Dangerous Heat

15 Aug, 2011Featured, Running

As someone who is extremely dedicated to staying physically fit and working a long run into my schedule every day, I find myself dreading the scorching summer months when just standing outside provokes an uncomfortable sweat. After running for about 15 minutes I can already feel my muscles tiring in the 90 degree weather and no amount of cool water seems to be able to help. It’s at times like these when I tend to wonder how professional athletes and runners manage to train and withstand such heat during marathons or triathlons without dealing with the threat of a heatstroke.

I may be more influenced by this thought than others since I once witnessed a close friend collapse on the pavement during a scolding race that I was fortunate enough to not have participated in, since the temperature that day peaked at 98 degrees. He had trained so vigorously and was in excellent shape, but after 7 miles, his body couldn’t withstand the strain of the heat any longer. After doing some research regarding how heatstroke is invoked in the human body, I learned that as a runner continues in the heat, more energy must be exerted to cool the outside of the body to fight the heat. This is energy that, under normal conditions, would have been used to fuel muscle movement during the run so every move that the runner makes becomes more and more difficult. Personally, I know I can feel the excess strain when running in extreme heat and it makes me feel like I’m out of shape because my run ends up being shorter that normal and I end up feeling more exhausted than my mind tells me I should. In fact, my friend who collapsed later told me that he was feeling weak but knew that he had run much farther than the distance he had achieved that day so he kept pushing himself until his body couldn’t handle the heat any longer.

After both being a witness to an event like this and feeling the effects of the heat during my own training, I wanted to learn any techniques to help my body cope with such stress. As it turns out, there really isn’t much that can be done on a daily basis. Cold baths or showers before a run or race have helped many runners with endurance, but those must be about an hour long, time I don’t have to spare. Also, drinking a frozen beverage just before going out in the heat has proved helpful for many to keep body temperature down and increase the amount of time able to run. But, in my opinion, the most important thing to remember is to be aware of the heat and your body’s reaction to it. When I’m out on a long run in the summer heat, I don’t hesitate to cut my journey a little short and continue with a workout indoors. There’s not shame in taking care of your body and preventing injuries that could have more drastic effects in the long run.