Deep South Runners: How do you keep 60-80m/w in the Summer

malmo wrote:

[quote]altoroad wrote:

75/humid in the early morning or evening is easier on you than 75/dry with the Sun beating down on you mid afternoon.

Nine years running through the Mississippi summer (May through September) forces me to disagree.

Summer running, here, is about three things: heat, humidity, and radiant sun. When all three nail you, you're toast. If you start a three-hour run too late, so that you're still running at 9:30 AM, when it's 83, muggy, and the sun it on you, you're toast. I've done that. Not good.

It's almost never 75 and dry here in the middle of a summer afternoon, but I've certainly ended long runs in early April or late May when it was 75 and very dry, and even with the sun, I'd take them any day. Yes, some suns are hotter than others. But there's something about very high humidity, mixed with any sort of warmth--and I'd say that 75 is the break point where warmth, mixed with humidity, starts to make a significant difference to an acclimated runner--that whaps you in a way that no amount of dry/sunny/75 weather does.

Maybe it's just me. That's all any of us can really speak for.

The weather mumbo jumbo you keep spouting is irrelevant. If you're sweating but the sweat doesn't evaporate because the air is saturated with water, your body can't cool itself. If you're sweating and it evaporates, your body can maintain an appropriate temperature. If it's 70 but your body temp gets into the 100's because it can't evaporatively cool itself, you won't be running for long. If it's 90 but your body can maintain 98.6 you can run to exhaustion. It doesn't matter if the sun is low in the sky, high in the sky, or shining out your a$$. It's physiology, not meteorology.

If i'm out of my depth, then you must be drowning (in sweat).

Yes you are drowning BLM.

dittosh1t from end of may - sept, the temp never goes under 72 degrees in many coastal areas. i dont ever recall a "dry" 75 degrees in coastal al during the summer.

LowerAlabamaRnR wrote:

ditto

sh1t from end of may - sept, the temp never goes under 72 degrees in many coastal areas. i dont ever recall a "dry" 75 degrees in coastal al during the summer.

No one is saying it's dry in coastal Alabama.

This is my quit-whining-I-walked-12-miles-to-school-barefoot-in-the-snow moment. :^) I live in Singapore and it has to be one of the most miserably hot and humid places to run (that has significant population) on earth. Since we're on the equator, we literally have 90-degree temperatures with tropical humidity the entire year. I'm fairly sure that the dew point is never under 75 degrees here (morning, afternoon or night).

I feel your pain. I thought I could never run here. But I'm in my early 40s and am now back up to running during peak periods about 75-85 miles per week, all in singles. I also do the periodic 18-20 miler and the worst part (after the climate) is that my shoes/socks are literally sloshing from sweat running down my legs. But it's amazing how your body will acclimate to the climate over a few weeks. The running is doable, but you have to be really aware of fluid loss. I carry fluids (which I never do in cooler climates, even in summer) for any run of 90 minutes or more. And you'll have to live with the fact that your runs will be 30-60 seconds slower per mile.

I actually find the toughest part to be the slow day-to-day recovery from the training. It can take me days to bounce back from a harder run here while, when I've visiting cooler climates, my body recovers noticeably more quickly.

As for time of day, I wrestled a lot with doing morning vs evening runs, but ultimately came to think that morning runs with slightly lower temps are easier unless you're truly running late at night.

Hope this helps.

Go training a few times at the hottest part of the day then it will feel cooler in the morning

I worked in a factory for 2 years where the temp would go over 100 in the afternoon in summer. The humidity was replaced by poisonous fumes

For years I didn't have a problem running in the heat* which in the uk is not exactly that hot, but still most of the ukrunners would complain about the heat in summer because we are not used to it.

*The exception to that would be once you started to go over an hour. Plus you need to stay in somewhere cool before you go running

I also used to do some training in the hottest part of the day and really push it. Mind you I always thought I was born in the wrong country as much preferred running in summer to any other time of the year. Everyone has their limits though as the heat is what really did for Paula in that Olympic marathon.

Brian Wave wrote:

75 isn't all that warm to be honest.

Run when the sun isn't out and you'll be fine. It takes two weeks or so to adjust. Drink more and expect to feel a little more sluggish during the day.

75 degrees is warm when the dewpoint is 80! I have gone running in the south when it was 80 degrees and foggy.

Black people don't need sunscreen - unless you're high-yellow. If you're rocking the Wesley Snipes shade of black, you're good to go. I challenge you to find a (black) Nigerian or a Jamaican who uses sunscreen.

Back in the college days i spent a summer running 90-110 in mostly singles in the panhandle of florida. With June-Aug avg temps of 72-75 / 89-91 with humidity in the 80s & 90s in the morning.

It was tough for sure. Ran in the early morning hours and wasn't putting in any real hard workouts. Ran 10-12 in the mornings and 16-20 for a long run. had a few doubles thrown in there as well.

I think the saving grace (besides growing up in the heat/humidity) was i was on dirt/clay roads or trails where the heat wasn't crazy coming off the asphalt. And i had occasional shade. Also, i took a big drop every 4th week bringing my mileage down to 60 for the week. This definitely helped me feel refreshed for the 3 high weeks.

I barely ever had any water on the runs which was def stupid. But i did drink a recovery drink immediately after and i put down lots of water all day (for much of which i was useless).

Run early, stay hydrated, find shade, be patient as you adapt.

The summer for me always just becomes "run by feel" in terms of the everyday run. You're only going to notice a dramatic difference in heart rate to pace when it gets pretty damned hot and/or humid (like 85 and above for me,) so when it does, just dial it down a little and allow that the pace your heart rate and exertion is at the mid range (135-155) may be 10-15 seconds slower (or more) for that day.

I just try to get my speed and tempo work in either earlier or later in the day, and if there's just no real break in the heat, dial those back a bit too. It's not like your fitness is going to suffer from a week or two of running at a slightly slower number, especially if your heart rate is still where it would be if it wasn't hot. Conversely, if you try to keep the same speed and volume and it puts you over the edge, it's going to be harder to come back from that and you risk doing more harm than good.

I don't wear a heart rate monitor, I'm just talking in terms of perceived exertion as it relates to the heat.

When a race comes (and isn't that what we're training for anyway?) the only people who will have suffered in terms of training are the ones who have either ducked the heat and gone inside for the AC and treadmills (nothing wrong with that, but they're in for a rude awakening when they're suddenly asking their body to lay down their usual race pace when it's 90 degrees out) or the people who have gone way into the red on numerous days and have been too stubborn to be realistic about the heat and their training.

Just gotta be smart about it. Drink a lot, eat a lot, get more sleep, don't get heat stroke.

Running in the heat of the South is just misreable. Those in other areas of the country can try to compare, but honestly the daily grind of trying to run decent mileage isn't fun at all.

The heat just zaps your energy, and it's not just the during the run, it's the affects afterwards too. The run just leaves you feeling like garbage for the rest of the day.

I hate summer running down here. The idea of a putting in a nice big base always sounds great in Feb and March, but when you're doing it in July... yuck.

I grew up in Texas, and ran all through high school, college, and post-collegiate as well. My mileage has been between 80-100 mpw in the summer pretty often. Where I was located, the high temps were around 95-105 during the prime summer months.

Wake up early, get out the door around 6:30-7 before the workday starts (you won't have the energy to afterwards), go out the door w/o the shirt. Take the heat into account, and expect your runs to be a bit slower than they are at other times of the year. That's pretty much all you can do.

In the summers when I would train with a team, we always allowed for a couple more water stops than we'd normally get during longer runs, and sometimes we'd run our heads under some water or jump in a pool just to cool down. It's nasty out there, but there are thousands of runners who make it work every year.

Good luck!

I truly believe that the affects of heat/humidity/dry are based on individual sensibilities. I also suspect that where one has grown up and become thoroughly acclimatized also factors into how you deal with heat vs. cold. I, for one, do much better with humidity than my husband does; on the other hand, when the air is really dry (doesn't matter what the temp is) I struggle more.

I think there can be three consensuses (consensi?) 1) don't run from 11-2 at the apex of the heat of the sun; 2) have water handy during the long runs to keep from overheating or dehydrating; and 3) it's always better when there's a breeze that cools the sweat on you.

I train in southern NC... my first two weeks here of training (about 4 years ago) it was 103 degrees and HUMID. Originally from NY so it was a big adjustment.

I did/do doubles--- got up early (around 5:30-6) and did longer/harder/max. effort stuff and did shorter/recovery runs later in the evening.

The only tricky one is the long run. Usually got up around 5:30-6 to start it--- it's usually pretty hot by the time I finish, but at least some of it was in cooler temperatures.

STAY HYDRATED and out of the sun as much as you can (even when not running). And wear sun screen and a hat!

With an 18 mile long run it should not be very hard to hit a goal mileage with singles. But, as everyone has said, it all depends on the humidity and dew points. When it is extremely humid, I would recommend a double so that you will not dehydrate too much and spend less time out. Rehydrate well during the day and do a slower run at night when it is cool enough. Also, hydration in the summer is critical, water will not be enough for anything more than 40 minutes.

I would also recommend to do a short run with strides between 8-10am when you can because most races are scheduled between those times, just so your body will not be shocked on race day if you plan to do some racing. Humidity and heat are usually horrible by 9am.

Treadmill and/or pool bottom running have helped me keep up the cardio without getting overly drained by the heat. 84 miles per week, as much as 100 miles, and I'm 51. Minimum outdoors mileage is 50-60.

I'm English and 53-years-old, now in Mississippi.

I hate early morning running, but found I could handle 90 min runs, starting at about 9-00am, although I lost between 4-5 lbs a run.

It's a bit uncomfortable, but you do adapt. I was able to do 4 x 1 mile in the 5:40/5:30 range (about 5k race pace), on a track with no shade and in the mid-90s.

I went to Sacramento for the National Masters, last July, and for me it was much nicer than what I had been training in, where some people said the heat was killing them.

For me, anyway, there was definately an adaption process as I kept at it.

Not deep south but NYC here. Running in the summer I prefer the evenings with its much lower humidity. Quite a few days when the temperature is around 100. Leaving just before sunset and not going too long (dehydration) worked well for me. Of course I take it a bit easier on those days, too.