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Heat and its effects on the body

1K views 10 replies 11 participants last post by  VeggieBiker 
#1 ·
So I just rode my bike about 9 miles. there were hills, there were flat bits, and it really is a good ride and takes exertion, but not the kind where you're working too hard to be happy.

Except today.

Today, here in [strike]lovely[/strike] Southern California, it was at least 105 degrees outside. And stubborn Me thought that, since I had planned yesterday to do this ride today, I would get off my ass and DO IT.

I think I almost died.

Ok, thats a bit of an exaggeration, but I can not tell you a time when I've been more miserable, and felt so terrible, as I did on the way home. The last ten minutes, before I got home, were horrific. I was SO HOT. I almost blacked out about 4 times, and once I actually did close my eyes (not on purpose, I could feel my energy just shoot down) but I opened them a split second later so nothing really bad happened and I somehow stayed on my bike. I started feeling really nauseated and got the feeling that I was going to vomit at least twice, like my stomach actually lurched. My heart was pounding, my head was pounding, I was rasping breathing....I mean seriously.

Is this because it was so hot out?

am I dehydrated?

I'm not out of shape, I'm slim and I'm not sedentary. sure I do my share of sitting around but I walk or bike to and from work and I have a physically active job where I'm constantly moving. I could probably stand to exercize more but I'm not looking to be a marathon runner.

So what I'm asking is, can heat REALLY do this to people? has anyone ever felt like this before? what can I do to be more careful?

and why the HELL IS IT SO HOT!?!?


thaaaaaanks
 
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#2 ·
It does sound like it could have been the beginnings of heat exhaustion. Keeping hydrated is very important if you are going to be out in hot weather for any length of time. I run in the mid-afternoon heat fairly often, and I always make sure to drink water before and after. At first, the heat really bothered me but I have grown accustomed to it- but it did take a good, long time for that to happen.

I'd guess that the reason you made it to where you were going and didn't black out is due to your active nature with your job, and going to and from work.

I'm no expert, but I do live in Oklahoma, where it gets hotter than Hades for several months a year. Try not to let yourself get that hot and tired next time- if it's an option, you might stop for a few minutes and sit in some shade and cool off. If you can, take a bottle of water with you. If you are just biking or walking for exercise, maybe you can wait til a little later in the day when it's less hot, or do it in the morning. Your body will always tell you when it's getting too hot.

Take care, Porvida.
 
#3 ·
Yes, heat can do that to you. In the future you shouldn't push yourself so hard. If it gets to the point that you stop sweating (we're not really sure why this happens, but it could have something to do with dehydration) your body will lose its ability to control its temperature. Heat of muscles working + heat of environment + heat released from biochemical reactions which happen at a greater rate when the body is abnormally hot - regulation of body temperature = heat shock. Unfortunately, if this happens you probably won't have the pressence of mind to get help because you'll also be delerious.
 
#4 ·
Next time you go for a long ride, make sure to bring water and/or drink lots of water or gatorade beforehand and afterwards. Also, make sure you EAT something other than tiny bits of spinach or whatever. Not sure how you've been doing with the ED, but all that heat and no food would make me feel nauseous too. And that can't be good.

Take care hon.
 
#5 ·
Not to scare you or anything, but heat can kill. And this is coming from someone who loves heat. The next time you feel like this, if it happens again, STOP whatever exercise you're doing and find some way to cool off. If your miles from home or a store with AC, that may mean lying down under a tree. A wet towel across the back of your neck helps you to cool off faster too, if you can get to one.
 
#6 ·
I live in Phoenix, and the daytime temps here are in the 110s (sometimes 120s) for a couple months every year. I really enjoy outdoor activities, but refrain during these months unless I get up before the sun and can be finished well before midday. Of course hydration in most important, but I have found that even with all the water and Gatorade I can drink, my body still gets overheated. I get a splitting headache, and a little nausea. We are not made to exert so much in so high temps, methinks....

What Brandon said may be true, about becoming slowly accustomed to it, but I am not able to get out regularly enough to test it.

sean
 
#7 ·
yeah i passed out once right after mowing the lawn on a hot day. i was just talking to my aunt, then BAM, i woke up on the floor....smooooooooth. i think it was from low blood pressure. it is a good idea to stop when this happens though, instead of thinking "oh, ill be alright" thats what i thought, but if i didnt stop to tlak to her i would have been driving home when it happened....dangerous! same for you...be careful!
 
#8 ·
ive adapted nicely to extreme heat. i just moved to texas from simi valley california. i biked there for the last year in sweatshirts at about that 105 degs you mentioned.

remember though that humidity it what prevents heat from escaping your body...unless of course you're silly enough to wear sweatshirts. that simulates humidity fairly well too.

gradual is key. ive been doing this kinda stuff for 12 years.

water and salts help too of course. and peaches. they're yummy. potassium's yummy.
 
#11 ·
Yeah, that's heat exhaustion! I'm an avid bicyclist (see avatar) training to compete next year and have felt the wrath of heat many a time; my first race this year I got heat stroke and felt incredibly weak for a week afterwards. If you bike when it's hot, really hot, it's a good idea to continue to ride in the heat but do so for only a bit of time at a time--you're body will become better adapted to dealing with the heat so long as you adequately fuel yourself with fluids and food (oh, and lots and lots of sunscreen). If you're not into competitive cycling, feeling intense baking rays of the sun, or you can possibly bike when it's not an inferno, it's almost always best to exercise when it's not really hot. Heat stoke cooks the organs inside you and is incredibly disorienting and dangerous for your health. I was biking one day and bonked so hard in the heat that I couldn't figure out where I was or what I was doing (despite the fact I was still pedaling)! Take it easy in the heat and ride strong when you can!
 
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