The Dangers of Working out in Hot/Humid Temps.

Today, Friday June 25, 2010, the humidity on Cape Hatteras is at a staggering 87%! Most vacationers anticipate long days at the beach, and allowing the ocean to be Mother Nature’s air conditioning.  At Koru we are big supporters of working out outdoors by either running or biking through neighborhoods; but with the heat we know you have been feeling, we recommend you rethink before you break a sweat outside.

Now of course we have to plug that we have an amazing, state-of-the-art fitness facility INDOORS, with the AC blasting such cold air that most of the staff has come to enjoy wearing parkas around.  The safest thing to do when the heat is this high is to truly workout inside.   The fitness center at Koru Village has great rates available so you won’t break the bank or your workout routine!

Now if you a are persistent vacationer and truly believe you can handle the heat I would encourage you to read this blog further. Not trying to scare you or anything, but seriously guys … exercise in this heat or humidity is dangerous!

4 major dangers when working out in extreme heat and humidity are Dehydration, Heat Cramps, Heat Exhaustion, and Heatstroke.

Dehydration – Working out in hot, humid conditions promotes sweating, which in turn can cause dehydration. Sweating is good for you because it cools your body, but when you lose too much water you become dehydrated. If you’re already slightly dehydrated, sweating will only make it worse. It’s important to maintain an adequate fluid intake all the time. Don’t expect that you can make up for several days of not drinking enough by downing two cups of sports drink before your next long run or race. It’s important to keep hydrated all the time. Once you start to feel thirsty, it’s too late. We cannot stress enough – drink plenty of water before, during, and after your vacation, especially if you are one to indulge in coffees, teas, soda, or alcohol.

Heat Cramps- Have you ever seen a runner bent over at the side of the road massaging their calves during a race? Chances are that he or she had heat cramps. Heat cramps are very painful and occur because you’ve lost minerals through sweating and dehydration. Once you’ve reached the point of heat cramps, it’s too late to try to replace fluids on the run. To make the cramps go away you should:

• Stop running

• Drink fluids immediately. The fluids should include sports drinks as well as water

• Massage the muscles once the pain begins to subside

• Cool your body with wet towels

• Get out of the sun

Heat Exhaustion – Heat exhaustion is a very serious condition that can lead to heatstroke. The symptoms of heat exhaustion are:

• Dizziness

• “Goose bumps” (particularly on the torso and arms)

• Nausea (sometimes accompanied by vomiting)

• Moderate to severe headache

• Weak legs

• Lack of coordination

• Rapid pulse

• Heavy sweating often accompanied by moist and cold skin

• Muscle cramping

Heatstroke- Heatstroke can be fatal. Unfortunately runners will sometimes ignore the symptoms of heat exhaustion (particularly in races longer than 10K) and will continue to push themselves until they’re nearing a total thermoregulatory breakdown. The symptoms of heatstroke are very similar to those of heat exhaustion but can be much more severe.

Most information by Claudio Piepenburg

And originally published by Road Runner Sports

This entry was posted on Friday, June 25th, 2010 at 10:57 am and is filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.