By Kathy Gilbert
Staff Writer
“I tell people to get outside 15 to 30 minutes at least, every day,” says Randy Webb, owner of Futur/Fit in Brainerd.
“Get exposed to the temperatures, get used to the sun.”
Water, not surprisingly, solves many a heat-related problem.
Drink plenty of water during your summer workouts, Mr. Webb said. Seek shaded routes, added Chad Varga, a member of the Chattanooga Track Club and owner of Front Runner in Hixson.
Try the Riverwalk, which is conveniently dotted with water fountains, for summer running and walking.
“I hydrate really well before and after I run,” said Joy Longley, a 44-year-old pharmacist from Tunnel Hill, Ga. “And one of the advantages of the Riverwalk is there is water about every mile.”
Cross-train by swimming or paddling the Tennessee River Blueway, says Philip Pugliese, bicycle coordinator for the city’s Outdoor Chattanooga division. (The blueway is a water route from Chickamauga Dam in Hixson to the Shellmound Recreation Area and Nickajack Dam in Marion County.)
Another solution to beating the summer heat is exercising in the morning, says Joey Howe, another longtime member of the Chattanooga Track Club and manager of Fast Break in North Chattanooga.
Shaded routes, such as the National Park Service trails on Lookout Mountain, are also abundant in the region.
“If the excuse that it’s too hot keeps you from running,” Mr. Howe says, “you probably don’t want to run in the first place.”
E-mail Kathy Gilbert at kgilbert@timesfreepress.com
10 WAYS TO STAY COOL IN THE HEAT
1. Wear a heart-rate monitor to check for heat exhaustion or heat stroke.
2. Take it easy. Reduce your workout effort to adjust for the energy spent battling heat.
3. Get in the habit of exercising. Don’t skip a day, or it’s harder to get back into your routine.
4. Bring a handkerchief. Use it to mop face and neck.
5. Wear wristbands dipped in ice water.
6. Drink, drink, drink.
7. Eat bananas or other sources of potassium.
8. Wear wicking synthetics.
9. Bike to work. Join other bikers for breakfast at Miller Park downtown from 7 to 8:30 a.m. on first Fridays through October. See www.bikechattanooga.org or call (423) 643-6887.
10. Use a treadmill or elliptical trainer indoors.
—; Randy Webb’s Futur/Fit, Front Runner, Fast Break, Outdoor Chattanooga
