Tips for Exercising in Heat

Healthier_Me

Stay Safe and Stay Hydrated
-- By Lonnie Soloff, Cleveland Indians' Head Trainer

The body dissipates heat 4 ways:

Conduction – heat transfer from one solid object to another. The transfer is always from the warmer object to the cooler object.

Radiation – the loss of heat in the form of infrared rays

Convection – heat transfer from the body to the surrounding air. Air temperature must be cooler than skin temperature in order for this to occur. Wind is a good example.

Evaporation – sweat from the skin results in heat loss by the body.*

If the body isn't accustomed to warm weather exercises, it takes approximately 10-14 days of exercise in those conditions in order to fully acclimate yourself.

Your body's “temperature regulation center,” called the hypothalamus, adjusts during this period. Changes during this period include sweat rate increases, sweating begins earlier, better distribution of sweat over the whole body, sweat becomes hypotonic (less salty), and blood volume increases.

*Sweating during exercise is very important and a great benefit to body temperature regulation, provided the sweat can evaporate easily. Be careful during hot and humid conditions because there is so much moisture in the air that it’s hard for your sweat to evaporate and your body temperature can raise quickly. The average person has between 2-4 million sweat glands throughout the surface of our bodies.

Some things to think about during hot weather exercise:

Don't expect peak performance – your heart works harder and not as much blood is delivered to the working muscles.

Clothing should be loose and absorbent, light in color to reflect heat.

Drink water during, before and after exercise.

You only need electrolyte replacement drinks (Gatorade/Powerade) if you are performing long term exercise (90-plus minutes).

Use sunscreen – not oil based or suntan oil.

http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/fitness_articles.asp?id=261

Healthier_Me

Stay Safe and Stay Hydrated
-- By Lonnie Soloff, Cleveland Indians' Head Trainer

The body dissipates heat 4 ways:

Conduction – heat transfer from one solid object to another. The transfer is always from the warmer object to the cooler object.

Radiation – the loss of heat in the form of infrared rays

Convection – heat transfer from the body to the surrounding air. Air temperature must be cooler than skin temperature in order for this to occur. Wind is a good example.

Evaporation – sweat from the skin results in heat loss by the body.*

If the body isn't accustomed to warm weather exercises, it takes approximately 10-14 days of exercise in those conditions in order to fully acclimate yourself.

Your body's “temperature regulation center,” called the hypothalamus, adjusts during this period. Changes during this period include sweat rate increases, sweating begins earlier, better distribution of sweat over the whole body, sweat becomes hypotonic (less salty), and blood volume increases.

*Sweating during exercise is very important and a great benefit to body temperature regulation, provided the sweat can evaporate easily. Be careful during hot and humid conditions because there is so much moisture in the air that it’s hard for your sweat to evaporate and your body temperature can raise quickly. The average person has between 2-4 million sweat glands throughout the surface of our bodies.

Some things to think about during hot weather exercise:

Don't expect peak performance – your heart works harder and not as much blood is delivered to the working muscles.

Clothing should be loose and absorbent, light in color to reflect heat.

Drink water during, before and after exercise.

You only need electrolyte replacement drinks (Gatorade/Powerade) if you are performing long term exercise (90-plus minutes).

Use sunscreen – not oil based or suntan oil.

http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/fitness_articles.asp?id=261

iftcheiaf

Thanks. This actually answered a lot of questions. I feel like my performance has been slowing down this past week with the temperatures in the 95+ range. I appreciate the effort and the research

Healthier_Me

I've been doing all my workouts inside due to the heat. My asthma is acting up too so there is no way I'll step foot outside.

Very welcome!:bigsmile:

stschulz

Thanks. Answered some questions for me too. I have to train in the heat ( I think) because I am training for an event in August. I participated in the same event 3 years ago and the heat nearly killed me. I barely made the 65 miles on the bicycle. So this year I feel I better get used to mit on time. You saying it takes about 14 days tells me my body can get used to that.