I need to remember to always bring water with me when I go out on trail. Despite the high temperature, I left my water bottle behind when I went out to Purgatory park today. I decided that I could just “tough it out” on trail and just get something to drink when I finished.
Big mistake.
I started to recognize some signs of dehydration when I was out there. What are those symptoms?
- You stop sweating. Essentially, your body goes into water preservation mode, and you stop sweating, eventhough you’re still hot as all get out.
- You get the shakes. Seriously, you start shaking.
- Light headed, blurry vision, and dizziness.
I recognized these symptoms when I was out there, so I stopped running and started fast walking instead. I was also seeking out as much shade as possible, but in some parts of the trail, it’s not possible to have any shade.
How hot was it today? This is the reading from my car’s thermometer when I drove out to the park to go for a run.
By the time I got to the park, the thermometer was down to 105, which is still pretty hot. I should’ve brought some water with me when I went out today.
Here’s my fat trail runner top tip: always, always, always have water with you when you go out to run in the heat. No matter how short the distance. If you don’t want to carry a bottle with you or you don’t have your camel back, you can always just stash the bottle along the route. It’s always best to ditch a run and live to run another day.
