I think I'm getting used to the heat

After I got heat exhaustion I used to judge people in my mind. I would see someone running in the middle of the day when it was hot and I would say something like, "You are dumb! Don't you know you could get heat exhaustion?!" I didn't say it out loud, although that would have been interesting, but I was thinking it.

Recently with my new job running in the heat seemed like the best answer. Also I knew that if I was going to try out for the cross country team that I would have to do workouts in the heat so I had to find a way to get used to it...

So I did some research and found there were things I could do that I wasn't doing in order to get used to the heat and avoid heat exhaustion all at the same time...

1. Wear sunscreen. I never did this until recently. I think I thought that wearing sunscreen would mess up my ability to sweat effectively, so I didn't wear it, but I really think in the last couple weeks that it has made a difference.
2. Don't just workout in the heat after having done a lot in the cool times of the day. That was one of my biggest mistakes last year is that my body was used to running in the mornings when it was cool. That's how I had acclimatized my body. Then all of the sudden I did a long run in the heat and it was hard and it hurt equaling heat exhaustion.
3. Slow down. Referring to point 2, I was trying, on top of all of the sudden running in the heat, to run really hard and fast like I had been able to do in the cool. Your body can't handle the same effort in the heat as it can in the cooler temperatures so slow down and don't feel bad if you can't produce the same effort. SIDE NOTE: When you run in the heat your heart rate increases more than normal and so does your core temperature.
4. Wear a hat.
5. Wear sunglasses.
6. Take water along AND drink it. (For more water info refer to my H 2 the izz-O post on the importance of water before/during/after exercise.)
7. Don't be afraid to slow down and even walk.

That's all I got for you. My paradigm is shifting as usual and I'm learning. My ignorance and prejudices and opinions are changing as I learn, read and search. That's how I run fearless.