Heat Training Revisited

It gets hot for almost everyone at least some part of the year. With my background training and racing in hot conditions, I’ve come to develop a number of strategies for maintaining quality, consistent training without getting wiped out by the heat.

I recently participated in an interview with John and Bevan at IMTalk ontraining when the temperatures creep up. Here are some tips that I touch on in the interview:

• During hottest parts of the year, run really early (before sunrise) or in the later evening (after sunset). That works better than trying to force it in the middle of the day.
• For cycling midweek, start later in the day when the sun is not directly above you and continue into the evening once the sun has started to set.
• Quality work is tough to do in the heat (particularly for running). Consider warming up and cooling down outside, but do the main part of the workout indoors on a treadmill.
• Remember that training in the heat is tougher than racing in the heat. During a race, everything is provided for you. In training, you need to handle all the logistics yourself. Take the time to plan out your sessions and set them up in such a way that you can manage yourself and the conditions effectively.

Check out the interview for our in depth discussion.