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After Workout Cooling-Off

My wife has begun a new jogging regimen. She has asked that I "get on that shaving site" and ask what you guys do for cooling off during or after a workout.

I'm an active kind of guy, but I just cool off with a big glass of water and hang out outside for a while, maybe a luke warm shower after I cool down a bit. I suggested Florida Water mixed with cold (iced) tap water for a cooling sensation. Just dip a wash cloth in the mixture and wipe the face and put over the head or back of the neck. That's what we used to do during baseball practice or games as a kid here in South Louisiana. Actually, that's what I thought Forida Water was for, to cool off during a hot baseball practice. I didn't realize that it is actually a cologne/AS.

Does anybody have any suggestions that they think are better than my Florida Water + water suggestion? Thanks. :osage:
 
I have a bottle of Dickinson's witch hazel. I emptied 1/3 and filled with 100 proof vodka and added 4 menthol crystals. I use it to clean my face at night and sometimes as an aftershave. If I've been out in the yard working and I'm sweaty I take a cotton pad doused with the stuff and apply it to the back of my neck, wrists and throat. It really helps cool you down. Obviously staying hydrated is key as well.
 
Personally, after a ride I sit down with a tall glass of chocolate milk, then I take a shower. I generally don't shower for the day until after my ride, so I ride in the mornings if possible, around noon if I'm busy in the morning.

The Florida Water idea isn't bad, nor is Bloozepickers.
 
Hydration before, during and after a workout is key. I drink a glass of water about an hour before an outdoor workout, and either stop at a water fountain or bring water with me if my run is more than 45 minutes and drink as much as I feel I need after. Wearing lightweight and moisture-wicking clothes helps. If she can run in the morning or evening that's even better. Washcloths that have been cooled are good if you need to cool down quickly (put on back of neck) otherwise it just takes time. Of course, being inside after the workout helps.
 
I do Scottish showers (aka Bond showers). You start the water out hot, then turn it gradually down to cold. I would recommend going in short temperature steps, getting acclimated to each one for a few seconds before turning it down more. Get it down as cold as you can stand it.
 

Doc4

Stumpy in cold weather
Staff member
My wife has begun a new jogging regimen. She has asked that I "get on that shaving site" and ask what you guys do for cooling off during or after a workout.

We buy expensive shaving gear for our spouses. That cools us off in no time.
 
Yesterday was nasty and swampy, so I just hung out inside with our air conditioning, stretching while watching TV (and sitting on a towel). This isn't quite on topic, but I have found that a great post-run recovery drink for longer runs is chocolate milk. It sounds nasty but it provides water, carbs, sugar, calories, and especially protein. I would come home from long runs and drink water and later Gatorade and would still feel "imbalanced" and sort of miserable but when I switched I feel fantastic even after runs over 15 miles. The one thing that chocolate milk provides (and it doesn't have to be chocolate, but it does have to be sweetened) over sports drinks is protein, which the body begins to break down on longer runs and workouts. There have been a number of studies that demonstrate chocolate milk's efficacy on workouts over 45 minutes.

I guess this would be sort of on-topic because I have found that re-hydrate myself faster and thus cool down faster when drinking chocolate milk than plain water or Gatorade. I guess you could probably eat ice cream as it has similar qualities (although too fat). One of my neighbors who has been a runner since high school said that he would come home from a long run and just eat ice cream, especially when he was younger.
 
I workout in the mornings, so it's a cold shower after a shave. And I always keep a bottle of cold water at the ready.
 
Thanks for the replys, fellas. I have read articles about the advantages of chocolate milk after a workout.
 
I have a bottle of Dickinson's witch hazel. I emptied 1/3 and filled with 100 proof vodka and added 4 menthol crystals. I use it to clean my face at night and sometimes as an aftershave. If I've been out in the yard working and I'm sweaty I take a cotton pad doused with the stuff and apply it to the back of my neck, wrists and throat. It really helps cool you down. Obviously staying hydrated is key as well.

What is the reason for the Vodka? I may have a bottle in the house.
 
I have one of those mist bottles where you pump the bottom and it makes it into a really light mist so I just fill that will cool water so I just mist myself and sit outside if there is a breeze or in front of a fan when I come in from a run or skate but I have yet to find something that works well while I am actively working out (other than the 1/2 a bottle of water in the freezer overnight that gets filled with cold water before I go out for my run that comes with me so I am constantly drinking cold water)
 

TheShaun

Bejeweled
Great time of year to start jogging in Baton Rouge!!! :)

Being a northerner who has jogged the LSU lakes at this time of year, I can tell you nothing beats water and AC
 
Great time of year to start jogging in Baton Rouge!!! :)

Being a northerner who has jogged the LSU lakes at this time of year, I can tell you nothing beats water and AC

Oh, yeah. I had to go to the hospital for dehydration after a strenuous bike ride around the lakes. My wife was scared to death seeing me pass out, face-plant style, the next morning, and right in front of my two small children. After that incident, I make sure to stay hydrated, no matter what I'm doing.

But, a jog or bike ride around the LSU lakes is one of the best things to do in Baton Rouge, in my opinion.
 

TheShaun

Bejeweled
Oh, yeah. I had to go to the hospital for dehydration after a strenuous bike ride around the lakes. My wife was scared to death seeing me pass out, face-plant style, the next morning, and right in front of my two small children. After that incident, I make sure to stay hydrated, no matter what I'm doing.

But, a jog or bike ride around the LSU lakes is one of the best things to do in Baton Rouge, in my opinion.

I have the great fortune to have a better half who was born and raised in Baton Rouge, sadly this come with the misfortune of having to visit Baton Rouge more often than I would like. We head down once or twice a year from the west coast of canada. the novelty of the south wore off after about the 5th trip down.

But you your last point is spot on! we have great outdoor activities where we live now, but I do love getting out to the lakes for a run or walk almost every day when we are there. Hot humid summer or not.

If you have any other suggestions of things to do in BR, please PM me. I will most likely be there at Xmas time
 
She needs to do a "cool-down" routine. If she is hot, sweaty, and tired with a high heart rate she is using her muscles (primarily leg muscles) to assist her heart to keep blood moving, cooling the internal organs and delivering O2 to the muscles. If she goes from a jog to a dead stop she suddenly deprives her heart of this muscular assistance and adds a big load to it, as well as slowing the cooling action of the circulating blood. A slow(er) jog, then a fast walk, then slow walk, then some stretching and what not will allow her heart rate to lower gradually and let the internal core temp lower faster. Cool (not ice cold) water can help. Heat stroke and cramping can drop you very fast and if you are in a remote area/unaccompanied it can get ugly quickly!

In high humidity areas sweat can't evaporate well to cool the body, it is just a fact of life in the humid South. Loose sweat wicking (cotton and the fancy blends) clothing, running in the shade, early/late in the day, and finding windy/breezy areas are about all you can do. Hydration is key, even for a 2-3 mile jog, in the summer in the South a bottle of water on a waist belt or hydration pack is the best thing you can use.
 
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