A Good Sweat: Perspiration and Your Workout at He's Fit

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A Good Sweat: Perspiration and Your Workout

Posted March 8, 2008 at 12:00 PM by Martin Kennedy

Section: His Fitness, Cardio Training, Strength Training, Injuries & Rehab, His Gear & Apparel, Apparel, His Health, Physical Health

sweat What’s the ideal room temperature for working out? Do you burn more calories if you sweat more, and in sweat pants? MSNBC recently answered these and other questions.

The Ideal Workout Room Temperature:
According to fitness experts, there is an optimal temperature for working out indoors: 68 to 72 degrees Fahrenheit. That’s the range that keeps most exercisers comfortable, whether they’re jogging on the treadmill, taking a step class or pumping iron. However, people are different —and they sweat under different circumstances.

Some people sweat with even the slightest movement. Others won’t heat up until they’re pushing themselves to their max. Everyone’s cooling mechanism is different. So don’t assume that sweating is necessarily an accurate measure of a good workout or an indicator that calorie burning is in high gear.

Wearing Sweats and Burning Calories:
Their answer: “The notion that wearing sweats translates into better fitness is probably a misguided take-away from all those “Rocky” movies.” Although wearing sweats may cause you to sweat more (hence the name), it doesn’t mean you’re burning more calories. It simply means you’re losing water. Wrestlers may use this tactic to drop weight, but all it means for you is that you need to stay hydrated.

Bill Sonnemaker, an Atlanta-based personal trainer and a spokesperson for the IDEA Health & Fitness Association, says you should dress for comfort when working out. But when it’s extra cold outside, you should wear layers to prevent hyperthermia.