Summer heat & training

Have you been struggling to exercise with the increase in heat?

You aren’t alone! Everything feels harder - and that’s because your resources are being pushed to help cool you as well as power your muscles! This is especially true if you are starting a new fitness routine or activity - you are trying to adapt to exercise AND the heat at the same time.

We simply cannot push ourselves to the same speeds or intensity with increased heat. When we exercise in the heat, our bodies attempt to cool us by redistributing blood flow to the skin (for convective cooling!) and by starting to sweat.

We end up having a “competition” between our muscles and skin for a limited amount of blood pumped by our hearts. Basically, we feel like we are working a lot harder and fatigue a lot faster even at lower workloads or paces.

This is exacerbated in conditions that are HUMID as well as HOT. The good news is, the more we train and the more we get used to the heat, the more our bodies adapt. We get a bigger plasma volume (more blood!) and we start sweating quicker and more efficiently.

What can we do to adjust our training in this type of weather? Well, first off understanding why this is happening is helpful, as well as remembering to listen to your body.

That might mean taking breaks, sip lots of water throughout the day, and accept the slow-down. It will be temporary as your body adjusts - if you need more support with your health and training, book a meet and greet with one of our naturopathic doctors to discuss how we can support your physiology and training goals!