Too Hot To Trot?

With temperatures set to go in the 90s today, it has become apparent that the grace period of pleasant spring days is over. Mother Nature is cranking up, and there will be no mercy. Get ready for skin-blistering sun, shirt-drenching humidity and relentless deerflies swarming in to make your life a living hell.

In the face of these hardships, it is easy to for a runner to throw in the sweat-soaked towel. On the other hand, there is no denying that the summer season offers countless other opportunities for us to enjoy the roads and trails. Planning and hydration, laced with some determination are the keys to putting down the miles during these next few months.

Keep Hydrated

This is probably news to few, but it’s actually pretty important to drink a lot when you’re working out. This holds even truer in the summer months.

Sports drinks such as Gatorade and Powerade are undoubtedly useful on a long-distance push, though I think there is no need for them on a training run of 10 miles or less.

Oftentimes, if I want some extra energy on a run, I’ll grab a granola bar or a handful of dry cereal before I head out.

The electrolytes in sports drinks are also found in bananas and in salty foods. I would recommend against Red Bull, Monster Energy or any of that swill, unless you are an enthusiast of dehydration and nausea.

With water, timing is everything. For those long runs, it isn’t enough just to gulp liquid right before the start. Better to start drinking hours in advance and in the case of a morning run, the night before. I’ve found myself at races where I failed to hydrate enough in advance, drank so much liquid that my stomach hurt, and still felt thirsty when I hit the course.

On the flipside of hydration, a few high-profile incidents have raised the specter of hyponatremia. This condition does indeed mean that someone has overhydrated, and in the worst cases it can be fatal. This usually happens in long-distance events like marathons and at times when the runner has consumed incredible amounts of water without sports drink or any food. While it is good to be aware of hyponatremia, it is far less common than dehydration and shouldn’t be seen as a reason to avoid hydrating.

Watch Out For Heat Exhaustion

Because I’m having so much fun talking about the various medical crises that can happen on a run, I can also mention heat exhaustion an affliction that can lead to heatstroke, which can kill you.

When things are cooking outside, you don’t have the energy to work out like you would have when its 60 degrees. Just as a sauna brings your pulse rate up, so does hot weather, as the circulatory system goes into overdrive to pump all that hot blood out to the cooler extremities.

It’s fine to push things when it’s hot outside, but know your limits. According to the Red Cross, some symptoms to look out for are headache, nausea, weakness and dizziness.  A heat stroke can mean “red, hot dry or moist skin,” “changes of levels of consciousness” and vomiting. If you or a training partner start to exhibit any of the early symptoms, back off and get cool. Finding shade and water and cooling down with wet towels should be top priority before things get worse.

Dress Smart

Like hydration, this doesn’t have to be rocket science. Less clothing=cooler. Running shorts with a liner are better than heavy shorts with a cotton liner. A bathing suit is a terrible mistake.

As a dude, I also have the option of going shirtless. Never mind that we runners often sport chicken-like frames, I respect the pride for the sport that comes with rejecting the top. On a breezy day, it can be just the thing.

Apart from the catcalls (an advantage or a disadvantage depending on how you interpret them) I find one disadvantage of the topless run to be that I like having some kind of fabric to wipe the sweat out of my eyes. That sting can be pretty brutal and on a hot day the backs of my hands will be too sweaty to remedy the situation.

A breathable, light-colored fabric can even be better than bare skin sometimes because it deflects some sunlight. When it’s buggy out, it also reduces some of the real estate for prospecting insects.

I generally forego the baseball cap, but sometimes to cool down before a 5k on the track I’d dip my head under the faucet. Then I’d fill my hat with water and slap it back onto my head. Refreshing!

Location Is Everything

There’s one location you can count on for guaranteed cool and that’s the treadmill inside the gym where everyone else is working out in the freezing, recirculated air. Unfortunately, this means running on a treadmill, which is boring and if you ask me, kind of against the whole spirit of running.

Instead, look for the shaded trails and find the lakes to jump in after you’re done. If you get a chance to run where you can get an ocean breeze that’s a good bet. Not so good, one of the major state roads where you get to enjoy the flavor of car exhaust while running along the margins and roasting in the full sun. 

Timing is Also Everything

If your schedule allows, why not get started in the early morning or else the evening? If you can make yourself wake up at 5:30 or 6, you’ll get your run over with before things start heating up. The evening run is a little trickier because you will probably want to wait some hours after dinner before you run. A light pasta dinner with veggies probably works better for this than a heavy meal like lasagna. A reflective vest and a headlamp are a good investment for anybody going out on the roads in the dark.