Heat rash

[thekarens]

You may want to check with your physician if it continues. Some thyroid medications and birth control pills can cause users to have photosensitivity reactions.

Good to know

[Bike Writer]

I started taking birth control and thyroid medicine about 2.5 months ago.

For a brief time I was taking a med for my rheumatoid arthritis that had a warning about avoiding direct sunlight, careful as I was if I got sun it made me nauseous.

[luvmyguys]

I think the arm coolers would probably work better in a drier climate. They get waterlogged pretty quickly in humidity, the way I sweat. At that point they don't help cool me, but they definitely are no hotter than bare skin. I have tried taking them off when it was unbearably hot, and it did not help. When they're not waterlogged, it's uncanny how much cooler they feel.

I got the Craft arm coolers on the recommendation of the sage voices here, and last Saturday, they were much cooler when they were sprayed down. They worked great anyway (I could tell the difference when I took them off), but I noticed a positive difference when they were wet.

The only thing I had to get used to was the binding feeling on my arms, but the coolers worked as advertised.

I recently started developing the same thing. Since the first time it showed up was with a new pair of shorts, I thought I might be developing an allergy to the silicone in the gripperbands or something like that. Took a baby benedryl, rinsed it off with cool water and put aloe vera on it and it was cleared up by the next day. Since I got it again with an old familiar pair of shorts yesterday, I guess it is heat rash and will start putting on an allergy cream before I put on the shorts- good to know what it is.

I had something similar happen, in that I was getting some sort of rash right where the gripper bands were. The next time I was out, I noticed that I only had the problem on the top of my legs, and not the back side. I started using Body Glide where the grippers were, and haven't had any problems since. Guess it was chafing in the heat.

(Yours may still be heat rash. But that might be useful for someone else.)

[thekarens]

No grippers on those shorts, but still can't hurt to put it on the list of things to try.

[marni]

just a random thought but artificial sweeteners can cause a sun sensitivity- haven't had much burning since I quit using sugar and sweeteners.

I rode 50 the other day without the heat rash- I gooped up with everything balm (all natural bee wax based with eucalyptus,tea tree oil, aconite, rosemary, lavender aloe and calendula) as a base layer,and then layered sunscreen over that. It worked so will continue and see if it continues to help. I am a very salty sweater so that may be part of the problem as well.

Anyway, thought the thing about sweetener might help as well.

[Aggie_Ama]

Some of my shorts do that, it can get a little irritated on me. Maybe try Body Glide? I use that to help prevent chafing when I run and my big thighs try to rub. I also use it under seams of my sports bra because sometimes those rub.

[thekarens]

I should clarify that I'm getting the rash where nothing is touching it. Today the rash is worse after my ride. It literally felt like my thighs were frying and they are very pretty now. I did change the sunscreen. I tried Neutrogena baby sunscreen today. I'm considering just covering up the thighs and ditching the sunscreen. Sheila, you use the LG Neo shorts, right? I think I've read that they come down to or almost down to the knee?

[luvmyguys]

So here's what I was told today by one of the coaches - the heat rash starts to show up when your core starts to get overheated. I'm still trying to figure out how that happens, but it was at this point that I was handed a baggie of ice to stuff my bra with.

[thekarens]

So here's what I was told today by one of the coaches - the heat rash starts to show up when your core starts to get overheated. I'm still trying to figure out how that happens, but it was at this point that I was handed a baggie of ice to stuff my bra with.

That's interesting! I'll have to figure out a way to carry a bag of ice :-)

[ny biker]

That's interesting! I'll have to figure out a way to carry a bag of ice :-)

If your jersey has back pockets, you can put one there.

[OakLeaf]

So here's what I was told today by one of the coaches - the heat rash starts to show up when your core starts to get overheated. I'm still trying to figure out how that happens, but it was at this point that I was handed a baggie of ice to stuff my bra with.

Did the rash go away then?

[luvmyguys]

Did the rash go away then?

No, it's still there. Like I said, I'm not sure about the connection. Assuming that connection, I'm guessing that once it starts, it's there. That and with triple digit temps today, I wasn't going to cool down all that quickly.

[luvmyguys]

If your jersey has back pockets, you can put one there.

I had a bottle of frozen water in a jersey pocket and a freezer bag of ice stuffed into the front of the jersey.

[ny biker]

Word is that the pros use pantyhose. I don't know if they cut regular pantyhose into sections and tie the ends or if they use knee-highs, but apparently they put ice in them and then put the ice-filled nylons on their backs inside their jerseys. That way when the ice melts there is no plastic bag full of water to deal with.

[thekarens]

Did the rash go away then?

The last one went away a couple days ago. Rode 50 today and it came back with a vengeance