Heat Tolerance

Is one's tolerance for hot weather a genetic propensity or a learned trait?
I have some races coming up this summer in the desert and I do NOT want to deal with the heat at all.

I wonder how much of it comes from my environment. Sure, I live in California, but I live at the beach where it rarely gets above 80°F in the summer or below 45°F in the winter. Most days (year around) the high is 60-70°F. Plus, because of my work schedule, I'm usually out and back before 8am before it gets even "warmish".

But even when I was a kid, I had trouble dealing with heat. I'd be prone to heat exhaustion when all my friends were just fine. I'd get lightheaded and flushed easily. I couldn't (and still can't) sit/stand in the sun for too long without my heart rate shooting up.

I'm wondering if heat tolerance is something that can be learned... I don't want to pass out in the middle of a race! :eek: How do you Texas and Aussie gals do it????

Several years ago, I read about a study that was done. Apparently in your first year of life you develop your sweat glands. People who live in hot places for their first year are able to sweat more than people who live in cold places and therefore, cool themselves off.

Now, whether or not there are other genetic predispositions, I don't know. I know that you can develop some heat tolerance (I haven't yet, is it because i lived in a cold basement my first year of life?) but how much of that is true I don't know.


Blue, me too, I"ve always been a heat weenie. So what's the name of the "horse"
you are riding?

I do know that various breeds of cattle have varying degrees of heat/humidity tolerance. I don't know about people but it wouldn't surprise me.

A suggestion: take up some form of "hot" yoga classes, Bikram or some other kind if you can find it. I've been doing it for a couple of months now and I'm looking forward to laughing at the upcoming summer heat!

I love the heat (more so if it is dry heat). My first multi-day tour had 3 days of 104 degree sunshine. Others were suffering (and granted, I did feel hot), but I did just fine. I am happier in 90 degrees than 65.

I was born and raised 50 miles from the North American rain forest...lots of clouds, rain and lowish temps. When I did that multi-day tour (in another region), I was living in Seattle, not known for its heat.

My long-winded point, I guess, is that nothing in my background would suggest I would do well in the heat, but I do. Go figure.

Bluetree, I too wonder. Being from Canada, I can handle the cold but it takes a bit of work with getting used to the heat.

If it's above 35C-try to stay in the shade, wear a ton of sunscreen & grin n bear it. I'm not a big fan of hot weather but it's hard to escape when ya live in Western Australia.

I saw folks riding home in the 42C weather yesterday & thought :eek:
I'm biking home tonight but it's only 36C today.

C

I totally buy Mimi's explanation based on my experience. I was born when it was -27F (not including wind chill) and my husband was born in May in the deep south. When we ride in the summer heat (temps consistently near 100 F), he always fares better than I do.

BUT, that said...it is possible to acclimate. Our first century was last August and I anticipated awful heat. I forced myself to ride increasing distances at the hottest hours of the day in preparation. While that century turned out to be the coldest day of the summer, I was able to benefit from my 'heat training' for other hot rides that year. The previous summer (and for most of my life) the heat made me miserable. That year...not so much. I plan to do the same thing this year because that heat tolerance let me ride much more that year (on days that I might otherwise have skipped).

Unfortunately, I did have a reoccuring heat rash problem on my legs. Nothing seemed to prevent that, but it did not affect my cycling at all (it was just ugly :p ).

I think that you can help your body learn to adjust (to a point).

hmmmmmm i don't know... but i know i prefer the heat the cold! i'll ride in temps over 100 degrees... but give me 50's (or 60's) and i'm miserable!)

i grew up in upstate NY.... so cold.... BRRRRRRR! and, of course, i know live in the desert!

Growing up in the heat for me, when it hits 80 degrees, I think it feels great, while my coworker, who's from Michigan, thinks its hot and on the other hand, when it gets to the 60's, I'm freezing and he thinks the temp is perfect. But, I agree with GLC1968, one can acclimate to the weather, it's just gonna take some time.

and some of us have more capacity to acclimate than others.

And I think you can choose to adjust to the heat. Sometimes it's just attitude. In my experience, I am very intolerant of the heat when I have to be dressed up with clothes, make-up, hair done. But put me out on the bank of the Buffalo River in hottest August, shorts and a t-shirt, hair in a pony, I don't even notice it, and don't mind the sweat running down my face.

Physical symptoms, like flushed face and chilled feeling, should not be ignore as just "attitude", though!

Karen

Also, there are different kinds of heat and cold. I know with the heat, there's a dry heat and then there's heat with humidity. I know down here, it gets to the point where you need to grow gills just to breath the air! But, I would take the humidity + heat over cold any day:D

I dunno about Mimi's explanation. I was born in September in Connecticut. DH was born in October in New York. Very similar climates. He fairs much better in heat than I.
I think perhaps it has more to do with body fat - that old insulator - and just your body make up. I don't know if you can truly and completely overcome your body's inate ability - or inability - to deal with temperature (and yeah, humidity levels can play a factor too), but you can learn coping skills.
DH has 10 years on me living in Maryland - which to my New England blood is deep south and disgustingly hot in the summer. Perhaps he's better acclimated and I'll catch up. Currently, I suffer exercising in anything over 80 degrees. I vastly prefer the cold - well, the cool. ;)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mimitabby

Several years ago, I read about a study that was done. Apparently in your first year of life you develop your sweat glands. People who live in hot places for their first year are able to sweat more than people who live in cold places and therefore, cool themselves off.

Now, whether or not there are other genetic predispositions, I don't know. I know that you can develop some heat tolerance (I haven't yet, is it because i lived in a cold basement my first year of life?) but how much of that is true I don't know.


Blue, me too, I"ve always been a heat weenie. So what's the name of the "horse"
you are riding?

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I believe it. I'm from the hot, swampy south. I can handle 90+ degrees in full on equestrian show gear, sweating buckets for hours, only rarely getting dangerously overheated. But take me out west to the hot and DRY, and I can't handle it. I know I'm technically still sweating, but I don't feel like I'm sweating. I feel sick and lightheaded even when drinking tons of water. Some people don't like my native liquid air. To some extent, you have to spend time to acclimate yourself. I am a cold weenie, but after weeks of below freezing weather, temps in the 40s seem comfortable. So if you just hop out to the desert one day instead of taking the time to get used to it and used to training in that weather, then it will be very hard. How much your body will adapt might well be based on early life experience and genetics. I will start sweating very very early into a workout, and I sweat a lot. I consider myself sweatier than most. But I think my body is very efficient at staying cool enough.

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Originally Posted by Tuckervill

In my experience, I am very intolerant of the heat when I have to be dressed up with clothes, make-up, hair done. But put me out on the bank of the Buffalo River in hottest August, shorts and a t-shirt, hair in a pony, I don't even notice it, and don't mind the sweat running down my face.

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Well, isn't it a scientific fact that nylons and make-up add at least 15 degrees to the heat index? :p

It's true that certain inalterable things happen during childhood development. I hadn't heard that about the sweat glands forming only in the first month of life - in which case you would really have to consider what month a baby is born. January in Boston is quite different from July...

However, acclimatization is another important process. It can take a few weeks for minor acclimatization, and a few years for long term changes. And adapting to certain extremes may always be impossible for certain people, whether due to genetics or the your childhood development environment. After spending two weeks with altitude sickness in the Andes while watching the natives casually jog up a slope at 18K feet elevation, I know I'll never have the aerobic capacity to deal with that. :eek:

I didn't say the first MONTH of life, i said the first year. it doesn't matter what month you were born in.

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Originally Posted by mimitabby

I didn't say the first MONTH of life, i said the first year. it doesn't matter what month you were born in.

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Of course.
The point I was trying to make - perhaps badly - is that both my DH's and my "formative" year equated generally to the same period of the year - late summer/early fall - at a similar latitude, where the first half of our first year was spent in cold (well, when we weren't inside in our crib or wherever we were! ;) ). Yet, we both have vastly different heat tolerance levels. That's why I think body fat may have a roll in it. While I'm not by any means obese, I do have a higher BF% than he. Sigh.
Just my personal experience. As I see from the replies here, there are just as many as there are folks on this list! :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mimitabby

I didn't say the first MONTH of life, i said the first year. it doesn't matter what month you were born in.

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Whoops, I totally misread that. :o

I belive we all have tolerances but I think we can stretch those in either direction by acclimating. I don't think the sweat thing hold much water (pun intended). I was born and reared in PA and I sweat like a pig when I'm active. I live in PA for about 20 years. The cold was not an issue. As soon as it hit the upper 40s/lower 50s in the spring we were out in short sleeves.

Then I moved to TX and have been here for about 20 years. At first I loved the heat. Then I got to where I couldn't bare it. I pretty much hibernated in the summer...wouldn't leave the air conditioning. Now if it's 50 degrees out I'm freezing. After I started bike riding my tolerance for the heat just sky-rocketed. Last year I rode 3 or 4 days a week even when we had like 60 days above 100 degrees. It is a lot easier to tolerate extremes when you are having fun...whether it be skiing in the cold or cycling in the heat (or cold :) ).