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Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues
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Need ideas: I live in an area where indoor trainer rides are my best option for getting the training I need in. I crank the AC and use a big fan, but I STILL sweat TONS and find it really annoying to be sweating so much while I'm on the bike indoors. I wear a cotton T-Shirt to collect the sweat (I don't know how people ride shirtless) since otherwise the sweat runs in my shorts and literally drips out the bottom!!!!! I have to change the t-shirt on a multi-hour ride because it gets saturated. I have to drink TONS. Seems like a loosing battle to control the sweat....Any ideas from others on how to control and be comfortable with all the sweating????
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [cestmoi] [ In reply to ]
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buy a dehumidifier
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [cestmoi] [ In reply to ]
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Get a blower too. Made a huge difference once I picked one up (I have a 1/5HP one and it made a world of difference....so much so I'm contemplating getting another one).

Or maybe get a room AC near where you are training to help with it placing the fan to push the air from that unit towards you.
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [cestmoi] [ In reply to ]
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I'm in Florida and ride in my garage with no AC in the summer. I do mostly ride in the morning, so it's not too hot yet, but I'd wager it's still hotter than your room if AC is on. I use a big fan, I generally don't have any sweat or overheating issues.

This is the fan, if interested: https://www.amazon.com/...le?ie=UTF8&psc=1
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [cestmoi] [ In reply to ]
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I’ll second the blower, it was a game changer for me.
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [loxx0050] [ In reply to ]
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loxx0050 wrote:
Get a blower too. Made a huge difference once I picked one up (I have a 1/5HP one and it made a world of difference....so much so I'm contemplating getting another one).

Or maybe get a room AC near where you are training to help with it placing the fan to push the air from that unit towards you.

Which blower model do you use exactly? I haven't heard of these, unless you mean the commercial ones they use to dry up damp carpet and spills?
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [cestmoi] [ In reply to ]
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Something like this works well for BTN.

https://www.homedepot.com/...-SFC1-500B/302845111

You can get a second one, either on pole or wall mount if you want even more air.


float , hammer , and jog

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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [cestmoi] [ In reply to ]
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cestmoi wrote:
loxx0050 wrote:
Get a blower too. Made a huge difference once I picked one up (I have a 1/5HP one and it made a world of difference....so much so I'm contemplating getting another one).

Or maybe get a room AC near where you are training to help with it placing the fan to push the air from that unit towards you.


Which blower model do you use exactly? I haven't heard of these, unless you mean the commercial ones they use to dry up damp carpet and spills?

Yes, those exact ones aka a blower fan. I personally have a B-Air one (this one: https://www.homedepot.com/...A-VP-20-BL/303793378 which I got for a smoking deal at one of those surplus/liquidator type stores). I would've preferred a bit more air flow like the 1/4HP or higher models they have (or other brand offerings). But for the price I paid it was hard to pass up as it was cheaper than a regular fan you buy for normal room use. It is louder than my trainer though but I have a direct drive one.

I personally use some wireless plug switches to turn them on/off when on the trainer/treadmill. Usually until I warm up the blower makes me too cold so I use a regular fan for awhile until I feel I need the blower on (then I can also turn off the regular fan).
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [cestmoi] [ In reply to ]
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Get multiple fans. Don't get cheap fans either; just because its a big fan, doesn't mean it moves more air per minute than a quality small fan. Cotton holds the sweat, but also doesn't like to let go of it, or heat, either. Shirtless or a good tech shirt and hat is probably still better with good air movement.

As a side note, if you normally sweat a decent amount, everything being soaked is just part of the reality, particularly if you don't feel like you're losing power or efficiency over being outside. I sweat about 30-40 ounces an hour in warm weather outside so I'll usually go through a least that much fluid per hour, 2 hand towels, and a full size towel for a 80-90 minute indoor workout. I change out shirts and hats when I can't stand the soaked clothes anymore and get on with it during multi-hour rides. I'll even go through a couple pair of socks on a multi-hour ride; soooo much more laundry but at least it makes for good transition practice ;)

Matt Leu, M.S. Kinesiology
San Pedro Fit Works, Los Angeles, CA
Endurance Athlete and Coach
Consistency/time=results
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [cestmoi] [ In reply to ]
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My experience has been with a 36" industrial fan. It is mounted on a pedestal and the top of the fan is pretty close to 6 feet high and the whole thing weighs around 50 pounds I guess. With this type of airflow I find that almost all my sweat gets evaporated by the moving air. Even after 4 hour sessions there was very little sweat on the ground below my bike and that's while not wearing a shirt. I do keep a towel handy to wipe my face off. The airflow is so strong I put the thing behind me to the side because it dries out my eyes if it is in the front (wearing contact lenses)

I think when people say blower they mean a floor based industrial fan instead of one mounted on "a stick"

Google industrial fan and click on images. These are the types I am talking about and they will evaporate the sweat right off of you. You just need something way more powerful I think than you are currently using. Beware though these things are very noisy.
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [jollyroger88] [ In reply to ]
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jollyroger88 wrote:
buy a dehumidifier

This. When we moved and I became a bigger basement rider, I had two high powered fans hitting me from as close as I could get them. Was still making a mess. After the addition of a de-humidifier (with a pump so I don't have to empty it), I can run those fans fairly low and barely drip on my bike. I set it at 45% assuming that since there's quite a bit of air in the basement, it's probably closer to 50% in my bike room.
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [cestmoi] [ In reply to ]
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I have this one

STANLEY 655704 High Velocity... https://www.amazon.com/...ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

And a vornado fan blowing on me.

Also, just have a towel and wipe yourself off occasionally
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [cestmoi] [ In reply to ]
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Fan + dehumidifier + head band + wicking arm sweat bands pulled above the elbows (kind of what tennis players wear on their wrists). Still sweat a lot, but sweat bands capture a portion of it. Get a tri top too - I suspect that your cotton shirt retains some of the heat.
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [cestmoi] [ In reply to ]
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cestmoi wrote:
I wear a cotton T-Shirt to collect the sweat (I don't know how people ride shirtless)

I don't know how you can ride with a cotton t-shirt!!

I also sweat a ton and train in a hot garage in FL. No shirt is pretty much a given - you need air blowing on your skin, which evaporates sweat and in turn cools you down. If you cover your skin with a shirt the sweat will just pool at the surface of the skin and you'll just sweat more and never cool off.

What's your CdA?
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [cestmoi] [ In reply to ]
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I put a boot tray underneath the bike. Something like this: https://www.homedepot.com/...-MT1003786/207070561. It catches the sweat dripping from my body. It also allows me to take off the head band and wring all the sweat from it into the tray. The boot tray goes into the shower with me, directly after the ride. The shower is only a few steps away.
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [cestmoi] [ In reply to ]
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I think with an AC + 2 blower fans, you're pretty much at the max cooling you can squeeze out of a hot pain cave.

I live in a generally moderate climate with less temp extremes, but in heatwaves of sustained 90+ for days, my garage will get warm (82+) and then even with a blower and second fan both on max, it's not enough for me to cool enough. In contrast, if the garage is even slightly cooler than normal room temp, like 67, the blower on minimal settings is almost overpowering even when I'm doing a hammerfest ride.

On the bright side, you will definitely have the advantage of training in hot and racing in cooler temps, which is actually a big advantage on race day.
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [lightheir] [ In reply to ]
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lightheir wrote:
On the bright side, you will definitely have the advantage of training in hot and racing in cooler temps, which is actually a big advantage on race day.

I got into a conversation about this with some folks including a banned individual months back.

Seemed to me you wanted to maximize your situation for power output for harder interval sessions and use the slower/base/Z2 or long duration stuff for getting gains in heat tolerance or plasma/blood volume.

Kind of like you sleep high and train low for mountains.

Same for temp. Cool as you can get with hard efforts and warm as you can stand for easier long stuff.

Imagine doing VO2 workouts in a meat locker then doing Z1/Z2 rides in a sauna. That's your ideal world.
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [trailerhouse] [ In reply to ]
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trailerhouse wrote:
cestmoi wrote:
I wear a cotton T-Shirt to collect the sweat (I don't know how people ride shirtless)


I don't know how you can ride with a cotton t-shirt!!

I also sweat a ton and train in a hot garage in FL. No shirt is pretty much a given - you need air blowing on your skin, which evaporates sweat and in turn cools you down. If you cover your skin with a shirt the sweat will just pool at the surface of the skin and you'll just sweat more and never cool off.

I know it sounds awful, but it does collect the sweat and semi-prevents it from running down my legs into my sock and shoes, not to mention dripping on the bike...I change shirts once it's saturated. This kind of sweating ruins shirts though after a few times wearing them so i use pretty old ones.
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [cestmoi] [ In reply to ]
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Try riding without a shirt. The cotton T's might be preventing evaporation (and cooling), leaving you wetter and hotter than you'd be without a shirt. If you must wear a shirt, wear something technical that wicks and evaporates.

I use a small Vornado fan pointed at my head and chest, turned up pretty high, plus an overhead fan on slow speed to keep the room air circulating.

Does anyone use a blower at floor level to push cooler air into their cycling room? I've thought about putting one in the hallway outside my pain cave to push in the floor-level air and encourage the warmer air in the cave to flow out of the top of the doorway.


<The Dew Abides>
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [cestmoi] [ In reply to ]
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Put a plastic bag or some other cover over your headset if you are dripping onto it. Otherwise you could rust out the bearings like I did. Just a tip

They constantly try to escape from the darkness outside and within
Dreaming of systems so perfect that no one will need to be good T.S. Eliot

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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [cestmoi] [ In reply to ]
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More fans, and no shirt. I have four of these (https://www.amazon.com/...ef=dp_cr_wdg_tit_rfb). Two diagonally in front, two diagonally behind. I'm in central florida, and the room I train in is usually in the upper 70s at best. I'm a pretty heavy sweater, but most is evaporating below ~300W. As output increases I'll start pouring, but at that point I'm usually not concerned about my sweat.
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [cestmoi] [ In reply to ]
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I have a king air mover and a space heater. Heat does not bother me at all and I haul serious ass when it is cool. It is comparable to benefit you get from altitude training.
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [cestmoi] [ In reply to ]
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I also can go through multiple tshirts in any trainer workout. I have found that a skin tight cycling jersey that wicks or is designed for hot weather is much better even on the trainer than anything else, including other tighter athletic wear. I also point a fan at my chest and legs, and have a big pool of sweat off to the side of my bike where it's all blowing.

I just soak through headbands, but leave a towel across the bars and top tube of my bike and use that periodically to wipe down.
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Re: Indoor Cycling in the Summer - Issues [Geronimo] [ In reply to ]
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Yes - the headband is key. Thanks for the all the ideas....really good stuff.
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