Get a little wet and go a little faster
A spritz of water midrun could do more than just cool you down
ON A HOT DAY you might be more inclined to pour water down your throat than over your head, but new research1 suggests that a head soak is far from being a waste of water. In the study, a group of runners endured 33C heat while they ran 5K time trials. Compared with no cooling, intermittent facial spraying with cold water lowered their forehead temperature and ‘thermal sensation’ (how hot they felt). Not in itself a huge surprise, but, intriguingly, it also increased muscle activation, leading to a modest but still significant average 2.4 per cent reduction in 5K times. Definitely a strategy to try next time things are hotting up midrace. Just make sure you don’t do it with your sports drink…