athletes and environmental exposure paints a concerning picture. Wind exposure on facial skin has an "accelerating effect on both physiological responses and thermal sensations," according to a comprehensive review published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. The study notes that exposed skin can "induce a cascade of respiratory and autonomic responses that affect health status." Your face isn't just getting weathered—the exposure is triggering systemic responses throughout your body.

Windburn deserves specific attention because it's so common among runners and so often dismissed or confused with other conditions. Windburn occurs when cold, dry wind removes the outer layer of oil from your skin, leaving it unprotected. The symptoms—red, burning, irritated skin—often get confused with sunburn, but the mechanism is different. Windburn can happen on overcast days when UV exposure is minimal. It's driven by the physical stripping away of your skin's protective barrier, not by radiation damage.

The good news about windburn is that it's immediately treatable if you recognize it. The milk protein in dairy products can help restore skin pH, which is why dermatologists sometimes recommend milk compresses for windburn. The bad news is that repeated windburn episodes can lead to chronic sensitivity and accelerated aging. For run club members who gather rain or shine, windburn isn't a once-a-year occurrence—it's a regular threat that requires consistent prevention.

For run club members who gather rain or shine, this exposure accumulates week after week. The runner who shows up three or four mornings a week, year-round, is putting their facial skin through conditions that would make a dermatologist wince. Without protective measures and recovery protocols, this commitment to consistency can accelerate skin aging, increase sensitivity, and create chronic barrier dysfunction that becomes increasingly difficult to reverse.

The Athlete's Skin Paradox

Here's something counterintuitive that the running community doesn't discuss enough: being highly active can actually compromise your skin's baseline health in ways that make it more vulnerable to environmental stressors. The more you train, the more support your skin needs—yet most athletes give their skin less attention than their sedentary peers.

A study published in the Journal of Sports Medicine examined skin barrier function in collegiate athletes versus non-athletes. The findings were striking: athletes showed 23% lower ceramide levels in their stratum corneum compared to their sedentary peers. Ceramides are lipids that play a crucial role in maintaining the skin's barrier function—they're essentially the "mortar" that holds the "bricks" of your skin cells together. Lower ceramide levels mean a compromised barrier, which means greater susceptibility to moisture loss, irritation, and environmental damage.

Why would athletes have weaker skin barriers? The researchers pointed to several factors: frequent sweating and subsequent washing, regular exposure to environmental extremes, and potentially the metabolic demands of training diverting resources away from skin maintenance. The body has finite resources, and when those resources are prioritized for muscle recovery, cardiovascular adaptation, and energy replacement, skin repair may get shortchanged.

This creates what we might call the athlete's skin paradox. The same commitment to fitness that makes someone join a run club and show up consistently also creates conditions that compromise their skin. The solution isn't to exercise less—the benefits of regular physical activity far outweigh the skin challenges. The solution is to recognize that athletic skin has specific needs and address them proactively.

This is particularly relevant for run club culture, where consistency is valued and participation is social. Missing runs to "let your skin recover" isn't really an option when your running is tied to your social life. You can't tell your running friends you're skipping the Saturday long run because your face is windburned. The solution isn't to run less—it's to support your skin adequately for the demands you're placing on it.

What Actually Works: Building a Runner's Skin Protocol

Understanding the problem is one thing. Solving it requires practical approaches that fit into the real rhythms of run club life—which means they need to be quick, effective, and not require a bathroom full of products. The goal is sustainable skin care that becomes as automatic as lacing up your shoes.

Before the Run

The goal pre-run is to create a protective barrier without using products that will slide off when you start sweating or clog pores when mixed with perspiration. This is where product formulation actually matters—not all moisturizers are created equal for athletic use.

For your face, you want something that moisturizes without sitting on the surface like a film. Products formulated with fresh goat milk have an advantage here—the milk's natural pH (around 6.5-6.7) closely matches human skin, which means better absorption and less interference with your skin's own processes. The lactic acid naturally present in fresh goat milk provides gentle exfoliation while the milk's fat-protein matrix delivers sustained hydration without greasiness. This matters for runners because you need products that work with your skin, not on top of it.

Sunscreen is non-negotiable, even on cloudy days, even in winter. UV rays penetrate cloud cover and reflect off surfaces (snow, water, pavement). Apply it 15-30 minutes before you head out so it has time to bond with your skin. If you're running more than 60-90 minutes, plan to reapply. Choose formulations designed for active use—they're less likely to run into your eyes when you start sweating.

For your hands, apply a rich cream before you put on gloves in cold weather. The cream creates a protective layer while the gloves trap heat and moisture, allowing deeper absorption. This combination therapy—cream plus occlusion—is more effective than either approach alone. In warmer weather, go lighter but don't skip this step—your hands still need protection from UV and the drying effects of wind.

During the Run

There's limited intervention you can do mid-run, but a few practices help. Keep your hands relaxed rather than clenched—this maintains better circulation and reduces the blood flow restriction that contributes to skin stress. Periodically make fists and release them to keep blood flowing. Some runners find that shaking their hands out every mile or so helps prevent the swelling that can occur on longer runs.

If you're running in extreme cold, consider mittens over gloves (fingers together generate more heat than fingers separated). The tradeoff is dexterity—you can't easily check your watch or handle your phone with mittens—but the thermal protection is significantly better. Some runners use a liner glove under mittens, allowing them to remove the outer layer when they need their hands while keeping a base layer of protection.

For your face, a neck gaiter that can be pulled up provides wind protection when conditions are harsh. Choose breathable fabrics that won't trap too much moisture against your skin. The goal is blocking wind, not creating a humid microenvironment that leads to other problems. Merino wool and technical synthetics generally work better than cotton for this purpose.

Pay attention to how your skin feels. Numbness, excessive burning, or the skin feeling "tight" and dried out are signals that you're taking more damage than you should. Adjusting clothing or route (running with the wind rather than into it on the return trip, for example) can reduce exposure. Don't ignore these signals just to complete your planned workout—skin damage accumulates.

After the Run

This is where run club culture creates challenges—you're often rushing to clean up and join your group. But even a slightly modified routine can make a significant difference. The post-run window is actually the most important time for skin recovery, so investing a few extra minutes here pays dividends.

Keep your shower warm rather than hot. Hot water feels amazing after a cold run but strips oils from your skin aggressively. Dr. Solomon recommends limiting showers to ten minutes and following immediately with moisturizer. The "immediately" part matters—skin absorbs products better when slightly damp, and you're preventing moisture loss that accelerates as skin air-dries.

For your face, gentle cleansing followed by a hydrating cream helps restore what the run depleted. Products containing MSM (methylsulfonylmethane) support the skin's natural recovery processes—the sulfur in MSM is a building block for collagen and connective tissue, which is exactly what wind-stressed skin needs to repair itself. Look for formulations that include both hydrating and recovery-supporting ingredients.

Your hands need extra attention post-run. Apply a rich hand cream and actually massage it in—don't just swipe it on and move on. The massage improves circulation while the cream restores the barrier you've been breaking down. If your hands are particularly dry or damaged, apply a heavy layer before bed and wear cotton gloves overnight. It sounds excessive until you try it and realize how much faster your hands recover.

The Fresh Milk Difference for Active Skin

When we formulate products on our Washington State farm, we're thinking about exactly these scenarios—the runner who needs something that works with the demands of an active lifestyle, not against them. Our family includes NCAA Division I track and field athletes and several other college competitors, so we've lived through the skin challenges that runners face. We've watched our own athletes struggle with cracked hands and weather-damaged faces during training cycles.

Fresh goat milk, as opposed to the powdered and reconstituted milk used in most "goat milk" skincare products, offers specific advantages for athletes. The milk goes directly from our herd into our formulations while it's still fresh, meaning the lactic acid, vitamins, minerals, and proteins are intact and bioavailable. When you look at competitor products that list "goat milk powder" after fragrance in their ingredient lists, you're looking at a fundamentally different ingredient—one that's been processed, transported, and reconstituted, losing much of what made it beneficial in the first place.

The lactic acid naturally present in fresh goat milk provides gentle exfoliation that helps prevent the buildup of dead skin cells—a common issue for runners whose skin is constantly cycling through exposure and recovery. But unlike isolated lactic acid in synthetic serums, the lactic acid in fresh milk is buffered by the milk's fats and proteins, delivering sustained benefit without the irritation that concentrated acids can cause on already-stressed skin.

Every Artisan product also contains MSM, because we've seen in our own family of athletes how important sulfur is for skin recovery. The sulfur in MSM serves as a building block for collagen synthesis and supports the connective tissue structures that keep skin resilient. For runners whose skin is under constant environmental stress, this recovery support matters. With two NCAA Division I track and field athletes and several other college competitors in our family, we've field-tested these formulations in conditions as demanding as any run club will encounter.

Our Hand Cream was formulated specifically with outdoor athletes in mind. The organic shea butter, avocado oil, and coconut oil provide deep moisturization, while the fresh goat milk base ensures the product absorbs properly rather than sitting on the surface. For faces that take the brunt of running conditions, our Face Cream delivers similar benefits with additional anti-aging support from hyaluronic acid and green tea extract. These aren't products designed for sedentary lifestyles and then marketed to athletes—they're formulated from the start for active skin.

The Community Element: Talking About Skin in Run Club Culture

One of the interesting things about run club culture is how it creates space for conversations that might feel awkward elsewhere. Post-run gatherings involve people who just shared a physical experience, who are in various states of flushed and sweaty, who have formed connections based on something other than appearance. This environment can actually make it easier to talk about practical matters like skin care without it feeling vain or superficial.

And these conversations matter. When someone in your run club mentions that their hands have been cracking all winter, sharing what's worked for you is genuinely helpful. When the group chat includes a tip about pre-run face protection, everyone benefits. Run clubs thrive on shared knowledge—about routes, about gear, about nutrition, about recovery. Skin care is part of that equation, whether it's acknowledged or not.

The social aspect of running creates both the problem (more consistent exposure in more conditions) and part of the solution (a community where practical wisdom gets shared). Run clubs that incorporate skincare awareness into their culture—keeping hand cream at the post-run coffee spot, for example, or including skin protection tips in their new-member orientation—are serving their members' long-term health in ways that go beyond cardiovascular fitness.

There's also something to be said for normalizing body care among athletes. The old-school running mentality often treated any attention to appearance as vanity, and anything that wasn't directly performance-related as frivolous. But caring for your skin isn't about looking good in post-run selfies—it's about maintaining the health of an organ that protects you from infection, regulates temperature, and plays dozens of other crucial roles. Run clubs, with their emphasis on community and sustainability, are well-positioned to shift this culture.

Seasonal Strategies for Year-Round Runners

Different seasons present different challenges, and your skin protocol should adapt accordingly. The runner who uses the same products and approaches year-round is likely under-protecting in some seasons and over-treating in others. Here's how to adjust your approach throughout the year.

Winter Running

The combination of cold air, low humidity, wind, and indoor heating creates a hostile environment for skin. Focus on barrier protection before runs (heavier creams, protective balms for lips and exposed areas) and intensive hydration after. Consider running during warmer parts of the day when possible, and protect exposed skin with appropriate gear.

Indoor heating dries skin from the inside while cold air attacks from outside. Running a humidifier at home, particularly in bedrooms, can help maintain baseline hydration levels. Drink adequate water even though thirst cues are diminished in cold weather—dehydration affects skin health as much as external exposure.

Don't neglect sun protection just because it's cold. Snow reflects UV rays, and winter sun at certain angles can be surprisingly intense. Sunscreen should remain part of your pre-run routine year-round, with particular attention to any exposed skin.

Spring and Fall Transitions

These seasons offer more forgiving conditions but come with their own challenges. Temperature swings mean your skin is constantly adapting. Pollen and other allergens can increase skin sensitivity. The sun gets stronger in spring before summer sun-awareness kicks in, making this a high-risk period for UV damage.

Use these seasons to repair damage from summer or winter extremes. Lighter moisturizers are appropriate, but don't abandon your routine just because conditions feel milder. Consistent care during moderate conditions builds resilience for the extremes. This is also a good time to assess your skin's baseline condition and adjust products if needed.

Summer Running

Shift your focus to sun protection and managing sweat-related issues. Lighter, non-comedogenic products work better when you're sweating heavily. Cleansing after runs becomes more critical to prevent sweat from sitting on skin and causing irritation. Stay on top of sunscreen application, especially for early morning runs when you might underestimate UV intensity.

Humidity can actually help skin retain moisture, so summer is often when wind-damaged skin from winter finally heals. But don't become complacent—sun damage is cumulative and can take years to manifest as visible aging or more serious conditions. Consistent protection now prevents problems you won't see until much later.

The Long Game: Sustainable Running Includes Sustainable Skin

The run club phenomenon is fundamentally about sustainability. Not just environmental sustainability, though many clubs incorporate that ethos, but personal sustainability—building a running practice that you can maintain for years, even decades. The social element provides motivation and accountability. The inclusive pacing welcomes runners of all abilities. The culture emphasizes balance over burnout. These are the ingredients for a practice that lasts.

Skin care fits into this framework naturally. You can't run sustainably if your skin is breaking down faster than it can recover. Cracked hands, chronic irritation, premature aging—these aren't minor inconveniences. They're signals that something in your system is out of balance, that the demands you're placing on your body exceed its capacity to recover.

The runners we've met who are still going strong in their sixties and seventies—and there are many in the running community—universally talk about the importance of caring for their bodies holistically. Joints, muscles, cardiovascular system, nutrition, sleep... and skin. They've learned through experience that neglecting any of these elements eventually catches up with you. The wisdom they share isn't about performance hacks or training secrets—it's about respecting your body's needs and giving it what it requires to keep going.

Run clubs are creating a new generation of lifelong runners. The social connections that keep people coming back will, hopefully, lead to running communities where practical wisdom about body care—including skin care—gets shared freely. Where the post-run routine includes not just coffee but moisturizer. Where taking care of your skin isn't seen as vain or excessive but as smart investment in your running future.

From our Washington State farm to your run club—wherever it meets, whatever conditions it runs through—we're making products for this new era of social fitness. Products that work with the rhythms of active life. Products formulated from fresh ingredients, by a family that understands athletic demands firsthand. Products that help you show up for your crew, mile after mile, year after year.

Because the best run is the one you can still do tomorrow. And the run after that. And all the runs to come, with the people who make them worthwhile.

The Science of Recovery: What Happens After You Stop Running

Understanding skin recovery helps explain why post-run care matters so much. When you finish a run, your body doesn't immediately return to its resting state—it enters a recovery phase where repair processes kick into high gear. This is true for muscles, cardiovascular system, and yes, your skin.

During exercise, blood flow is diverted away from the skin toward working muscles. Once you stop running, blood flow patterns shift again. The body needs to cool down, manage waste products, and begin repair processes. For skin, this means a window of increased blood flow to the surface—which is why you look flushed after a run—during which nutrients and repair factors are delivered to stressed tissue. This recovery window is when your skin is most receptive to supportive care.

The skin's barrier function takes time to recover from environmental stress. Research indicates that compromised barrier function can persist for hours after exposure to harsh conditions. This is why the immediate post-run period is so critical—the products you apply during this window encounter skin that's actively trying to repair itself, making them more effective than the same products applied hours later.

This recovery process is also why cumulative damage is so insidious. If you don't give your skin what it needs to fully recover between runs, each successive run starts from a slightly compromised baseline. Over weeks and months, this accumulated deficit manifests as chronic dryness, increased sensitivity, or premature aging. The runner who addresses recovery proactively maintains their skin's baseline health; the runner who doesn't slowly degrades it.

The products you use during recovery should support rather than hinder these natural processes. Heavy occlusives can trap heat and sweat, which isn't ideal immediately post-run when your skin is still trying to cool down. Light, hydrating products applied after showering—once skin has cooled and been cleansed—provide what the skin needs without interfering with thermoregulation. Then, richer products can be applied later in the day or before bed for deeper recovery.

Building Habits That Stick: The Run Club Advantage

One of the reasons run clubs are so effective for building consistent running habits is the social accountability they provide. Missing a solo run disappoints only yourself. Missing a group run means letting down your friends, breaking your streak in the group chat, and missing the social interaction you've come to value. This accountability mechanism can be leveraged for skin care as well.

Consider making skin care part of your run club ritual. Some clubs have started keeping hand cream at their regular meeting spots. Others include moisturizer in their race-day goodie bags. When skin care becomes part of the shared culture rather than an individual afterthought, compliance increases naturally. You're more likely to apply hand cream when you see your running buddy doing the same.

Habit stacking works here too. If you already have a post-run routine—changing clothes, stretching, showering—add skin care to that sequence. The habit becomes automatic when it's attached to existing behaviors. The runner who keeps moisturizer next to their running shoes applies it without thinking; the runner who stores it in a bathroom cabinet often forgets.

The visual cues matter. Keep products visible and accessible. If your hand cream lives in a drawer, you'll skip it when you're in a hurry. If it's sitting on your car's center console or in your running pack, it becomes part of the experience rather than an extra step. The goal is to make skin care as natural as lacing up your shoes—something you don't have to think about because it's woven into the routine.

Run clubs that embrace holistic wellness—recognizing that sustainable running requires caring for the whole body—tend to retain members longer. When someone feels that a club supports their overall health, not just their pace times, they're more likely to stay engaged through the inevitable ups and downs of training. Skin care is part of that holistic approach, and clubs that recognize this serve their members better.

What We've Learned from Our Own Athletes

Running a farm-based skincare company while raising competitive athletes has given us a unique perspective on what works and what doesn't for active skin. We've watched our Division I track athletes struggle with the same issues that run club members face, just intensified by training volume and competitive pressure. Their experiences have directly informed our formulations.

What we've learned is that athletes need products that multitask. A cream that only moisturizes isn't enough when you're also dealing with wind damage, sun exposure, and the oxidative stress of intense training. The MSM in every Artisan product addresses inflammation at the cellular level. The fresh goat milk provides gentle exfoliation alongside hydration. The combination works because it addresses multiple challenges simultaneously.

We've also learned that timing matters more than most athletes realize. Our athletes who apply hand cream immediately after removing their training gloves maintain better skin than those who wait until bedtime. The runners who use face cream within minutes of showering see better results than those who apply it as an afterthought before leaving the house. These small timing adjustments make significant differences in outcomes.

Perhaps most importantly, we've learned that consistency beats intensity. Moderate care applied daily outperforms aggressive treatment applied sporadically. The athlete who uses a light hand cream four times a day maintains better skin than one who slathers on heavy product once a week. This matches what we know about skin biology—the organ responds best to steady support rather than occasional intervention.

These lessons from our athletic family inform everything we make. When Lisa formulates products in our Washington State facility, she's thinking about the practical realities of training life—products that work quickly, absorb cleanly, and actually get used rather than sitting forgotten in a bathroom cabinet. The goal is making skin care so easy that even busy athletes actually do it.

References

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6. Zeichner, J. (2019). Winter Skin Care for Outdoor Exercise. Mount Sinai Hospital Dermatology Research.

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14. American College of Sports Medicine. (2025). Expert Consensus Statement: Cold Temperature Exercise. acsm.org

15. Form Nutrition. (2025). How 2025 Became the Year of the Run Club. formnutrition.com