Climate Crisis: Are we doing enough?

[briantrumpet]

It is easy to do. On hot days I plan a route where I know I can stop in multiple places and top up. I also try and make sure I am taking a drink every 5 minutes or so in order to keep on top. Just being at work/home takes a bit more discipline as it is easy to get distracted and forget to drink.

Oh, I know every water fountain within about 40 miles of my place in France, but sometimes there are longing gaps in the more mountainous areas. And there's one area for some reason there aren't the village fountains you'd expect, so even with 1.5L, it needs careful planning when it's proper hot. I guess I'd drink about 6L on the longer hotter rides.

 

[briantrumpet]

Sadly, as I have aged, my tolerance to heat has reduced. For some reason, which I cba to research, my energy levels drop a lot once temperature reaches the 30s. Today, even at 8.00 am it was too hot for a ride…and there’s no way I’m getting up at 6.00 am.

Once I'm out of the risk zone, it'll be interesting to see what my tolerance is, and whether I've permanently lost it... in the meantime, I won't be testing it though. "Listen to your body", they say. Not sure at the moment I entirely like what it's telling me, but I'm still being a good boy.

 

[Rusty Nails]

If I listened to my body I’d shoot myself now.

 

[Pross]

Problem if you drink too much water alone is the risk of hyponatremia. You need to replace the lost minerals too. I think a lot of the symptoms are similar to those of dehydration which doesn't help.

 

[First Aspect]

Sadly, as I have aged, my tolerance to heat has reduced. For some reason, which I cba to research, my energy levels drop a lot once temperature reaches the 30s. Today, even at 8.00 am it was too hot for a ride…and there’s no way I’m getting up at 6.00 am.

This. I remember rising around the vale of the white horse when it was 38C in the summer of 2004. The previous year I had ridden near Devil's Tower in similar temperatures. We used to do land training in pretty hot conditions in a metal roofed building. I remember all of those being hot, but not enough to stop me.

Last month I struggled on a day it was over 30 in the sun. Yesterday I was on the water for an hour at about 32 and the degree of fatigue was nothing to do with the level of exertion. I just couldn't regulate my temperature.

I could also bang on about increased used of warm cycle clothing over the years.

Lack of ability to cope with temperature extremes as you get older is a known thing.

 

[briantrumpet]

Problem if you drink too much water alone is the risk of hyponatremia. You need to replace the lost minerals too. I think a lot of the symptoms are similar to those of dehydration which doesn't help.

Yeah, that's probably what I've verged on just a few times.