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Sweating at my desk..
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I often do a 30-40 minute run workout during lunch breaks. Sometimes this will be an easy 4 mile run, other times it'll be intervals or a hard hill rep session. This brightens up the working day considerably but the problem I have is how to cool down again afterwards. I'll have a quick cool shower and then grab some canteen food before heading back to my desk and messing with my run stats, but i sit there boiling hot with sweat soaking through my shirt for the next half an hour.

What is the best way to cool down or otherwise avoid or workaround the problem of excess workout heat during summer? Is there a good way around this or do I just get used to being the sweaty, thin guy in the office?
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Re: Sweating at my desk.. [RCCo] [ In reply to ]
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After your run you should walk for 5-10 minutes to let your body cool down. Are you doing that or just going straight to the shower?
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Re: Sweating at my desk.. [RCCo] [ In reply to ]
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Been having this problem with morning runs. Only thing working for me is standing in front a a fan while my coffee water boils and I stretch a bit and trying to cool down before hoping in the shower. I think maybe a ice bag on the back of your neck might work. I think I remember reading somewhere it causes you brain to think you are cooler then you are (so potentially dangerous in hot conditions) so it could be something to try.
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Re: Sweating at my desk.. [RCCo] [ In reply to ]
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I'm the same way, although I don't run at work, so my problem is at home but still bothersome sometimes. I can stand there in a cold water shower, feel super cold... get out and BAM I'm covered in sweat beads. I'm thinking out loud but maybe drinking something cold to help cool down the core?
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Re: Sweating at my desk.. [TriBluMCS] [ In reply to ]
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I'm ok at home as i can finish the run, get a recovery shake, stretch, mooch around checking Strava and generally waste time for ages before a shower - it's usually my wife telling me i stink that does the trick. At work i don't walk around for 10 minutes or anything as i don't have too much extra time to play with: Run/stretch/shower/lunch & back before anyone notices i have waaaaay longer lunch breaks than them... :)
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Re: Sweating at my desk.. [RCCo] [ In reply to ]
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Drink cold water. It'll cool you faster than a fan or just standing around.

Strava
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Re: Sweating at my desk.. [RCCo] [ In reply to ]
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I live in Dallas, and run at lunch 3-4x per week...including my long run, on most Fridays. Heat index has been 100+ for weeks. What works for me:

1. Stand in the shade if there is a breeze while my Garmin uploads to the cloud (no service in the building). No breeze...bail and go inside.
2. Have a large bottle of ICE water waiting. I have a 32oz thermos that I fill with crystal lite and ice. I drink most of it while changing.
3. Take a COLD shower...as cold as (or colder than) you can stand it. I don't have regular access to a shower at work, so I dunk my head in the sink repeatedly on those days.
4. I have a small desk fan in my office for any residual sweating.

The 32oz of ice water helps a TON. Without that, I still end up sweating for 20 minutes post shower.
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Re: Sweating at my desk.. [RCCo] [ In reply to ]
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I run like that too. Walk a few minutes at the end of the run, then come back inside into air conditioned building and cool off for 5 minutes before taking a cool shower. Get dressed then splash your face with cold water a few times before going back to work.
Last edited by: Dilbert: Jul 7, 17 11:02
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Re: Sweating at my desk.. [RCCo] [ In reply to ]
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RCCo wrote:
What is the best way to cool down or otherwise avoid or workaround the problem of excess workout heat during summer? Is there a good way around this or do I just get used to being the sweaty, thin guy in the office?
The tactics recommended do help transfer heat. But also recognize you continue to generate heat after stopping from exothermic chemical reactions to restock ATP and phosphocreatine. It can take single to double-digit minutes depending on how depleted your phosphogenic system is (depends much more on intensity than time). Do as many productive things as you can before dressing - eat, check & reply to email, texts & voicemail, stretch, etc.

Brian

Gonna buy a fast car, put on my lead boots, take a long, long drive
I may end up spending all my money, but I'll still be alive
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Re: Sweating at my desk.. [RCCo] [ In reply to ]
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I would agree with some of the other folks on a big cup of cold water. If you have access to some ice I've had good luck with wrapping some ice cubes up in paper towels and pressing them against my forehead and the back of my neck. We have a cube environment at work which is not customer facing so I also take off my dress shirt leaving me with my white undershirt. It's only off for like 30 mins at the most. Got some weird looks at first but now no one says a thing.
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Re: Sweating at my desk.. [RCCo] [ In reply to ]
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I have tried the cold shower after my morning run, but I feel I sweat more than if I take a tepid shower. Does anyone know the physiology behind a cold shower not actually cooling you down? I get out of the cold shower and instantly get really hot and start pouring sweat; it's seems like my internal furnace is cranked up from the run, than I close all my pores and trick my brain into thinking I am cold by the cold shower then my brain actually realizes that I am actually cooking from the inside and starts the cooling process over.

Oui, mais pas de femme toute de suite (yes, but I am not ready for a woman straight away) -Stephen Roche's reply when asked whether he was okay after collapsing at the finish in the La Plagne stage of the 1987 Tour
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Re: Sweating at my desk.. [Vincible] [ In reply to ]
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I've screwed around with cold showers for a while now, as I've had the same prob and still do every now and then if I get out too soon...I find the cold shower works only if it's long enough. If you only stay in for like 30-90 secs, I swear the body actually copes by HEATING up. So you get out and you're sweating as you get dressed. Trick is to wait in there until you are literally shivering. Rotate around, letting the cold water hit you all over, but focus on back of neck, armpits, and chicken strip (or whatever you want to call it). Eventually you will really cool off. It sucks for the first few seconds but actually becomes quite refreshing after like 5 mins. The longer the better. Again, wait until you are actually SHIVERING.
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Re: Sweating at my desk.. [Vincible] [ In reply to ]
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Vincible wrote:
I have tried the cold shower after my morning run, but I feel I sweat more than if I take a tepid shower. Does anyone know the physiology behind a cold shower not actually cooling you down? I get out of the cold shower and instantly get really hot and start pouring sweat; it's seems like my internal furnace is cranked up from the run, than I close all my pores and trick my brain into thinking I am cold by the cold shower then my brain actually realizes that I am actually cooking from the inside and starts the cooling process over.

My understanding is that the body reacts by closing off all of your capillaries near the surface of your skin and also shuts down your sweating while in the shower. This reduces your body's ability to cool down since heat transfer from the blood through the skin to the atmosphere is one of the primary means of cooling down. As soon as you get out, the body reacts to the warm core tempt and opens the sweat faucets again.

What I do is run cool water over my wrists and forearms for a little and then a luke warm (not hot, not cold) shower. Running water has a lot of potential to cool, so it doesn't take a huge temperature differential to help cool you down. Think 90 deg F water...not 50 deg F water.
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Re: Sweating at my desk.. [mgreer] [ In reply to ]
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mgreer wrote:
Vincible wrote:
I have tried the cold shower after my morning run, but I feel I sweat more than if I take a tepid shower. Does anyone know the physiology behind a cold shower not actually cooling you down? I get out of the cold shower and instantly get really hot and start pouring sweat; it's seems like my internal furnace is cranked up from the run, than I close all my pores and trick my brain into thinking I am cold by the cold shower then my brain actually realizes that I am actually cooking from the inside and starts the cooling process over.


My understanding is that the body reacts by closing off all of your capillaries near the surface of your skin and also shuts down your sweating while in the shower. This reduces your body's ability to cool down since heat transfer from the blood through the skin to the atmosphere is one of the primary means of cooling down. As soon as you get out, the body reacts to the warm core tempt and opens the sweat faucets again.

What I do is run cool water over my wrists and forearms for a little and then a luke warm (not hot, not cold) shower. Running water has a lot of potential to cool, so it doesn't take a huge temperature differential to help cool you down. Think 90 deg F water...not 50 deg F water.

The lukewarm shower is now my go to post workout shower. Maybe we should start a PSA thread (kinda pink).

Oui, mais pas de femme toute de suite (yes, but I am not ready for a woman straight away) -Stephen Roche's reply when asked whether he was okay after collapsing at the finish in the La Plagne stage of the 1987 Tour
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Re: Sweating at my desk.. [nbaynes] [ In reply to ]
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nbaynes wrote:
Trick is to wait in there until you are literally shivering. Rotate around, letting the cold water hit you all over, but focus on back of neck, armpits, and chicken strip (or whatever you want to call it). Eventually you will really cool off. It sucks for the first few seconds but actually becomes quite refreshing after like 5 mins. The longer the better. Again, wait until you are actually SHIVERING.


Yep. That's exactly what I did this morning after my long run....I started with tepid water, and just kept turning it colder until I was just plain cold. It took about 5 minutes....no sweating post shower.
Last edited by: Tom_hampton: Jul 7, 17 13:08
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Re: Sweating at my desk.. [Vincible] [ In reply to ]
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Agree I find if I take a lukewarm or even hot shower after my workout I do not sweat as bad after I have changed. Also, the funny thing is even though it appears counter intuitive for many people drinking warm liquids actually cool them down, just like eating things like Ice Cream in the winter can actually warm you up.
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Re: Sweating at my desk.. [RCCo] [ In reply to ]
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Keep a large ice pack in The freezer at work and put it on the back of your chair before you sit down. The lower back or kidney area have a decent amount of blood flow. I like the squishy gel ice packs.
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