Every year when it gets warmer, I start banging on about running in the sunshine. I LOVE this warm weather and I pretty much enjoy running in the heat (Let's not confuse the two. What we are having here is far from hot, it's simply gloriously pleasant. What I call hot is the high humidity weather when temperatures go 30C plus, but let's save that for when it happens).
I had a long night, didn't sleep well, felt spent in the morning but looking through the window and hearing the birds I was out there in no time pacing through some top end fun that only a ten miler or similar can offer.
Yes, you are likely to run slower with less energy due to less oxygen working through the muscles so the heart and lungs will fight harder to get you moving. Yes, you will be sweating more, losing electrolytes at a faster rate and getting tired sooner. But like with altitude training, once you adapt you are likely to run with more ease, faster and stronger in cooler weather, so how's that for a sales pitch then? And if you manage to run in high humidity and proper hot weather.....well, you can then reach previously unknown heights. And yes, you'll stock up on Vitamin D as well.
So how do you guys find all that warm sunshine running business?
Written by
mrrun
Ultramarathon
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I used to run in France in summer, in fact I learnt to run there, C25K and all that. I never minded the heat much and I've run in temps of over 40C.
Now I'm back in UK full time and surprised at the difference. I find I need to carry water here, never bothered in France, and I'm always super thirsty afterwards too. This is in temps of only high teens...I burnt last year on my nose... never wore sun screen in France... what's that about then?
l guess you got used to it there. The skin was exposed to the sun more often and would tan gradually without burning. And as it’s much warmer you’d naturally drink more and keep yourself well hydrated. Here, it’s all pretty much on/off. A bit of sunshine, you spend a day in the park and suffer a heatstroke, lol. Nobody drinks water and after a few moves in the gym you sweat it out and dehydrate 😅. I really need to focus and pay attention when it comes to water intake. I literary put bottles of water on the desk to remind myself to drink them. When l go somewhere where it’s warm as a norm, I simply sip water at all times. 🤷♂️😀
As soon as I feel the warmth of the sun on my face I feel giddy about the prospect of lots of running fun. Longer days for a start! When it gets hotter and stickier I can run in the evening. What’s not to like 😀. I do though love running in the rain on a hot day. It’s just gorgeous When you’re already out there and wam rain begins to fall. Better than medicine! 👌🏃♀️😎
I actually know the moment summer running has arrived when I feel the sweat drip dripping from my face onto my legs as I run. It cheers me up no end . Simple pleasures 🥰
On that note, I’m off! 🏃♀️ The greenhouse can wait! The call of the wild is strong 🐯😀
’Better than medicine’ sums it up. 👍👍👍 Put some good music in the mix and you’ll have a run that you’ll be telling everyone about. I stocked up on some vintage tunes for this seasonal treat and most of the time I’m having a ball. Can this weather last? Can it be arranged?
I was running the other day with some fab tunes with good lyrics. Bob Dylan is always on my playlist. Great music and lyrics. The runs just bob along 🏃♀️ One of my faves at the moment is Duquesne Whistle. Choo choo 😘
Bob is one of the safest bets out there, cannot fail. I’m with Ry Cooder atm with all this sunshine and laidback vibes. Once he starts that theme from Paris Texas, l go on cruise control by the river and switch off from the world.
I love Ry 🥰. I have Going to Brownsville on my playlist 🏃♀️🎵🎶 Love it
For long runs it’s got to have good lyrics, hence Bob, Chuck Berry, Rod. Can’t go without lots of Zep either, to get me up those hills. Baba O’Reilly for the flat, fast rail bed stretch. Yeeeeeeeeeeha 😁
Sunshine and breeze, the combo that gets my attention every time! And if l can be near some big water, then even better. Life can be so good for us runners sometimes! 😀
I was running alongside some ponds the other day, fancying what it would be like to just chuck myself in to cool off. Sadly they’re part of the former “Poison Factory” They now look very pretty indeed but I fear I’d emerge with a phosphorescent glow 😁. The other pond I run by is next to the sewage works 🙄. The swans love it though 🦢
The last time l ran alongside a pond was in St James’s Park (on that map), opposite Charlie’s gaff/palace, where even the ducks appeared posh. ‘Poison Factory’? That sounds like a new metal band to me! There is also a pond near where l live in south London where for some reason rats are reaping massive benefits given how big and cocky they are, the rascals. One was just staring at me as l went past.
The new country park I now run on us a former heavily polluted coking plant. “The Poison Factory” is a book on the subject of these plants and their aftermath. They’re long gone but the clean ups took decades (well, this particular site did) I don’t think it will ever be 100%, and I understand there’s no minimum standard for water cleanliness, so I keep my feet dry.
I really enjoy running in warm, but not hot, weather. I’ve endured a couple of scorching (for me anyway) races, both around 28 degrees and both setting off way later than I would normally. I can handle heat if there’s shade, but full-on sun is sapping to say the least. 🥵
Having said that, I’d take that any time over the winter/spring we just had! My muscles never warmed up and every run was a test of my grim determination. Let’s not think about that for a few months though. 😀
As much as l worship hot weather, I’d think twice before running in the heat while being exposed to the direct sunshine. Running in the shade is the key. Sunstroke is a fast and silent assassin, as every local in any hot country would tell you. Where are the local people in those beaches along the Med and the Adriatic in peak sunshine? In local tavernas, is my guess. 😉 Still, enjoying our seasonal warm spell is a rare and a privileged joy, and I’m using it to the max. 😀
Yeah, the ‘sticky heat’ can be something else. I experienced it in Croatia and it was bordering on brutal. You can simply drop down if you’re running unprepared and dehydrated. And then you see some locals running completely trouble free and think, oh, hang on!?
I ran a HM recently without water. I fainted in my bathroom afterwards Doh 😖.
The locals running free are acclimated though 🙂.
It’s cool again, it couldn’t last 😀. I filled my outdoor bath the other day but it’s dropped chilly again so I’ve not used it yet. Can’t wait to get dunked! 😁🏃♀️🥵🛀🥶
I was waiting for Linda 😀! Yep, anything that will inspire the good folk to go out, get as much fresh air and vitamin D is rated highly in my book. And, of course, there’s ‘go-out-anytime’ brigade of the indestructibles who do it year round, no matter what. Walking, running, cycling or hiking (special bow to those who swim outside in the winter), our bodies will rejoice (no matter how our brains may see it at times). 😉
That’s where l draw the line. No cold showers, no swimming under certain temperatures. I simply don’t function well when cold. I run in the cold but I’ll warm up to the max beforehand.
If I only ran in "nice" weather here, it would be three weeks each end of summer 🙂It's the abominably high humidity that drains you - but, like most things one can adjust and adapt by taking it a bit at a time 🙂
Indeed good sir! We are more subtle and tough than we give ourselves credit for. Yes, the body can sometimes cave in under pressure but we often have another friend, our brains, to pull it through. Mind can be even more powerful than muscles and if we manage to get both under control, the real show starts in full. 😉
A day of sunshine gardening beckons today. It’s playing havoc with my running. I ache in bits of me I didn’t know existed 😫. Still, those vegetables won’t plant themselves 🙂
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