Managing body heat in extreme race conditions
The 4 places we lose heat the quickest are: head, groin, arm pits and hands Do NOT wear a TT helmet – it will greatly accelerate your body core temp rising as your head won't be able to get rid of the heat. Keep tipping water over yourself consistently – this helps to reduce sweat
The 4 places we lose heat the quickest are: head, groin, arm pits and hands
- Do NOT wear a TT helmet – it will greatly accelerate your body core temp rising as your head won’t be able to get rid of the heat.
- Keep tipping water over yourself consistently – this helps to reduce sweat rates by cooling your skin – do it regularly on the bike and run.
- Use ice as much as you can.
- Wear a hat that is enclosed rather than a visor on the run. Preferably a white one and put ice in it at every aid station, then put it back on your head.
- Put ice in your hands and carry while running.
- Put ice down your pants. It won’t freeze anything – been there done that, so trust me!
- Eat some ice and crush it up in your mouth if you can. By getting ice into your gut (or crushed up ice) it is been proven to be the quickest way to cool your body temp.
- Drink plenty!!!
- Walk every aid station. Not only will this give you the chance to get in fluids, it will also give your body a chance to cool and HR go down.
- If your heart rate is rising more than it normally would, walk for a little bit, even if you are feeling good – trust me. This is a sign your body is either dehydrated or not dissipating the heat, so it will pump blood quicker to try to get more to the skin and cool you. If you don’t get your HR down a bit, you may fall to pieces!