Exercising is good for you and all but when its super hot or freezing cold outside you gotta be careful or you might get sick or hurt. Lots of people forget simple stuff and then they get problems like heat stroke or frostbite and its not fun at all. So here I wanna talk about some things you should keep in mind when you wanna work out in really bad weather, like really cold or really hot. Both are tough on your body but you can avoid trouble if you take care of few things.
Dress Right
First thing is clothes. When it’s freezing cold outside you gotta wear layers, like a lot of layers so you don’t freeze. You need a base layer that takes sweat off your skin so you don’t get wet and cold (wet clothes in cold are the worst). Then you want something warm like fleece or something soft. Then a jacket that stops wind and rain or snow. Gloves are a must cause hands get cold real fast. And a hat! Most of your heat goes out your head so don’t forget that. A scarf or something to cover your face is good too cause windburn sucks.
In hot weather you wanna wear light and loose clothes so you don’t get too hot. Like cotton or those fancy sporty ones that take sweat away from your body. Dark colors are bad cause they soak heat so pick light colors. A hat with a brim helps a lot to keep sun off your face and sunglasses are good if you don’t want your eyes to hurt later.
Drink Water
People always talk about water when its hot but forget that you need water in cold too. When it’s hot you sweat a lot and lose fluids fast, so you gotta drink water before, during, and after exercise or you’ll get dehydrated. Dehydration makes you dizzy, weak, or even faint and that’s bad. Sports drinks can help cause they have stuff your body loses when you sweat.
Cold weather is tricky cause you don’t feel thirsty as much but you still lose water when you breathe cold dry air. So even if you don’t feel thirsty you should still drink water or you can feel dizzy or tired faster than normal. I’ve seen people forget this and then they feel awful.
When To Exercise
The time you work out matters a lot in extreme temps. When it’s really hot try early morning or late at night when it’s cooler. Avoid the middle of the day cause that’s when sun is strongest and you can get heat stroke or sunburn easier. If you gotta be outside in the middle of the day try find shade and take lots of breaks.
When it’s really cold you wanna do your workout during the warmest time usually around midday. Early morning or late night is too cold and dangerous. Also shorter workouts are better cause your body gets cold fast and you could get frostbite or hypothermia.
Know When To Stop
This is super important – listen to your body. If you feel dizzy, super tired, heart racing weird, headache or nausea when it’s hot stop right away. Those are signs of heat exhaustion or worse. If you ignore it you could get heat stroke and that’s serious and you need help fast.
In cold, if your fingers or toes feel numb or tingly, or skin looks white or gray that might be frostbite. If you are shivering lots, confused, or really tired that could be hypothermia. Both are bad and you need get warm and get help if you can.
Warm Up and Cool Down
Warming up is always important but in cold weather super important cause cold muscles get hurt easier. So spend more time warming up like jogging or stretches before hard exercise. When you finish cooling down slowly helps your body temp drop slowly, so don’t stop suddenly.
Other Tips
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Tell someone where you’re going and how long you’ll be out especially if weather is extreme. Just in case something happens and you need help.
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Sunscreen isn’t just for summer even in winter or cloudy days the sun can still burn you so put some on before going outside.
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In cold weather your skin can dry and crack so moisturizer or cream helps a lot.
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Don’t push yourself too hard. If your body says stop just stop. You’re not a robot.
Conclusion
So yeah exercising in really cold or really hot weather needs some planning. Dress right, drink water, pick right time, listen to your body’s warning signs. Cold and heat affect us differently but many safety tips are the same. Be smart and careful so you don’t hurt yourself. Your health should always come first no matter weather.