50+ Lifestyles

Beat the Summer Heat

By Logan Anderson, BA, CPT, CIFT
Owner of All Strong Fitness LLC

We are in the full summer swing, offering us plenty of opportunities for grill outs, backyard bags tournaments, and plenty of social time with friends and family. The summer is a wonderful time of year for these reasons and many more. With these events comes extra time spent outdoors, a prime opportunity for mother nature to squeeze every ounce of sweat out of our bodies. Because of this, I think it is an important time to remind ourselves of the importance of older adults maintaining proper hydration and what might happen if we neglect it.

When the temperature outside of your body gets warm enough where your body can’t maintain the proper temperature of 98.6 degrees, your body begins to sweat. This is done as a way to pull the heat from your body and bring it to the outside surface. Your body is able to do this only if it is properly hydrated. If you are not properly hydrated, your body has no way to pull the heat out of your body, leaving yourself ripe for dehydration and potentially fatal outcomes. Older adults need to particularly pay attention to this as their bodies do not regulate the temperature of their own bodies as well as their younger self. This can quickly become a major concern, as a large portion of seniors have medications and other health issues that might be exacerbated with being dehydrated. What’s even more concerning is how little water your body needs to lose to actually become dehydrated. It is known that only a 1% reduction in body weight from water loss will start to exhibit signs of mild dehydration.

Some of the symptoms of dehydration can range from dark yellow or strong smelling urine, feeling thirstier than normal, unexplained fatigue, dizziness, confusion, muscle cramps, and just feeling “off.” You may experience all, or simply a few of these if you are dehydrated. If you do feel any of these symptoms, the best thing you can do is to find yourself a shaded area, water to drink, and time outside of the sun to let your body cool off. Your body will thank you even more if you are able to find air conditioning, a cold towel, and a drink that has electrolytes with it.

Overall, you shouldn’t be scared to go outside during the summer. Of course, if you are an older adult, it would be recommended to plan ahead when tackling the summer heat. This would involve packing extra hydration sources, making sure you are near a well ventilated area or shade, layering yourself in light summer clothing, and monitoring how long you are outside. With careful consideration, the summer is nothing more than a wonderful season of warmth and cheer. Enjoy all of the summer offerings in the Quad Cities this year! (And remember to always pack extra water.)

Logan Anderson is the owner of All Strong Fitness LLC. For more information, please visit allstrongfitness.org.