It’s so nice to finally have warm running weather!
Training in the summer is a pleasant change, yet proves to be a difficult challenge especially for us Buffalonians who are used to the cooler temps.
However, there is a light at the end of the tunnel for training through these hot muggy days!
You may have heard the phrase “humidity is poor man’s altitude,” and there’s a reason for that– hot and humid conditions can actually give runners similar physiological perks that would typically result from training in an oxygen-deprived environment like Flagstaff, AZ or Boulder, CO.
Heat acclimation, which is especially amplified with humidity involved, causes adaptations in our bodies that improve performance in ALL conditions, hot or cold.
Here’s a few of the many benefits that heat training provides:
Increases blood volume- This, in turn, improves running performance by allowing the heart to pump more volume per beat/minute increasing the cardiac output, which gets more blood flow to your working muscles.
Improves VO2 max- In fact, research shows that heat training actually increases VO2 max even better than altitude training does– and quicker! VO2 max is the maximum rate of oxygen that the body is able to use during exercise– in essence, it's your max oxygen uptake; and the higher VO2 max, the more efficient the body is at running.
Reduces overall core temperature- Heat training essentially makes your body more efficient in all temperatures by causing adaptations that increase the body’s efficiency at regulating heat (typically by producing more sweat earlier in your run making the body's cooling system more efficient).
If you’re training in this hot weather, stay safe by listening to your body, slowing down, and hydrating more. Reference our previous blog about summer training to get tips on how to train safely in the heat: Prepping for Summer Heat
With increasing those summer miles, make sure you’re providing your body with the proper strength training and recovery in addition to just pounding the pavement.
It’s hard to get consistent running in if you’re struggling with pain or injury– that’s where we come in!
Our goal at AWAKEN is to not only help you get out of pain and stay out of pain, but we want to help develop you into a stronger runner and prevent that pain in the first place!
If you want to AWAKEN YOUR POTENTIAL in running, please don’t hesitate to reach out!
We offer services including a 3-Dimensional Running Analysis that we use to create individualized strength plans geared towards your specific running form and needs!
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