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Anyone have any advice? Oh, and realistically I can't get up to exercise earlier than 6 a.m. because I already am a light sleeper and I fall asleep around 11 p.m. and wake up automatically at 6 a.m. without an alarm. So I am not going to get up at 4 or 5 a.m. to exercise for 30 minutes. Realistically I just can't do that. So please only offer advice as to what I can do to exercise in humid weather so I'm not stuck inside for the rest of summer. I'm 50 pounds overweight so I have to be careful of what exercise I do outside anyway. Please take that into consideration if you respond to this post. Thanks.
lots of good ideas so far
it's been triple digits here in NorCal (thankfully its over for now!), but I still went to my non air conditioned gym (contrary to popular belief, not all gyms have AC) after work, when it is the hottest part of the day. Inside temp was 90+ degrees with fans & windows open. ugg. I drank lots of water. I normally drink 1-1.5 gallons, so I pushed it up closed to 2 gallons daily, and I added the mineral enriched type of water. I stuck to my food plan, but I was excessively exhausted after exercise and didn't eat much dinner. That was probably a mistake. I made it for 1.5 weeks until the heat finally got to me and I got a massive headache. I tried working out on wednesday, but every little movement made my head pound, I felt dizzy and felt like I was going to black out. I did not exercise Thursday thru Saturday, and finally exercised today. So, basically, I was forced to take a break. Sometimes that happens. I sure as hell wasn't about to go to an outdoor bootcamp workout during the heat wave. I have to listen to my body vs doing what others want me to do. Yea, sometimes I really can do it, or I can do a modification, and other times, I can't do anything. You need to learn what is reasonable for you.
I like belonging to a gym so I can be inside during temperature extremes. It's really important to stay hydrated & eat.... healthy. Stay the course. keep your eyes on your goal. take it slowly. do what you can, IGNORE the naysayers. Just be consistent. It will get easier. And thank goodness summer doesn't last forever.
Last edited by caligirlz; 07-07-2013 at 11:39 PM..
Right now I'm trying to force myself to drink 64 ounces of water a day (to refill my 32 oz water bottle once) but it's hard because that's a lot of water. Haha. But I will try to do that too - drink Gatorade 45 minutes before I walk or bike or swim and then drink more afterward along with eating a banana or some nuts or something like that? I'm still trying to figure this whole exercise and what to eat before/after thing.
How do you pace yourself to drink so much? Don't you have to go to the bathroom a lot??
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on hot/humid days, you need to increase your water intake above the minimum goal of 64 oz.
I keep track of my water intake with a phone app. Before that, I did hash marks on paper.
My daily goal is to have a gallon (128 oz) of water on board before I leave work for the gym at 5 pm. I try to stop drinking 30-45 minutes before I get there.
I start out with 2-3 glasses when I get up, guzzled.
I have a 16 & 32 oz cup/jug at work. I sip ice water in the 16 oz throughout the day. I like to have 48 oz down the hatch by lunch time. If it hasn't happened yet, I guzzle.
afternoon goal is to drink 2-32 oz (64) plus at least 2-16 oz.
It's easier for me to guzzle room temp water.
it takes practice to build up to this level.
I don't count coffee. I don't drink or count soda (or Gatorade ....too much sugar/ artificial sweeteners)
if you don't like water, try lemon/lime water, or fizzy water. I love the higher quality (smaller bubbles) carbonated waters. But I don't drink them at work.
I've been doing my five mile walks at 4pm here in Tennessee, today is supposed to be 90 degrees and high humidity. I just do it.
I will down a large cup of water before I leave and another when I get home.
I much more prefer walking in the fall/winter months when it is comfortable out but I go ahead and do it anyways in the summer. I sweat my butt off but other than that it isn't so bad.
You can go outside and get some exercise in the heat and humidity. If there are physical limitations (asthma and such) then you should of course take that into account and slow down. All that means is less exertion than usual, which is a good thing to do anyway as part of an exercise plan; your workouts should usually be mixed so your body doesn’t have a chance to acclimate.
I am assuming that because of your weight and condition you are not doing anything too dramatic in terms of endurance so you should have plenty of fuel to get you through a workout. The important part (as you probably know) therefore is hydration. But not as much during the workout itself. Too many overlook being hydrated in a constant form. Start off already hydrated, take a bottle of water (not sports drink) and off you go on your walk or whatever – get an insulated water bottle (Polar or something) and that’ll keep your water cool for a much longer period.
Most people rely too much on sports drinks. You don’t need the sugars and carbs when you are not engaged in a strenuous endurance activity. That’s hard for people to deal with because they think that “I’m not getting enough electrolytes” or something along those lines. When really, it’s just that they are not as fit as they would like to be. Let your body do the work, it doesn’t need extra crap. And that extra crap is likely just adding garbage into your system (yes, I am very aware of all the zero calorie drinks and everything in between). Fact is that most people do not need anything extra to get though a workout and I’ll add that the workout is usually finished before a person’s system has a chance to benefit from the glucose or whatever that was taken. For real endurance athletes and other like people, extra nutrition is needed however.
For that dude who ran 5 miles and biked 15…whoop dee doo! You’re a real caveman bro. That kind of mileage is far from being a big man. I suspect he does more at times however and that was merely an average day. People like him are ok in terms of fitness but yes, many either forget what it took or never knew or just don’t understand what it’s like for people who’s bodies are built differently. I would bet a good amt that I am more fit than that dude but I can still sit here and say I get it. People like him put in a lot of effort and hard work so no disrespect to him but people like you put in a different type of effort and hard work that they are not in tune with. I say, as long as you are out there doing something trying to better yourself you are completely awesome. Can you work harder and better? Probably. But guess what…we all can, every last one of us. So on behalf of the fit people I say – you are awesome and most of us have nothing but respect and admiration for you.
I did see that going to a gym isn’t something you can swing right now (I’m not much of a gym person anyway). Don’t know if anyone has suggested this yet but what about doing some physical activity in your own home (assuming you have air conditioning)? If you have weights or bands then great but you don’t need tons of equipment – or any equipment really. A chair and a floor is plenty. If you have a simple small weighted ball (a few dollars at Walmart or someplace), that is a fantastic exercise tool that I suggest you learn about (many come with DVD’s and there are many websites about how to use one) have around your home. I’m not going to go into all the exercises you can do – just do a search on line and you should find plenty of sites. Best of luck.
I did see that going to a gym isn’t something you can swing right now (I’m not much of a gym person anyway). Don’t know if anyone has suggested this yet but what about doing some physical activity in your own home (assuming you have air conditioning)? If you have weights or bands then great but you don’t need tons of equipment – or any equipment really. A chair and a floor is plenty. If you have a simple small weighted ball (a few dollars at Walmart or someplace), that is a fantastic exercise tool that I suggest you learn about (many come with DVD’s and there are many websites about how to use one) have around your home. I’m not going to go into all the exercises you can do – just do a search on line and you should find plenty of sites. Best of luck.
Along the same lines, there are a bunch of workouts for free on YouTube or OnDemand if you have cable.
lmao dont start. i'm 5'7" 190 pounds not exactly in shape.
you're making excuses. that's all this thread is. excuses.
Do you have health issues? Any at all? Because until you do, as the OP does, you cannot compare your situation.
2 years post-chemo and I still don't really function over 80 degrees or under 40. To make matters more complicated, if I sit near an A/C with cold air pumping out, my body starts to cramp and my joints are in astounding amounts of pain. Combined with lung damage from chemo, anemia, the extra 60 pounds from cancer-related steroids that I have been unable to shake off of my already large frame, and this abysmal heat, it can be downright dangerous.
Thus far this summer, I have blacked out during a spin class (my gym at work is not air conditioned), gotten scarily out of it while gardening, and before I bit the bullet and got an air conditioning unit for my bedroom would wake up dehydrated because of how much I sweat at night (even though I get up at least once to pee, so I'm drinking enough). And I live in Massachusetts where it's supposed to be cooler. Every BODY, literally, is different.
To the OP - anything you can do in water is good. I find that it makes it much easier to breathe doing water aerobics. I try to get to the beach since I'm nearby and like the extra benefit of fighting against the current, but a lake, river, or pool would be just as good!
If you have AC in your house, or even just a really good fan, workout in front of that. A lightweight kettlebell isn't that expensive, and allows you to tone while also getting some cardio in. You can Youtube different workouts - but make sure you start off with a lighter weight if you've never used them before so you can get proper form. I will get in a cold shower, throw on some workout clothes while still damp, and then do a workout in front of the fan so I have the extra cooling benefits of the water. I also have a resistance band and use my yoga mat for both yoga and floor work like situps, pushups, planks, etc.
I do miss walking, though. It's supposed to be in the high 70s later this week and even if it's rainy, I will make due! Hope the heat wave breaks for you soon too.
You're not going to die. I ran 5 miles and biked 15 miles yesterday and it's way more humid in Louisiana than Minnesota. The only thing I carried was a bit of water.
Seriously, you aren't going to die just exercise. It will start getting easier and easier.
This is terrible advice. Heat exhaustion and heat stroke are real, and people do die from exercising outdoors. Do you remember the Chicago marathon back in 2007? If someone isn't acclimated heat and humidity are dangerous.
I was in Biloxi and Pensacola last week and I got a few runs in. I've been running pretty consistently since '99 so I have a pretty good feel for what my body is telling me. I was still cautious because even though it was cooler than Austin, the humidity is higher and my body wasn't able to cool itself as well. In Austin I run at night during the summer, or inside on the treadmill. I've had three runs in my life where I had extreme symptoms of heat exhaustion, and it is scary. Twice after I moved to St. Louis in 2002, and once when I was working down in Panama City in 2004. Since then I've learned to take precautions and the OP is smart about asking what to do rather than just tough it out and risk injury.
lmao dont start. i'm 5'7" 190 pounds not exactly in shape.
you're making excuses. that's all this thread is. excuses.
Whow now. Take it easy partner. Put away those fangs and retract those nails. The OP was just asking for advice on what to do so she can keep exercising, not looking for reasons to stop.
And besides excuses or not, if you put your 5'7" 190 lbs frame against another persons 5'7" 190 lbs frame, you'll still be different people - mentally and physically.
The OP isn't a super athlete who's been at this since she was 3 yrs old. To me, her post sounded like she was asking for advice in case she missed anything obvious. Barring that, it seems she was looking for and exploring info on alternatives so she can keep exercising while minimizing health risk. What you think were excuses was likely her just working through the process of considering what else to do until the humidity breaks. She was gathering info (gym membership? Nah, too expensive and whatever else, swim? Access to a pool is hard to get, doing stuff at home? That sounds like a maybe. Etc.)
But instead of assuming towards the good in people who may be working through something (and heaven forbid may need a bit of a push to get there), you assume the worst. You see? Your reply to her was not only insulting but misinformed.
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It's supposed to be in the high 70s later this week and even if it's rainy, I will make due! Hope the heat wave breaks for you soon too.
