Forums >Running 101>Painful summer training
I am back to RA again. I haven't visited the forum for about a month.
My running is dipping to the bottom. I don't feel as enthusiastic as training for the marathon. I found running in the summer heat is a torture even it is not that hot here, about 20-25C (68-77F) when I go out. By the way, it is my first summer running.
How do you guys cope with the heat?
5k - 20:56 (09/12), 7k - 28:40 (11/12), 10k trial - 43:08 (03/13), 42:05 (05/13), FM - 3:09:28 (05/13), HM - 1:28:20 (05/14), Failed 10K trial - 6:10/mi for 4mi (08/14), FM - 3:03 (09/14)
Cut back on distance at first when the heat gets bad, but keep running regularly and your body will start to acclimate. Try running in early morning or evening hours when the sun is lowest and it's coolest out. Try to find shaded paths. Wear light colors and lightweight breathable fabrics. If you are going really long or if it's super hot, bring water or an electrolyte beverage with you because you will dehydrate at some point with the excessive sweating. That's all that comes to mind for me. Other than that, all you can do is tough it out really.
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Welcome back!
For me, I watch my breathing carefully--two counts in, three counts out. In the heat, that means I run much more slowly, but that's okay. When my breathing is faster, I know my body is struggling with the heat and I need to slow down.
I also run on residential city streets, where there are plenty of shade trees. I don't know if I could run in the summer under constant direct sunlight.
Lastly, constant hydration. I don't mean during the run itself, but I drink a lot of water so that I'm good to go when I'm sweating. I don't run far or long right now, but I know other RAers swear by picking routes that go by public drinking fountains or stashing water.
Call me Ray (not Ishmael)
I've been coping by getting up earlier. My alarm is now set for 4:45am. I'm trying to finish my runs by about 7:30am, which seems to be when the sun starts to become annoying.
I'm also slowing down a lot and trying to run more by feel than pace.
Finally, I'm drinking more water after my runs. I think it's helping with recovery.
I may eventually resort to the treadmill. From what I recall from running there last summer, my current gym wasn't that much cooler than outside. So, that would mean changing gyms which is such a pain in the neck.
Edited to add: +1 to lightweight fabrics. I discovered this Nike tank top and it's so light I don't even feel like I'm wearing anything.
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I run in heat and humidity more than 6 months of the year. It gets to the point when I really don't even want to go out there every day. But I do, conscious that my pace will suffer and that I will have to hydrate much more than when it's not this hot. My runs are in the afternoon because mornings are way too humid to go out there and do a reasonable pace. So, my recommendation would be to choose the time of day where it's the least humid (that's not midday, of course).
For long runs, I start at 5am when it's already 87F and super humid but by 8am it's closer to 95F so finishing before 9am is a plus. I don't like wearing hats or visors because the sun makes my head hotter if I do, but I might run the first 2 hours without and stop by the house and switch to a visor to make the sun feel a tad better. I also wear light fabrics as mentioned and light colors. Black during the Summer is torture.
Don't be afraid to stop and drink water or relax for 1-2 minutes. In the Summer, when it's above 90F, it's what keeps me together. It's all about surviving, not about hitting your paces.
Damaris
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Just remind yourself of this experience you posted last winter and the warm weather won't seem so bad.
http://www.runningahead.com/forums/post/328c7dc571c44fae81e551ddcaceb6ff#focus
Just remind yourself of this experience you posted last winter and the warm weather won't seem so bad. http://www.runningahead.com/forums/post/328c7dc571c44fae81e551ddcaceb6ff#focus
Haha! Awesome thread find Richard!
Summer running is a challenge for me since I get respiratory issues when the air quality is bad. The issues are relatively mild, something well short of full blown asthma, but they are obtrusive and annoying enough that I try to avoid triggering them if at all possible.
Lately it is difficult to find a time when the conditions outside make longer runs tolerable. While the temperatures are lower in the very early morning, the humidity is higher (some mornings near 100%). This creates an immediate sensation of breathing bad air, so thick that I could cut it with a knife. As the temperatures increase later in the morning, the humidity goes down a bit, but by then it is just too hot. And in the evenings it is still too hot/humid (until after dark).
So, in the absence of better options, I've just been doing more and more runs inside the gym. Although treadmill running is boring, at least there the air quality isn't an issue.
I'm finding I cant really train.
I try to go out every day and run to a point of exhaustion which for me seem to be at about 5 miles. I am running along just fine and all of a sudden I hit a point where it seems more of a struggle than its worth and at that point, I stop running and walk back to the house. I have a two mile route that goes right by my house every mile so I'm never more than 1/2 mile from home.
I'll be glad when this passes and we can all hit the roads like normal again......
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Thanks everyone.
Early morning: I am not a morning person, so I am not able to get up too early. I would just nod my head all day.
Winter vs Summer: I would probably prefer the winter. At least I can wear more to protect my dick and balls. But in the Summer, I can tear my skins off.
Treadmill can be an option indeed.
I shall find a better kit for the hydration. That may make a different experience.
If you're thinking that it is less humid in the afternoon because the % humidity is lower, you are fooling yourself. The % humidity is lower because it is warming, plus tack on the solar radiation from the sun and the worst time of day to run in this weather is the afternoon. The coolest, best time will ALWAYS be the hour before sunrise until the hour after sunrise.
To measure how awful it is out, forget about looking at % humidity and look at the temperature and the dew point temperature.
Me, I slow down, run by HR effort and usually those HR values are on the low end....
I run without a shirt, and wear running shorts. That helps a lot with the heat.
I also run at about 8 in the morning, but, if you're an afternoon/night runner, this takes time to get used to.
Regardless, it takes time to acclimate to the heat.