Kinda gross topic - but I just gotta know...

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LeonaB17
LeonaB17 Posts: 304
in Fitness and Exercise
SWEAT - why do some people sweat more than others? I personally sweat like a beast - when I'm working out hard, it pours down my head, down my neck, my back etc. When I am finished with my workout my shirt, sports bra, and various other garments are soaked!! I can wring the sweat out of my ponytail and decent stream will pour out! I am not complaining because its a sense of accomplishment to me - I feel I fought the battle and gave it my all and I have the sweat to prove it. If I'm not soaked in sweat then I feel I didn't work as hard.
My question is - why do some people only break a light sweat on their brow or maybe a touch of dew on their chest - and those like me - look like swamp monsters?? I currently weigh 243 and i'm 5'7 - but i've always been this sweaty even when i was much thinner. Is it a hereditary thing? Are there many other swampy sweaters out there?
Ive even wondered if sodium intake would have an affect on how much you sweat. I dont even count my sodium intake b/c im pretty sure its not good - so I wonder if i sweat more b/c i consume more sodium.

Any ideas??

Replies

  • DreamLittleDarling
    DreamLittleDarling Posts: 800 Member
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    I dunno why either...

    but I'm a swamp creature when I work out too =/
  • rjnandjosh
    rjnandjosh Posts: 168
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    my husband sweats in the snow, ice storms whatever if he works he sweats like a monster.:huh:
  • Jessaamine
    Jessaamine Posts: 111
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    Hate to tell ya, but it's hereditary. I hardly sweat at all and my friends all consider me a freak. I'm the weirdo wearing sweaters in the summer because I'm cold. My husband is the opposite and walks around in shorts when there's snow on the ground. Everyone is different! Just work on finding a deodorant you like ; )
  • SabrinaJL
    SabrinaJL Posts: 1,579 Member
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    I always assumed I sweat so much because I'm so big, but my brother and sister (who are both super-duper fit) say they also sweat a lot.
  • olo567
    olo567 Posts: 50 Member
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    It is mostly genetics and how your body handles heat. Sweat is your body's way of cooling itself down, so if you workout with high intensity you will obviously sweat more. If you try to wear clothing that keeps you cooler you can minimize the sweat, but otherwise it's out of your hands.
  • NicoleYates
    NicoleYates Posts: 19
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    i sweat constantly. it's awful. funny thing is though, since i seen someone above mention it being hereditary.. my mother does not sweat. at all. she has to take water pills because when she SHOULD be sweating, she just swells up.
  • jkestens63
    jkestens63 Posts: 1,164 Member
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    Sweathog here, lol. I'm drenched by the time I am done. All I know it that sweat cools the body so some of us must "run" hotter than others. Certainly I give it all I've got at the gym, not going to waste my time. Love these womwn that come in, hair done, makeup in place- they use a couple machines, stroll on the treadmill for a few minutes then call it a day. Not a bead of sweat. But I bet they are the ones that tell their friends they "workout" every day.
  • aangrisani
    aangrisani Posts: 92
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    I sweat a lot but it varies. Today I did 60 mins of spinning and sweat poured off of me. The last time I did an hour of spinning I barely broke a sweat. Maybe it has to do with what I ate, the amount of water I drank, the clothes I wore, idle. Sweating Aries for me and it doesn't vary based on exertion level for me
  • mariapuhl
    mariapuhl Posts: 529 Member
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    I think it's genes.... my cousin for example, sweats like a beast. She is soaked at any exercise at all, and sweats all the time during the day no matter the temperature.

    I, on the other hand, do NOT sweat. I could be going for an hour at intensity a million on the elliptical and not get a drop of sweat. I just don't sweat. Not even outside when it's hot. It's so weird!!!
  • msteadham
    msteadham Posts: 12 Member
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    I sweat more now than I did when I was younger. I still don't sweat a lot though. I do think it is hereditary....my grandma doesn't sweat and is prone to heat strokes because of it. Sweating is a way for the body to cool itself off...I think I would rather sweat like you.
  • theresnoeggs
    theresnoeggs Posts: 188 Member
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    I feel like a PIG after my cardio, to the point where I have to bring a towel to use the machines after to get my strnegth in as I leave a sweaty butt print on the seats. :noway:

    Tonight I took it easy, and I was sweat was just pouring from my hair, and nose. Yet my workout buddy, who was pushing WAY harder than me barely had a glisten to her forehead. :huh:
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
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    Like a lot of other things about us, it's mostly genetic. However, it's better to be someone who sweats easily than not because it's our personal air conditioning system.

    You just need to move someplace dry. Where I live, you can be outdoors when it's 100° and you and your clothes never get wet (except in places where your body parts are touching!) Of course, people get heatstroke if they aren't careful because they don't realize that just because you aren't wet doesn't mean you aren't sweating. It just dries really, really fast. :)
  • toalwaysbeme
    toalwaysbeme Posts: 33
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    Just please do me a favor.... you should be hydrating yourself anyway, but when you find you sweat more, make sure you drink more.
  • calliope_music
    calliope_music Posts: 1,242 Member
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    man i sweat like there's no tomorrow!
  • wonnder1
    wonnder1 Posts: 460
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    My sister is a sweater. I am not. She swears it's because she drinks more water than me-I can't help it, I HATE IT.
    She is my workout partner, so we do the exact same workout and she has to have a towel, even her shoulders sweat. I get a pretty good drip off my forehead, but I can walk out of the gym without a shower.

    So maybe it is the water, it's the only difference we can think of.
  • RecliningFigure
    RecliningFigure Posts: 214 Member
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    Sweating is good for you. It cleans out your system. And we can't sweat very well if we don't drink enough water. Besides, keeping well hydrated is good for beautiful skin, and who doesn't want beautiful skin?
  • Snowbunny95
    Snowbunny95 Posts: 47 Member
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    Sweating pig here. Make sure to buy technical clothing...cotton is worthless! I can sweat through anything - have to take a towel to yoga as I just drip...drip....drip in Downward Dog. Nutz! Cold outside and bike to work - puddles and soaked when I get there. Some people barely touch their water bottle, I'm asking if I can have the extra! Husband keeps telling me the more I lose, the less I'll sweat...that isn't happening! Sweat skiing, then freeze. Don't know how to describe it. Brother never works out, father passed on and not terribly close with mother so can't say on heredity.

    Just make sure you hydrate and make sure that includes electrolytes so you don't get cramps/dizzy/blacking out - that sucks the worse!
  • poesch77
    poesch77 Posts: 1,005 Member
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    I am also a severe sweaty one!! I have a girlfriend bigger than me who I used to go to the gym with and she hardly broke a sweat and would run errands after the workout. I on the other hand jumped off a machine and into the shower!! My hubby too...sometimes forgets t put on deordorant....whaaaa? I sweat thru mine!! He jogs and barely is sweaty....I sweep the porch today and I was dripping afterwards!! Either way sweating is great way to know you r doing something to burn those calories off!!
  • Hootsmamma
    Hootsmamma Posts: 254 Member
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    I hear you fellow "sweat-er". I have the dreaded sweats as well. Always have, even when I was a tiny 103 lbs as a cheerleader in High School (o.k. that was quite awhile ago! But things have NOT changed ) BY the end of a game my hair would look like I had just stepped out of the shower! I too can't literally wring out my clothes after I work out--even if I manage to position myself in front of a fan in an air conditioned Gym. Oh well! It is what it is sweetie. Just think of all the toxins you are sweating out of your system. There is an upside to everything. Best of luck to you.

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