running and humidity
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I'm not sure I'm looking forward to our July and August but I can only imagine what texas must be like
lol freeze. this winter we had a bout with -50F windchill. now that's going to be a whole new challenge later on
Thankfully today the humidity has let up. so that's very nice0 -
I would die in -50f windchill. You guys are tough to brave it!!!!0
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Last time I was in Texas in summertime, in Houston from northern Europe I did a very early morning hike, just after sunrise in George Bush Park. Was jetlagged and awake anyway. The humidity was quite ok I must say and I enjoyed the walk a lot, until the second person warned me about feral hogs and other not so friendly animals there anyway. I guess I'm generally fine with hot humid temperatures.0
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Make sure you wear moisture-wicking clothes and not cotton. To beat the humidity I run in the early morning hours (though in Chicago for the last two days, I just couldn't so I ran at the gym). If you're not a morning person, go in the evening. Make sure to stay hydrated. That's really all you can do. I want to say you'll get used to it, but it sucks all the time no matter what.0
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I asked the running store people when running gets easier and they said, "it never gets easier but you get faster"
I found that comforting I think. less so on humid days0 -
I'm not sure I'm looking forward to our July and August but I can only imagine what texas must be like
lol freeze. this winter we had a bout with -50F windchill. now that's going to be a whole new challenge later on
Thankfully today the humidity has let up. so that's very nice
The great thing about winter running is that you can always add a layer.....
In summer you can only take off so much (at least without getting arrested...)
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As a beginner at running, I've been lucky enough not to have to deal with all the humidity of summer. But it is here. And it is awful.
How does one keep running when the air is so heavy? I was doing well and now I've had to take it back and take extra breaks.
Do we get used to the humidity eventually?
My advice:
1. Slow down. Heat training is hard work and requires your body to work harder to breathe. Oxygen feeds your muscles and helps them to work properly. You may be tempted to run faster and push yourself, but it's important not to push yourself too much too soon. Eventually your body will adapt but you have to give it time.
2. Run earlier in the day. The morning may be warm but 78 degrees with 90% humidity feels a lot better than 93 degrees with 100% humidity.
3. Hydrate!!! Give your body something to sweat out. I personally don't like to drink straight Gatorade when I run because of the sugar. I have a Camelback 20 oz handheld and I fill it with 50% water and 50% Gatorade. I still get the electrolytes and sodium needed to make sure my body functions properly (e.g. cramping) but I'm also staying hydrated without the super sugary taste.
Make sweat your friend. Get used to it... Good luck!0 -
I'm pretty sure the rule is something like: run :30 per mile slower for every 5 degrees above 65°F. At some temps here, that's a slow walk for me!
Right now, it's about 75°F when I get up at 5:30 and then head out the door for my 5K before work. It's also really, really dry. As in single digit humidity by mid-afternoon. It's sort of like opening an oven door when you step outside. I prefer running with more humidity because I stay cooler and I don't need to drink so much water to keep my mouth moist. One poster stated that when your sweat dries instantly you stay cooler, but it's not so. It's the air blowing against the water on your body that cools you down. When your sweat dries instantly you don't get as cooled off. So for that, humidity is better. Once the monsoon season gets into full swing here, mornings will be better.
A trick my sister taught me that helps greatly is to wet my shirt down. I literally stick my running shirt under the faucet to get it soaked, wring it until it's still really wet but not dripping all over the house (and my shoes) and then put it on. Cold and clammy going on but oh so helpful while I'm running. The problem is, it's dry by the time I finish a mile or so. So I stick a big, plastic cup full of water at the top of my driveway and swing by my house every mile or so to re-wet the shirt and try not to get my gadgets or shoes wet. It gets a bit old when I'm running 6+ miles but it's necessary so I don't get heat stroke.0 -
When summer and humidity strike, the best cure is to run really early in the morning before sunrise. It sucks, but I've found that's the best way to get a good run in in the summer. Humidity is actually not that bad if it's not coupled with high heat. Someone else mentioned that it helps keep them cooler. It also keeps you from becoming dehydrated too quickly. It would be more dangerous if you lived in the desert and were trying to run. F*** that! Good luck. Just keep running at the coolest times of day.0
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I don't really mind the heat ( I say that now) but it really is the thickness of the air. makes it so hard to breathe.
I bet i'll be using lots of layers in winter
and I'll have to try the shirt thing as it gets warmer0 -
The trick with running in winter isn't so much in staying warm. Your body will heat up from running and proper layering will get you right where you want to be. The real trick is in not stopping midway through because you'll freeze. Oh, there is one other trick, not overdressing. That sucks because you are running hot, sweating like mad, and it's freezing cold outside.
I prefer winter running over summer running though. Once you are dressed as minimally as possible that's as much as you can do. so your performance suffers for it.
The irony is that I hate winter. I much prefer warmer temps in general.0 -
I run after work when the humidity is still up there. my legs feel like my feet are in concrete from time to time. You do get use to it after awhile. I agree don't wear cotton shirts, that's an extra 5 pounds you don't need.0
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The good news is that your body adapts. You still have to slow down and will sweat a lot but you can adapt to where you can run fairly comortable at 100 degrees with a 72 degree dewpoint and maintain a reasonable pace for 30 to 40 min. After about 30 to 40 min, at least for me, overheating begins to be a problem.0
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bennettinfinity wrote: »Timorous_Beastie wrote: »Today's run was at about 79% humidity. This is me and my puddle of sweat when I finished.
THAT is one impressive pool of sweat!
And my hat's off to anyone running in Texas in the summertime... I used to visit Dallas and Austin fairly regularly for work a few years back... summer temperatures were BRUTAL!
My fun tonight was running in the rain caused by Tropical Storm Bill coming ashore. Houston, Tx. Was actually refreshing to have the rain and wind.0 -
Ughh me too! I sweat like a pig!Timorous_Beastie wrote: »Expect to be a lot slower.
And as long as it's not a thunderstorm or a heavy downpour, I love running in the rain. I sweat so much, it doesn't really matter. I'm just as drenched when I get home either way.
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On days like today when the heat and humidity was so high I just limit my runs to 3 or 4 miles and stick to the trails in the park where the shade helps a little.0
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I moved to the desert to get away from humidity but we have the edge of a hurricane sitting over us and it's really really (relatively) muggy (AND it won't rain at all). I even felt it in my living room this morning, a regular short workout had me pouring sweat and I almost fell asleep during the stretch afterwards.
So my advice is move to the desert, I guess
No, no! I visited my sister in Nevada and was never so depressed in my life! The same flat, dry land; the same purple mountains for miles and miles and miles, forever, in the background, the never-ending heat - no, no, no! Give me North Carolina any time, with its beautiful mountain trails, rivers, lakes, beaches, a little bit of something for everyone.0 -
One poster stated that when your sweat dries instantly you stay cooler, but it's not so. It's the air blowing against the water on your body that cools you down. When your sweat dries instantly you don't get as cooled off. So for that, humidity is better. Once the monsoon season gets into full swing here, mornings will be better.
It is so. The cooling effect of sweating comes from the transformation of the water portion of our sweat from liquid to vapor. It takes heat to do this. To the extent you can accelerate the evaporation, you increase the cooling effect. When the wind blow evaporation is increased and the cooling effect is increased (it's not because air blows across the water, it's because the air increases evaporation). All else being equal, the higher the humidity, the slower the evaporation of sweat and the less cooling effect is achieved. This is why the higher the humidity is, the higher the perceived temperature because it slows evaporation and retards cooling. Many weather forecasts include this.
Read this article, particularly the part about humidity
http://healthyliving.azcentral.com/evaporating-sweat-cool-down-9657.html
It's physics.0 -
you don't drink a lot of water but you still need to stay hydrated especially if you run over 30 min.0
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The good news is that your body adapts. You still have to slow down and will sweat a lot but you can adapt to where you can run fairly comortable at 100 degrees with a 72 degree dewpoint and maintain a reasonable pace for 30 to 40 min. After about 30 to 40 min, at least for me, overheating begins to be a problem.
The bad news is that your body adapts just in time for the cold weather to set in. 0
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