As I trudge along the towpath, breathing heavily and sweating like I have a tap on my forehead, a runner passes me in the opposite direction, looking like he should be on Love Island rather than the Basingstoke Canal.
Shirt off, bronzed and bouncing along with zero effort, I catch a glimpse of myself in my fellow runner's unfogged designer sunglasses. The contrast is marked. For all that he is making the morning's trot seem effortless, I am making it look like serious hard work.
With a physique more Peter Crouch than Peter Andre, I wouldn't inflict my shirtless torso on anyone, but the result means that my t-shirt appears to have been dipped in water, drenched as it is with the insane amount of perspiration that is cascading down my body. My pasty British skin and beetroot red face, meanwhile, gives the unmistakable impression of a man who is clearly not at home in hot weather, at least when running anyway.
The Love Island contestant is clearly in his element. Like a lion prancing across the parched South African Savannah, this is his time and, although he may have been waiting all year for the perfect temperature to unleash his six pack on the world, it has finally arrived and he is determined to enjoy it.
I, meanwhile, am more penguin than lion in anything over 20 degrees and this morning's run only serves to reaffirm that my climate of choice for running involves round-the-clock drizzle and overcast skies, and that I barely have a one-pack, let alone six.
But this is the British way. We are an odd collection of individuals, with as many sun worshippers as sun haters and a universal ability to moan about the weather, regardless of preference. And it's the same with running. Some of us love exerting ourselves in the heat, while others loathe it.
However you feel about the weather, though, the challenge it adds to your running is significant. Running in the heat can drain your energy and dehydrate you at speed (as evidenced by my t-shirt), while running in the cold can test your mental strength and stamina. Which you prefer is a matter of personal preference, but the physiological impact climate has on our bodies is actually the same for us all, regardless of whether you're a Love Islander or a penguin.
So, this summer, when you're running in the heat - proudly topless or hugging the treeline in desperate search of shade - make sure you are properly hydrated before your run and adequately topped up throughout it. Other blindingly obvious tips for running in the heat:
- Wear as little as possible - leave the leggings at home!
- Go early or late - mad dogs and runners go out in the midday sun...and then pay the price!
- Go slower - a heatwave is not the time to push for a PB
- Seek the shade - plot a tree-lined route rather than taking yourself to open moorland for the day
- Choose trail over road - a grassy off-road route is never going to be as hot as pounding the pavement alongside the A34.
- Buy a paddling pool - the perfect way to cool off and annoy your entire family in the process (I still have shouts of "ughh Daaaad, you're sweaty and disgusting, get out of there" ringing in my ears)
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