It's summer time. And here in Boise, the temperatures are staying in the 100's all summer long according to most of the news channels. Training in a gym is not always an option nor is it always the most entertaining way to train. However in these kinds of high temperatures, it's important to watch your hydration very carefully as well as your nutrition in before, during and after workouts.



Hydration is always important, but during hot weather, it becomes not just an important fueling necessity, but also a safety concern. Your body sweats and uses electrolytes more rapidly in order to keep itself cool and functioning at the higher temps. Your body at higher temps (in a very obvious way) heats up faster and requires a higher rate of cool down to keep the body functioning at optimal levels.  The simplest way to put it is to drink more water during summer training! A couple of things to think about when prepping your bags and things for your workout.
1) Drink about 20oz of water within 1 hour before training
2) Your body sweats out electrolytes as well as water, be sure to switch between water and a sports drink while working out
3) Don't suck on ice cubes to "cool yourself down," it's a false sensation and does not hydrate efficiently
4) Take a generous sip of water or sports drink every 15 minutes of activity
5) Drink about 20oz with an hour after training

Some foods have a great amount of water content as well as nutrients. These foods are good to be focusing on throughout your day and especially right before and right after working out. During your training sessions, "eating your water" isn't the most efficient way to ingest your hydration, so in bouts of 1 hour or less it's really not necessary to eat anything as your pre-workout meals should provide sufficient energy to sustain your intensity levels during exercise. Now, for sessions lasting more than 1 hour, you should ingest 200-300 calories per hour in order to maintain energy levels and feed the muscles proteins that will help them stay solid.
Here is a list of foods that have great water content and should be ingested from 1 hour of 30min prior to your workout and within 1 hour after your workout. Calories in these foods are extremely low and shouldn't replace your pre or post workout meals, and these foods become most important during intense routines at high temperatures.
-Cucumber
-Iceberg lettuce
-Celery
-Radishes
-Tomatoes
-Green Bell Peppers
-Watermelon
-Spinach
-Star Fruit
-Strawberries
-Broccoli
-Grapefruit
-Baby Carrots
-Cantaloupe
A single serving of these foods will provide a little bit of sustenance and also hydration giving your workouts a little boost of satisfaction.

Training at these temperatures has been a challenge leading up to the end of this month. However with proper hydration and good day planning, I am able to train efficiently and continue progressing rather than needing to taper and cut back due to the extreme heat. Planning my meals, to include a little more water content and shooting for higher amounts of water and electrolyte replacements has been a key to keeping the energy and efficiency high! Cycling and running outside for enough time is still a staple routine, and involving intervals while doing the long bouts has become even more important as the race comes closer, Even while swimming doesn't get me overheated, I still keep a bottle close to the dock to drink more, because even though it doesn't feel it, you still sweat more in the heat while swimming and again, intervals with good technique start to take more priority!

Don't let the heat limit your training, beat the heat with a good plan.

Every Day... A Little Stronger