Training & Nutrition - Excessive sweating?

I think I sweat a lot more than most folks and am wondering if there's anything I can do to slow the flow any?

After a 45 minute high-intensity spin class, I look like I just got out of the pool, soaked from head to toe. I've yet to find a sweatband that can keep up on a 2-3 hour ride;most are completely saturated after an hour or two. Most people in my group stick to the "one bottle an hour" rule but I'm usually drink two+ and still get dehydrated more often than not.

At first I chalked it up to just being out of shape but now that I'm getting reasonably fit, the problem isn't getting any better. I'm 6'3 200 so I could stand to drop a few pounds but wouldn't consider myself fat anymore.

Is there anything I can take/eat/drink to help out?

sorry for the double-post, got an error the first time and didn't see the thread listed

I have no idea personally, but FWIW I am with you. I am a big sweaty hog when I work out and always have been. All that seems to help for me is to get near a fan and avoid cotton when I am at the gym. When I play basketball I think it helps one when working the low post- no one wants to lean on you when you're soaked!

I've always seemed to sweat a lot, no matter what kind of shape I'm in. Any more I just view it as being a fact of life and don't worry about it. Recent example, 100 miles in 6 hours on Saturday, 60'ish degrees and partly cloudy, emptied my 3L camelbak about 5 miles from home. However, I didn't have to stop and pee once! I also weighed close to the same when I finished as when I started so I don't think I was dehydrated or consuming too much water.

Yeah I pump out the sweat as well plus a huge red face (thus my name Tomato Sue!). I think some people just sweat more than others. Like what has been posted drinking stacks of water, don't wear cotton, get near some breeze if you can (like a fan) and don't worry too much - at least it looks as though you have gone to hell and back in your exercise session! The guys who aren't glistening, well they're just slackers...

There's not much you can do. There are medical procedures but they are not without risk, and AFAIK they are only applied in extreme circumstances. To some degree the amount of sweat you produce is genetic. Consider it an advantage, since you get to cool off more than those who don't!

I sweat tons, and I learned to love it, and to slowly eliminate cotton from the wardrobe. If I'm going to do a sporting activity that involves sweating (skiing, cycling, etc.) I won't wear cotton. That helps manage it, but it doesn't prevent me sweating any less....

I'm with you all on this one too! I'm always the one in the spinning class or group that is soaked from head to toe. If I press on the front of my helmet, sweat will stream out like a fountain when I stop. At the gym in spinning classes if I look down instead of up like I should, I can just watch a faucet of drips leaking onto the mats!!! I asked my doctor about it, and he said that it was really better to be that way. He says that the bad gunky is being let out this way. some folks tend to have a harder time shedding and the sweat is helping us cool down. I am also affected more by humidity, as I'm sure most of your are too if you sweat a lot.

Cheers - Just keep an extra towel handy at all times :D

Fyi - I use technical fabric exclusively for any activity. I have some underarmour loose-fit t-shirts designed for the heat, and even though I sweat a ton, the shirt will stay completely dry since it's constantly pulling the water off your body to the outside of the shirt to evaporate. I even have a lot of my dressier and dress casual clothing in performance fabric if I can get it.

I was always told I had "thin blood", whatever that meant. For me it's a case of not really being able to regulate my body temperature well. Basically, I work, I'm cold for a longer period than in usual, then suddenly my body becomes very hot and I sweat.
I expect blood has nothing to do with it. I expect it's just a temperature regualtion thing. But one thing, I have the muscle group that it suited to sprinting not long distance (whichever muscle group that is), and I have a feeling that has something to do with it.

Oh well, glad to know I'm not the only one. :) I guess it's just more of an inconvenience than anything else, especially when it's running into my eyes and sunglasses at 30 mph. Thanks for the replies.

Sweating is one of the things I do best. I lost some weight a couple of years ago and having less fat and insulation has helped some (but even then I was not really heavy), but I am still the undisputed champion sweater in any spin class session I have ever been in. I am in very good aerobic condition and have been for years so that is not the problem. My thermoregulation in cold situations is quite good. I like cold weather just fine. I have noticed that a few other cyclists I know tend to do this to a degree also. So it seems to be hardwired. I have never considered having it fixed. Why should I? The solution is just drinking water and water is cheao.

I think its definately linked to how well your body regulates temperature. I've noticed that I am more comfortable in a much wider range of temperatures than most people I know and sweat very little. I also have a moderate case of Reynaud's (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raynaud%27s_disease) which I think has something to do with it. I generally sweat so little (relative to others) that I can't drink much at once or it becomes very uncomfortable, and if I have sport drinks it makes it even worse!

Water is cheap but carrying enough water is a problem. I frequently ride in 90-100+ degree temps and tend to drain my camelback pretty quickly. I've got a 72 oz but will probably pick up a 100 oz soon and carry a couple of water bottles with gatorade.

The biggest problem is thatI cannot keep sweat out of my eyes. I've tried sweatbands, Halo and SweatGUTR. All of them help but none can seem to keep up when the floodgates really open up. If it doesn't get in my eyes it gets all over my glasses and I have to pull over and clean them pretty frequently.

I guess I'll just continue dealing with it.

Check this out: http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com/sym/sweating.htm ...who knew there was so much info about sweating!

Check this out: http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com/sym/sweating.htm

Oh my god! I have malaria! :D

I see a lot of you dont like cotton? Why?

I sweat a lot and I usually wear cotton as that what all of my clothes happen to be made of. I know that it gets soaked and doesnt really evaporate. Is that why its bad?

Are these other materials more comfortable? Make you cool down easier? What makes cotton bad and these good? What material is good?

I see a lot of you dont like cotton? Why?

I sweat a lot and I usually wear cotton as that what all of my clothes happen to be made of. I know that it gets soaked and doesnt really evaporate. Is that why its bad?

Are these other materials more comfortable? Make you cool down easier? What makes cotton bad and these good? What material is good?


Yes, plus it's more prone to stink-causing bacteria. I like my clothes to be light and DRY. No one wants to walk around all day with pit-stains or obvious moisture showing through your shirt, which is what would happen to me in the summer if I wasn't specific about the clothes I wore.

I think its definately linked to how well your body regulates temperature. I've noticed that I am more comfortable in a much wider range of temperatures than most people I know and sweat very little. I also have a moderate case of Reynaud's (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raynaud%27s_disease) which I think has something to do with it. I generally sweat so little (relative to others) that I can't drink much at once or it becomes very uncomfortable, and if I have sport drinks it makes it even worse!

I'm much like you in this respect. Although I think I cool off too well generally. I sweat very little unless it's steaming hot (above about 25°C in the summer) during the ride. I've been on long rides in moderate temperatures and arrive back home with my skin completely dry.

A pleasant consequence of this is that I don't have to wash my cycling clothes that often, and I rarely need to shower after a ride.

I'm much like you in this respect. Although I think I cool off too well generally. I sweat very little unless it's steaming hot (above about 25°C in the summer) during the ride. I've been on long rides in moderate temperatures and arrive back home with my skin completely dry.

A pleasant consequence of this is that I don't have to wash my cycling clothes that often, and I rarely need to shower after a ride.

I forgot to mention that I also run a very low body temp. The last time I got a fever, I under 98.6, measured at the ear, in a hospital. Was wondering if that was the case for you as well.

Well, I rarely have a fever, but when I do, I'm usually suprised that my temp is as low as it is. I feel pretty terrible when I have 100 (rectal). My (not morning) temp has been 97.7-98 the few times I've checked when I wasn't ill.

I think I sweat a lot more than most folks and am wondering if there's anything I can do to slow the flow any?

After a 45 minute high-intensity spin class, I look like I just got out of the pool, soaked from head to toe. I've yet to find a sweatband that can keep up on a 2-3 hour ride;most are completely saturated after an hour or two. Most people in my group stick to the "one bottle an hour" rule but I'm usually drink two+ and still get dehydrated more often than not.

At first I chalked it up to just being out of shape but now that I'm getting reasonably fit, the problem isn't getting any better. I'm 6'3 200 so I could stand to drop a few pounds but wouldn't consider myself fat anymore.

Is there anything I can take/eat/drink to help out?
It's my understanding that sweating is a good thing, and your sweating problem isn't going to get any better. As you get more in shape, your body becomes more efficient at regulating your body temperature, which means that you will sweat earlier and sweat more. It sounds like your sweating more than average, though. Maybe your body temperature is normally higher than average.

I don't think it's normal to do intense cycling and *NOT* sweat a lot. That's why you have to drink so much.

Check this out: http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com/sym/sweating.htm ...who knew there was so much info about sweating!

Surprisingly, this site doesn't list one cause, which is specific to sweating too much - hyperhidrosis (http://www.sweathelp.org/English/). Granted, it isn't terribly related to sweating a lot when working out, but rather sweating in specific areas for no apparent reason (hands, feet, pits most commonly).

Sweaty bastard here as well and I have always been very active, never been over 200 lbs (I am 6ft) and when I got close that was the most out of shape I have ever been. Even then I was lifting and jogging every now and then. Some people just sweat a lot. I've learned to live with it.

I too sweat like a roasting pig when bicycling or running. If I don't wear a headband or a cap/liner it's all in my eyes and ears, dripping on the computer or puddling on gym floor below. I wear gloves so I can grip the bars properly with sweaty hands. But it only happens during exercise, never just during the day or walking or doing minor work (like yard work). It's like there's a magic threshold, above it it's like the faucet got turned on... below, almost nothing.

I do get armpit sweat when I think hard, I'm somewhat embarrassed to admit. :)

I too sweat like crazy, but it's more so when I'm in better shape. Here's why... As you get in better shape the more you will sweat because of the body's efficiency level at keeping itself cool is increasing. Your sweat glands adapt to be more efficient by producing more sweat to cool the body. The more you sweat more than likely the more you're getting in shape.

So...sweat on my fellow sweaters...we do it because we're in shape! Well...theoretically... :)