How To Race Your Best in Hot and Humid Weather Conditions With Stryd
Runners are well aware that heat and high humidity often lead to slower race times. However, tackling the heat is more than just a test of endurance; it's a strategic conundrum that leaves many athletes pondering - how does one adapt their race plan to difficult weather conditions?
With Stryd, you can easily modify your pacing plans in hot, humid, or high elevation conditions to ensure optimal performance and race your best.
Let’s take a look at:
- how heat and humidity impact your race results
- how Stryd can give you a competitive advantage in hot and humid conditions
- how to use Stryd power data to adapt your running intensity in real time to the environmental conditions
How big of a difference do heat and humidity make?
A 2022 study in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise concluded that “one-quarter of endurance running events were held in moderate, high, or extreme heat” and that “every degree…outside these optimum conditions, performance declined by 0.3%–0.4%.” (MANTZIOS, 2022)
These stats show that heat and humidity play a frequent role on race day and that even small increases in temperature can lead to significant and predictable changes in performance.
This is great news for runners who are looking to perform their best. The predictable impact of heat and humidity on running performance means there are straightforward ways to adjust your race plan accordingly.
Can you gain a competitive advantage in hot and humid conditions with smart pacing?
Difficult race day conditions give you the opportunity for an advantage over less-prepared competitors.
Overexertion early in the race can lead to premature fatigue and overheating. If you run at the optimal pace, and slower than you might in cooler conditions, you will be able to manage your intensity throughout the race and surge by competitors who may have prematurely fatigued earlier in the race.
Preparation can be especially important for longer races that may start at cooler temperatures in the morning. You may be able to start out at a higher intensity when the conditions are cooler and then have the opportunity to back off to a more optimal intensity as temperatures rise.
With the help of Stryd, it's not just possible, but also easy to create your game plan to race best in any environmental condition.
How do I adjust my Stryd power target in hot and humid conditions?
Stryd’s ecosystem enables a number of convenient and accurate methods to adjust your race plan or daily training for hot and humid conditions. Let’s take a look at some of the top options.
How to make a one-off adjustment for a run or race using Super Power Calculator
Making a one-off adjustment to your run or race target is easy with the Super Power Calculator. All you need to do is input your normal power target and the temperature, humidity and altitude conditions you typically train in and the weather conditions you will be training or racing in.
Super Power Calculator will give you an adjusted power target for the new conditions.
This method is flexible and available for anyone. Learn more by tapping the link below.
How to make a one-off adjustment for a race using using Race Power Calculator
Are you preparing for a hot or humid race? Use the Race Power Calculator in the Stryd mobile app or PowerCenter to make an adjustment to your power target.
Stryd quantifies your training conditions, such as heat and humidity, over the last 90 days to establish a baseline. All you need to do is input the expected conditions on race day for an adjusted power target.
This method is convenient and available for Stryd Membership users.
How to make automatic environmental adjustments for every run on Apple Watch
If you are running with the Stryd Apple Watch app, heat and humidity adjustment to your power target can be made automatically and in real time for every run.
Stryd’s Apple Watch app features an Environmental Adjusted Power value that gives you a single, real time value to gauge your effort. You can place the Environmental Power in your data screens to view the data with convenience.
This method is available for Stryd Membership users with a compatible Stryd pod and Apple Watch.
Join the live stream for a demo of how to adjust your power target for heat & humidity
The Stryd team is going live next week on Tuesday, June 27th at 12pm MST to take a deep dive into the top ways that you can adjust your power target in hot and humid conditions to race at your best!
We will explore in detail how to make a one-off adjustment for a run using:
- The Super Power Calculator
- Stryd's Race Power Calculator
- The new environmental adjustment feature on the Apple Watch
Be sure to join us live to ask questions so that you can ace your next race with Stryd.
Tap the video above to see the time and date of the stream in your area.
Conclusion
For runners who have weathered the challenges of racing in heat and humidity, it's clear that these conditions can have a major impact on your finishing time. Navigating these challenges often prompts a question: how can I devise a race strategy to perform my best?
Stryd makes your race planning a breeze. Each race, irrespective of its weather challenges, becomes an opportunity to defy your expectations and race to your capabilities.
Sources:
MANTZIOS, KONSTANTINOS1; IOANNOU, LEONIDAS G.1; PANAGIOTAKI, ZOE1; ZIAKA, STYLIANI1; PÉRIARD, JULIEN D.2; RACINAIS, SÉBASTIEN3; NYBO, LARS4; FLOURIS, ANDREAS D.1. Effects of Weather Parameters on Endurance Running Performance: Discipline-specific Analysis of 1258 Races. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise 54(1):p 153-161, January 2022. | DOI: 10.1249/MSS.0000000000002769