Sweat during exercise means....

chocolatnoir
chocolatnoir Posts: 182 Member
edited September 22 in Fitness and Exercise
I've always been in fairly decent cardiovascular health and ever since I started running as a 15 year old I have sweat a lot.

I have also read/heard that sweating is a sign that your body is cooling itself off effectively and that you are hydrated. At 31 I still sweat as soon as I start working out- whether it is running, stairs, or a rigorous yoga practice. I think it is good!

However, a friend's personal trainer recently told her that the fact the she is sweating a lot is a sign that she is not eating healthfully. Really? Has anyone else heard this before?
«1

Replies

  • bethvandenberg
    bethvandenberg Posts: 1,496 Member
    ummm no never heard that one......
  • whittrusty
    whittrusty Posts: 533 Member
    Sounds bogus to me.
  • bethvandenberg
    bethvandenberg Posts: 1,496 Member
    Excessive Sweating While Exercising Means You’re Not Fit (myth)
    In fact, it's just the opposite. Sweating during exercise is a sign of an efficient cooler. An athlete who has adapted to keep the body core cool during exercise will shunt blood to the skin’s surface more quickly and release heat from the body. At the same time, the sweat glands increase their output and thus cool the body during sweat evaporation. While fit people produce more sweat than sedentary folks, they lose less sodium, because more of it is reabsorbed by the body. The result is a more efficient cooler.
  • porcelain_doll
    porcelain_doll Posts: 1,005 Member
    I've always been in fairly decent cardiovascular health and ever since I started running as a 15 year old I have sweat a lot.

    I have also read/heard that sweating is a sign that your body is cooling itself off effectively and that you are hydrated. At 31 I still sweat as soon as I start working out- whether it is running, stairs, or a rigorous yoga practice. I think it is good!

    However, a friend's personal trainer recently told her that the fact the she is sweating a lot is a sign that she is not eating healthfully. Really? Has anyone else heard this before?
    Wow, a personal trainer said that?? My trainer used to reassure me that sweating a lot was good for me when I'd become embarrassed about it. She said it is a way for the body to detoxify itself. I can't believe some of the stuff these people come up with! I've never heard anyone say that sweating a lot during exercise is a bad thing!
  • I second or 3rd that...sweating is good. Some sweat more than others. My personal opinion if you don't sweat, your not revving the engine enough to burn fat ;).
  • mizfit
    mizfit Posts: 118
    Check out the recent post under search called "Sweat and weight loss myth" sent by bigdawg025
  • reyessam
    reyessam Posts: 15 Member
    I agree with what everyone is saying here... that sweat is a good thing... I never heard anyone trained or not say that sweating was a bad thing... if so, then I have issues... as I sweat as soon as I start working out too...
  • leslielove
    leslielove Posts: 251 Member
    unless not eating healthfully means not getting enough water, that's pretty much bs. make sure you're hydrated and keep on sweating. its good for you.
  • ObviousIndigo
    ObviousIndigo Posts: 382 Member
    I second or 3rd that...sweating is good. Some sweat more than others. My personal opinion if you don't sweat, your not revving the engine enough to burn fat ;).

    I hope that this isnt tru because I work my BUTT off doing exercises and very rarely sweat a lot. I mean, I sweat but not like other people...it doesn't poor off my face or anything. This concerns me now.:(
  • I bet that personal trainer wants you to hire him to set you up on a "really Healthy" diet. I believe if you are eating good fruits and vegetables, drinking lots of water and not a lot of highly processed foods and your calorie count is good, you're eating healthy. Oh yeah, don't drink diet or regular soft drinks.
  • The trainer's a blithering idiot. Everyone sweats or doesn't sweat differently but it's not a sign of bad nutrition. Since becoming more fit I sweat as soon as my heart rate starts climbing. I drench my clothes from head to toe, it's kind of annoying.
  • ashley0616
    ashley0616 Posts: 579 Member
    I hope sweating a lot is a good sign, because I am a sweater. I helped some friends move yesterday and I was pouring sweat in about 5 minutes, but I could tell that I was working hard and it felt GOOD. I think your trainer is talking out his *kitten*.
  • eillamarie
    eillamarie Posts: 862 Member
    I was a nationally and internationally competitive swimmer, I trained for 10 years & had to eat well otherwise I wouldn't be able to train like I needed to. I would sweat as soon as I started working out, didn't matter if it was 30 degrees C out or -5 degrees C out. Your trainer has no idea what they're talking about, & I'd seriously consider getting a new one if I were you. Yes it's true that a bigger person is more likely to sweat than a smaller person, but when it comes down to it even Olympians sweat buckets...and they usually eat perfectly!
  • TrainingWithTonya
    TrainingWithTonya Posts: 1,741 Member
    Remember that a personal trainer is only as good as their education. I've been a certified personal trainer for 14 1/2 years. I didn't know squat the first 10 compared to what I know now that I'm almost through with my bachelors in exercise physiology. A personal training certification just covers the basics. None of the ones I've taken, even the ones considered to be in the top 5 quality wise, covered the physiology of sweating. I actually learned about it in Applied Nutritional Science, so even my counterparts in the bachelors in exercise physiology only got a cursory coverage of sweat in comparison so what I learned through my nutrition minor. Sweat is not a sign of poor fitness or nutrition. Sweat isn't a detoxification. What was said earlier about sweat being a sign of a good cooling system and being more fit is true. However, when you are sweating a lot, you need to make sure you are replacing that lost fluid because dehydration is a bad thing that will effect not only performance but also all of the body's normal functions. When you sweat, you also lose sodium and other electrolytes. If you are a fit individual who is sweating during a long workout (over an hour) then you need to replace not just water lost during sweat, but also the electrolytes. This is why Gatorade and other sports drinks were invented. As for worrying about your sweating, don't. Just make sure you replace the water and electrolytes. Drink 4-6 ounces for every 15 minutes of exercise and you should be fine. Remember though, that while you can lose up to 3 liters per hour from sweat, you can only replace 1 liter per hour from drinking, so keep drinking even after the workout.
  • eillamarie
    eillamarie Posts: 862 Member
    I second or 3rd that...sweating is good. Some sweat more than others. My personal opinion if you don't sweat, your not revving the engine enough to burn fat ;).

    I hope that this isnt tru because I work my BUTT off doing exercises and very rarely sweat a lot. I mean, I sweat but not like other people...it doesn't poor off my face or anything. This concerns me now.:(

    Danni don't fret. Some ppl just don't sweat a lot, others sweat buckets. I'm a big sweater, always have been and always will be. It doesn't mean anything. I know a woman who was hiking in the Middle East & couldn't sweat because that's just the way her body is (her fiance had to keep pouring water over her head to keep her cool)
  • TrainingWithTonya
    TrainingWithTonya Posts: 1,741 Member
    I second or 3rd that...sweating is good. Some sweat more than others. My personal opinion if you don't sweat, your not revving the engine enough to burn fat ;).

    I hope that this isnt tru because I work my BUTT off doing exercises and very rarely sweat a lot. I mean, I sweat but not like other people...it doesn't poor off my face or anything. This concerns me now.:(

    Sweating has nothing to do with how hard you are working. If you are working out in a cool room (I keep my gym at 60 degrees year round so I don't sweat too much.), even the fittest person doing the toughest workout won't sweat as much as they would in a warmer environment. If you feel like you are working hard, you're getting your heart rate up, and/or are barely able to carry on a conversation, then you're doing just fine with your workout, with or without sweat.
  • lastchance2010
    lastchance2010 Posts: 494 Member
    that sounds like crap to me.
  • TrainingWithTonya
    TrainingWithTonya Posts: 1,741 Member
    Oh, and FYI, if you are wiping the sweat off or wearing those moisture wicking fabrics, then you will sweat more. Basically, if the body doesn't get the cooling effect it needs from the evaporation of the water from the skin then it will produce more trying to get that evaporation which is what actually cools the body. So, if you don't want to sweat as much, don't wipe off what sweat you are producing.
  • lastchance2010
    lastchance2010 Posts: 494 Member
    I hope sweating a lot is a good sign, because I am a sweater. I helped some friends move yesterday and I was pouring sweat in about 5 minutes, but I could tell that I was working hard and it felt GOOD. I think your trainer is talking out his *kitten*.

    that's funny! :laugh: I'm quite a sweater too....to me sweating is a good sign that I'm getting a good work out or that its a really hot day!!! LOL
  • eglass64
    eglass64 Posts: 180
    If you aint sweating you're not hitting it hard enough...
  • NoAdditives
    NoAdditives Posts: 4,251 Member
    Sweating is neither good nor bad. Everyone is different. Someone who sweats more isn't necessarily healthier or more hydrated than someone who doesn't sweat as much. Someone who doesn't sweat as much may not need to work as hard to cool their body as someone who sweats more. Also, where someone sweats is different for different people. For some reason, when I work out my head sweats a lot and gets hot (which is made worse my noise cancelling headphones), but my underarms don't sweat very much.
  • NoAdditives
    NoAdditives Posts: 4,251 Member
    Oh, and FYI, if you are wiping the sweat off or wearing those moisture wicking fabrics, then you will sweat more. Basically, if the body doesn't get the cooling effect it needs from the evaporation of the water from the skin then it will produce more trying to get that evaporation which is what actually cools the body. So, if you don't want to sweat as much, don't wipe off what sweat you are producing.

    That's not really possible when the sweat is running down your face...
  • chocolatnoir
    chocolatnoir Posts: 182 Member
    Oh wow lots of responses!

    This is a friend's trainer, btw- I don't have one. Her trainer told her she must have been eating poorly that week because she was sweating so much during her work out. I told her it goes against everything I've ever heard.

    I'm going to keep on sweating away happily :)
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    Sweat does not have any special significance. As others have said, it is a cooling mechanism, and you tend to get better at it as your fitness level increases. How much you sweat is often determined by your physiology-again, it is not an important indicator. Sweat is not an indicator of health, nor does it "detoxify".
  • I agree with everyone else :-)

    Perhaps, as a long shot, if your friend was sweating considerably more THAN USUAL for roughly the same workout, the trainer could think that (s)he had been eating too many chinese takeaways (for example) and was full of salt. But yeah, silly trainer, probably - as someone else said - looking to get hired to devise a "healthy" eating plan.

    Caroline
  • Hummmingbird
    Hummmingbird Posts: 337 Member
    rediculous! for me my face NEVER sweats and never will so everyone is different!
  • eillamarie
    eillamarie Posts: 862 Member
    If you aint sweating you're not hitting it hard enough...

    So my friend who HIKED in the MIDDLE EAST and didn't sweat wasn't working hard enough? Do your research before you make such an assumption. Not every sweats a lot, or @ all. And other sweat buckets doing only mild physical activity. Every body is different.
  • MiloBloom83
    MiloBloom83 Posts: 2,724 Member
    Sweat is how your body regulates temperature. Sweating during exertion is good! When my hands start to sweat on a run is when i know i've got a good workout going. Not sweating is a sign of dehydration.
  • mlb929
    mlb929 Posts: 1,974 Member
    I actually came on to post asking why I rarely sweat. Guess I somewhat got my answers. I consider myself fairly fit and eat very healthy. When marathon training this summer, I obviously used to sweat more s the temps were higher. But when I work out at home now in the winter, or run outside, I get warm but rarely sweat.

    I do notice that I'm always cold. I keep my office at work about 78, dressed in pants and a sweater. At home, I bundle up by my hands and feet (and nose) are always cold to the touch. I was wondering if body temp had anything to do with it. If I take my body temp, it's rarely over 96, typically around 94 on any given day.

    I'm glad to know that sweating doesn't many anything to fitness level. I know I'm well hydrated, I drink 24oz per hour all day long at work and at least 32 oz of water before work and after work, along with a glass or two of green tea in the AM.
  • fongjon
    fongjon Posts: 19 Member
    I sweating like Jill Dando trying to get the key in the front door, seriously I come out of squash drenched! I then get the dehydration headache, but it goes after a few pints of water and some electrolytes.
This discussion has been closed.