Can't Take the Heat? Condition Your Body to Sweat More Efficiently!
We've all had that inevitable clash with a friend over the temperature — in the car, indoors or wherever. While you're sweating bullets, your friend argues that he's freezing.
Everybody tolerates heat and cold differently. That’s why some people stay dry in the scorching heat and a few minutes outside leaves others in a puddle.
But there are some measures you can take to avoid feeling overwhelmingly hot and fatigued when exposed to extreme heat and, in turn, sweat more efficiently.
How Your Body Handles Heat
Acclimatization, or the process of adjusting to the temperature of your environment, plays a pivotal role in how people deal with heat.
Spending time in the heat each day can make you less sensitive to extreme heat, and this process only takes a matter of weeks. The same is true for working out. As your endurance improves, your body learns to dissipate heat better.
But how does that translate to sweat?
Adjusting to warm temperatures doesn’t necessarily mean you sweat less. You actually sweat more, and it begins sooner and when exposed to lower temperatures. The caveat is you feel cooler, less fatigued and sweat more efficiently and evenly across your body. And when sweat is spread across a wider area, it also has a better chance to evaporate rather than drench your shirt in one particular area.
Aside from acclimatization, here are a few more factors that affect your response to heat:
1. DNA
Your gene pool largely influences your response to heat and the puddle of sweat you produce. You might begin sweating in your armpits because those glands react to your brain's signals the fastest.
2. Weight
Leaner people handle heat better than overweight individuals. As your weight increases, your skin surface area (in relation to your weight) decreases, so your body has less area for sweat to evaporate compared to your leaner self.
3. Metabolic Rate
Your metabolic rate (how fast your body's cells turn food into energy) also affects your heat tolerance. People with higher metabolic rates generate more heat than those with lower metabolic rates, so temperatures can feel starkly different.
4. Indoor Living Temperature
Setting your thermostat to a cool 65 degrees in the summer might be the ideal situation. But in doing so, your body will have difficultly adjusting to outdoor temperatures.
Learn to Take the Heat
While you can’t control forces like DNA, you can take steps to improve your physical condition, expose yourself to heat and set indoor temperatures to reflect the outdoor environment. And in turn, you’ll prime your body to better handle the heat.
The thought of taking a leisurely stroll — let alone running — outside might make you sweat just thinking about it. But by taking your workout outdoors or simply sitting outside for a bit each day, you’ll start to become more comfortable in hot environments.
Because extra weight can cause excessive sweating, exercise and weight loss could also help control your sweating response to heat.
It’s time to stop fearing the heat and start embracing it! Armed with a sweat proof Thompson Tee, you can enjoy the outdoors without worrying about the dreaded underarm sweat marks. Try one risk-free to see for yourself!
