Surviving the scorching heat

If someone declares you are ‘hot’, you feel pretty good about yourself, right? When preparing for a summer’s evening out, we typically make particularly careful investments of time and effort in the fashion and personal grooming departments.

Any subsequent verbal feedback from peers in any way involving the concept of ‘heat’ is probably the most valuable return we could possibly hope for. I don’t know when and where this figure of speech came about, but it certainly wasn’t the peak of summer in Malta.

For those of us who weren’t trapped inside an air-conditioned room 24/7 or holidaying in England, last week’s heatwave left us feeling anything but good about ourselves. Looking hot might be in, but actually being hot certainly isn’t.

For those of us working hard in the gym for those hot butts and hot abs, we simply must figure out a way to beat the heat. Crippling heat and buckets of sweat remain the predominant characteristics of a summer exercise regimen in Malta.

Are there any dangers, and if so, how do we deal with them? Let’s have a look at some cool tips you can integrate into your training plan, so your aspirations for a sizzling-hot beach body this summer don’t have to crash and burn.

When we face the sort of weather conditions we had here last week, even powerful air-conditioning systems can sometimes struggle to contend with the rising temperatures of a crowded gym.

Battered by heat from outside, as well as contending with the cauldron of heating bodies inside, temperatures at most fitness centres can sometimes soar during peak hours.

With the sun also beating down on us outdoors for most of the day, we are left with dwindling options for venues to exercise. When you do finally manage to cool down after a day’s work, it can become very difficult to find the motivation to get moving again.

Potential dangers include dehydration, heat exhaustion and heat stroke, and our first and most important line of defence is remaining hydrated. We must increase our water intake when we feel hot for one very simple reason: we need to facilitate the body’s primary cooling mechanism known as perspiration.

That stuff we hate so much that pours out of us in abundance when we least want it to actually serves a crucial role in protecting us against heat exhaustion. The body likes to maintain a nice constant internal temperature of about 37˚C, and will do whatever it can to remain as close to that as possible. When we feel hot, the automatic cooling mechanism of sweating is triggered.

The pores in our skin open up, allowing sweat to flow from our sweat glands located just beneath the skin. The sweat that comes from most of our sweat glands is made up of water and salt, although some glands also produce sweat containing fatty acids and proteins.

The contents of sweat may also change according to the demands. For example, during intense physical exertion, sweat tends to contain higher concentrations of salt.

When the sweat evaporates off the surface of our skin, it produces a cooling effect. Evaporation requires heat energy, and in this case the heat must come from inside our bodies, thus escaping and lowering the overall temperature.

Just as you must keep the radiator of your car filled with radiator fluid in order for it to cool the engine, so too must you keep yourself filled with water in order for your body to cool itself down through sweating.

Without water your body cannot sweat, and if it can’t sweat, it cannot cool itself. Without the ability to cool itself the body will then enter a state of heat exhaustion. You know you’re coming down with heat exhaustion when you start to feel dizzy, weak and nauseous.

This is the point when you simply must stop whatever you are doing, and relocate to a cooler environment. If temperatures continue to rise then heat stroke may finally ensue, and this is where things get deadly serious.

So to avoid any adverse effects altogether, let’s devise some simple strategies.

Drink plenty of water before, during and after your workout. Since exercise-induced sweat tends to be higher in salt, re-hydrating energy drinks both during and after intense exercise will also help replenish your supplies of salt.

Also consider rehydration sachets from the pharmacy if you feel particularly drained following exertion. Pull back on your intensity.

The heat we’re experiencing now is only temporary. The peak of summer lasts little over two months, so there is no shame in shortening or lowering the intensity of your workouts during this period.

If you normally run for 45 minutes, cut it down to 30, if you normally lift 100 kilograms for 15 repetitions on the squat, lower the weight or repetitions.

If you are an athlete, think maintenance rather than improvement during this critical phase of the year. There is plenty of time to catch up once temperatures drop.

If you’re indoors, show some skin. Don’t cover up too much because too many clothes will trap heat. Heat needs to escape and the less resistance it faces through clothing, the better.

If you’re outside make sure you wear sun screen to protect your exposed skin, and a hat to protect your head.

While we’re on the subject of working out outdoors, avoid midday and early afternoon at all costs.

Wherever you are, if your de­fences fail and you do begin to experience the effects of heat exhaustion, then stop and relocate to a cooler environment immediately.

Dizziness and nausea are pretty clear signs you’ve taken it too far.

And finally, when conditions are particularly humid, consider avoiding your workout altogether. In a humid environment sweat cannot evaporate off the skin, so the body continues to shed fluid without the associated heat loss, compounding the problems of heat and dehydrating further.

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