It depends on how often you train.
Lowering core temperature, especially after a session in a warm weather, is one of the best ways to let your autonomic system rest properly before the next activity.
If you cycle in Europe youâll generally find you can get water in most villages from public water fountains or troughs. In Britain itâs a case of maybe tap at village hall / church else itâs a plastic bottle of water from a shop. So backward,
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Just back from a week in Dolomites, Italy where it was >30c from very early and the last few days were 42c on the Stelvio (absolute hell for a few hours) and then 44.5c at the foot of the Motirolo⌠I have honestly never sweated like this or felt as hot as that in my life - it turned to constant stream of water and not just drips. I was drinking for hours afterwards before I felt hydrated again, despite comsuming a lot of bottles and electrolytes.
Taking advantage of fountains and dunking and cooling hands worked at reducing core temp for a short while but power levels just dropped like a stone as the heat rose. I was able to tempo up climbs when 30c at 220-230w but on the Stelvio it was about 180w max apart from little digs on hairpins in the low 200âs.
Iâm not sure you can really adapt to that sort of heat if you dont live in those temps for considerable periods? Us N Europeans just dont get the chance to do that unless you take the Brad Wiggins approach and train in front of a hot fan in a closed room. If anyone can suggest other strategies Iâd love to hear them as Iâve repeatedly struggle dbig time when temps hit mid-30âs.
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The following will not help everywhere but I havenât seen it mentioned above:
I freeze water bottles (some with skratch) ahead of the event.
For last weekendâs HC 100 race (100 miles mtb with 9000â of climbing), I had hydrapacks (frozen solid ) in an ice cooler at each of the 3 aid stations where I quickly switched backpacks. It cools my back and it provides the water I need.
Still despite all these tricks, getting too hot can be quite dangerous.
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-White shoes and thin socks.
-White helmet.
-Ride with sun angle as low as possible. Long rides 9am=witching hour for me.
-Ice socks. Have friends using ice vests. Trying Velotoes cooling vestâŚ
-No gloves or if gloves keep wet.
Its not backward.
Its down to lack of investment in keeping the public tap open, scumbags breaking it.
You can also download the water app, which shows you places where they will fill up your water bottle for you for free.
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I live in Japan, which has famously hot and humid summers. Here is what I do:
- Start early. Fortunately, the sun rises early, so I can head out very early.
- Temper your enthusiasm and adapt your route and intensity to the conditions. For example, there are some routes through the forest with plenty of shade whereas others have me bake in the pavement. Avoid the latter if you can.
- Drink a lot and pay attention to your electrolytes.
- Sun screen. True, this doesnât have anything to do with temperature, but when the sun is out you easily get sun burnt.
- Pay attention to your heart rate and your body more broadly. If it is very unusual, e. g. if it spikes super quickly in Z2, take it easy and donât push. This is not the day to get that KOM that you were eyeing.
- Take breaks.
- Bring an extra pair of socks and a plastic bag. I donât want to be graphic, but my previous bike shoes were so hot that I could wring out my worn socks and they were soaked in sweat. Putting on a fresh pair feels very good.
I remember the hottest day last year: I had a race in a venue about 70 km from where I live. I was smart enough to take my mountain bike backpack with a 3 l bladder and 2 bottles in my bottle cages and at least one more bottle in my backpack. Felt like overkill. It wasnât. In fact, I had to refill on the way there. During the races (at least) 3 people were whisked away by an ambulance â heat stroke. Our team captain was very close, too, he had to pull the plug. On the way back, I took it super easy and still, my heart rate at 50-60 % FTP was about 150 bpm in some stretches. I was glad I hadnât tried that solo breakaway I was thinking of.
How useful is the Garmin âheat acclimationâ page? In one ride yesterday, I went from 65% all the way to 100% adapted to the heat, according to Garmin. I donât feel any different thoughâŚ
Multiple studies say 7 - 14 (~90 minute sessions)
I believe Garmin is based on a study that came up with the number 13 days.
On my phone so hard to link them right now.
- Gatorade Sports Science Institute.
- Korey Stringer Institute
Etc
I used a similar strategy when racing IMâŚ.I would start the bike leg with 2 frozen, insulated bottles on the bike and then had replacements in a small, soft sided cooler in my Special Needs bags. They would always still be partially frozen by the time I got them. Getting very cold liquids for the remainder of the bike leg was always a boost. I would augment with drinks from other aid stations as necessary (grab a bottle, take a huge drink and drop it before the end of the aid station).
This weekend at the Dustbowl 100, it was pretty hot (but not as hot as everyone feared, I think). I could not have frozen bottles, but I stuffed my insulated bottles with ice, nutrition and topped off with water to mix. I then had 2 other bottles w/ my daughter who went to the approved sites for private support. I had cold to cool liquids the entire ride.
Honestly, I am amazed that more people donât use insulated bottlesâŚI looked at all these guys carrying normal (small) bottles and I just wondered âwhy?!?!?â
ETA - the organizers had cold wet Gatorade towels for all the finishersâŚbeing able to wipe down with that and then tuck it around your neck inside your jersey was awesome. Added bonus - those are my preferred trainer towels!
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Showing my age here, but the UK (the area I grew up in at least) did have stuff but with vandals and H&S they have disappeared.
I live in South Florida, you can imagine summers are brutal. But I learned to live with it.
First is heat acclimation, itâs real and takes time and effort to get more acclimated. As we head into summer I usually do a few Z2 rides later in the day . 2-3 sessions is usually where you feel the difference (aka body produced more plasma). Then I add some intensity to see how far I can push in the heat.
Second, on longer rides I keep an eye on HR and if it seems higher than usual, stop more frequently, get extra carbs in form of soda (Coke works the best) and drink more water, like a lot more than usual. In my experience if you are heat acclimated more or less but still struggling itâs usually lack of carbs and water. We sweat a lot on hot days. Weigh yourself before and after the ride to see if you were drinking enough.
As an example, hard 2h-3h ride with 2x600ml bottles and I can still be down 1kg.
Third, ride in the shade if possible, on treeline streets, etc.
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Not sure if this got mentioned anywhere in this or the other âits hot outâ threads but heat acclimatization was a frequent topic for a stretch on the early Ask a Cycling Coach podcasts. I canât remember when or what they were training for but Nate and Chad in particular were into it 100% and it was covered in detail in true AACC fashion with full deep dive treatments plus the usual shenanigans. As I recall, I think Chad even bought a sauna.
ah I should have added that is just my personal take. The 14 day is totally bogus from my experience.
When I was racing in the Northeast, when Nationals was in the South, even with 2 weeks of heat training, we would fry.
I moved to Tennessee and rode in 85-90F heat very often. The first season I still was nowhere near as capable or adapted as those who had been there for 2+ years for a 3-4h road race.
After a couple seasons I was truly adapted.
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That seems ridiculously little liquid for someone riding in hot, humid climate. Or are you refilling the bottles on your ride?
I think for cycling itâs 63f.
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I donât unless I do over 2h or high intensity.
Is it more along the lines of past 14 days is diminishing returns? Seems silly to say your done, when itâs more like âThe bulk of the work is done, but youâll still make progress if you continue working out in the heatâ
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Thereâs a difference between heat acclimation which has been found statistically to take a few short weeks for best results and productive workouts in hot weather.
Nothing can change the fact that it is much harder for the body (physiologically and anatomically) and mind to complete workouts above 30°C.
Doing that on a regular basis means one should be careful regarding heat stress, proper nutrition and acknowledge the fact that mid summer results rarely equal or outperform winter results.
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