Extreme heat makes it especially hard for your body to cool down, so you need to be extra careful if you exercise or play sports when it\u2019s baking outside.
\nYour brain tries to keep your body within a degree or two of 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit, and it does so in part by triggering sweat. When sweat dries, it carries away heat from your body\u2019s surface.
\nWhen sweat can\u2019t do its job \u2014 because your body is generating a lot of heat or it\u2019s too hot and humid to cool down \u2014 you are at risk of becoming dehydrated or even getting a heat-related illness such as heat exhaustion or heat stroke.
\nBharat Venkat, an associate professor at UCLA and the director of the UCLA Heat Lab, says heat can impact the entire body. \u201cWe\u2019ll often talk about heat cramps. We\u2019ll talk about heat exhaustion. We will talk about heat stroke,\u201d he said. \u201cBut it\u2019s actually much wider than that. Heat can really impact every system in our body, our hearts, our lungs.\u201d
\n<\/p>\n
The higher the temperature, the harder it is for the body to stay cool, but humidity plays a big role too. High humidity makes it feel hotter than the temperature because it makes sweating less effective. There\u2019s so much water in the air already that it can\u2019t take up much more \u2014 including the water in your sweat.
\nThe heat index, which factors in humidity and is included on many weather forecasts, provides a sense of how hot it really feels \u2014 and what\u2019s dangerous for prolonged exposure or strenuous activity.
\nThe National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says people should start exercising \u201ccaution\u201d when the heat index reaches 80 to 90 degrees and \u201cextreme caution\u201d from 90 to 103 degrees. It labels everything over 103 \u201cdanger\u201d or \u201cextreme danger.\u201d
\nNOAA has a chart that shows how the heat index is affected by humidity. For example, a day that is 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 Celsius) can hit the \u201cdanger\u201d level with 70% humidity.<\/p>\n
If you want to exercise in the heat, here are some tips to stay safe, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.<\/p>\n
If you start to feel any of these symptoms, stop exercising, get to a cool place and seek medical care:<\/p>\n
\u201cAthletes and other folks who regularly engage in strenuous activity often think that they can handle it,\u201d UCLA\u2019s Venkat said. \u201cBut a lot of studies have shown that we\u2019re really bad at gauging how hot it is.\u201d
\nA common heat-related illness is heat exhaustion, which can be marked by rapid heartbeat, fast breathing, headache, nausea and muscle weakness or cramping.
\nIt can develop into the more serious heat stroke, when your body can no longer control its temperature. Symptoms include confusion or slurred speech, seizures or even loss of consciousness.
\nHeat also increases your risk for a rare condition called rhabdomyolysis, which causes the rapid breakdown of muscles. If you think you or a fellow athlete are in danger, call 911, give them fluids \u2014 preferably water \u2014 and try to cool their bodies with cold water or cold compresses.
\nAnd even if you think you can deal with the heat, Venkat said, \u201cIt\u2019s better to kind of take a step back and take it easy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Exercising or playing sports in extreme heat can be extremely dangerous, and it\u2019s crucial to take necessary precautions to avoid heat-related illnesses. By understanding the risks and taking steps to stay safe, you can enjoy outdoor activities while protecting your health.<\/p>\n
Exercising in Extreme Heat Introduction to Heat-Related Illnesses Extreme heat makes it especially hard for your body to cool down, so you need to be extra careful if you exercise or play sports when it\u2019s baking outside. Your brain tries to keep your body within a degree or two of 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit, and it […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":17774,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_lock_modified_date":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-17773","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-health-wellness"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i3.wp.com\/www.dailynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Heat_Wave_Weather_32574.jpg?w=1400px&strip=all&w=1400&resize=1400,933&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17773"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17773"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17773\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17775,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17773\/revisions\/17775"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17774"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17773"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17773"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17773"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}