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Introduction
No doubt, getting physical activity & exercise in hot temperatures can be an enjoyable experience-whether it be indoors or outdoors. Just the same, however, doing so can pose fitness, performance and health setbacks-for the apparently healthy, recreational non-dependent population segment, athlete, and vulnerable populations within a given society.
According to John Hopkins Medicine, “heat-related illness can affect you as heat cramps, heat exhaustion, or heat stroke. Exercise-related heat exhaustion happens when your body can no longer get rid of the extra heat made during exercise, and your body temperature rises more than is healthy. Not drinking enough fluids during exercise can also cause dehydration. Together, these things can make you collapse.” Exercise Related Heat Exhaustion |John Hopkins Medicine| Retrieved March 4, 2023.
Warming Earth
Given the medical reality of experiencing heat exhaustion in hot weather a likely occurrence, this should cause us (as members of the global population) to acknowledge the ever-present danger of a warming earth towards our health; and in our ability to get physical activity (indoors & outdoors); and/or train towards the improvement in our fitness and performance capacities (sport & recreational).
As shared by the United States Environmental Agency, “A warmer climate is expected to increase the risk of illnesses and death from extreme heat and poor air quality. Climate change will likely increase the frequency and strength of extreme events (such as floods, droughts, and storms) that threaten human health and safety.”Climate Impacts on Human Health| Climate Change Impacts| EPA| Retrieved March 4, 2023.
The 2022 FIFA World Cup is prime highlight of the way hot temperatures (or a warming earth) especially in the summer months, made it dangerous towards the health of players, and in extension for the matches (which would include: fans, match officials, security, etc.,), to be played in the dominantly desert (hot & dry) country of Qatar. This consequently forced the tournament to be played in the ‘cooler’ months of the year (November-December). Fortunately, the stadiums in which these matches were played were designed with air conditioning capacity. As revealed by time.com “Thanks to air conditioning, temperatures at World Cup matches are expected to be about 68°F, no matter the conditions outside.” World Cup: Outdoor Air Conditioning’s Environmental…| Retrieved March 4, 2023.
The issue however is that not all nations have the financial resources to implement this level of man-made, hot weather/climate change adaptation. Thus, the potentially dangerous effects of heat exposure to millions of members of the global population living below or just above the poverty line (as an example), is still a serious one. “Some populations are more exposed to, or more physiologically or socio-economically vulnerable to physiological stress, exacerbated illness, and an increased risk of death from exposure to excess heat. These include the elderly, infants and children, pregnant women, outdoor and manual workers, athletes, and the poor.” World Health Organization| Heat & Health| Retrieved March 4, 2023.
With all that’s been highlighted above, it should be a shared acknowledgement and agreement, that a warming earth & hot temperatures present increasingly challenging conditions for all members of a given population to engage in physical activity, fitness, and sport (recreational & professional) safely. On this basis, an elevation in our effort (as members of the global population) is required (for years to come) for us to be able to increase our coping capacity (naturally & man-made). This demands a consistent unified effort, on global-national-industry/sectoral-community-individual scales.
“Your Sustainable Fitness Partner”.
About The Author
Oshane Bryant: BSc Geology, Geography Minor; ACE CPT since 2012; Jamaica Business Development Corporation (JBDC) Accelerator Graduate-2018 cohort; KUKIBO Martial Arts & Self Defense, Senior Instructor; OB Fitness Founder & Managing Director.
The 2022 FIFA World Cup is prime highlight of the way hot temperatures (or a warming earth) especially in the summer months, made it dangerous towards the health of players, and in extension for the matches (which would include: fans, match officials, security, etc.,), to be played in the dominantly desert (hot & dry) country of Qatar. This consequently forced the tournament to be played in the ‘cooler’ months of the year (November-December). Fortunately, the stadiums in which these matches were played were designed with air conditioning capacity. As revealed by time.com “Thanks to air conditioning, temperatures at World Cup matches are expected to be about 68°F, no matter the conditions outside.” World Cup: Outdoor Air Conditioning’s Environmental…| Retrieved March 4, 2023.
Oshane Bryant: BSc Geology, Geography Minor; ACE CPT since 2012; Jamaica Business Development Corporation (JBDC) Accelerator Graduate-2018 cohort; KUKIBO Martial Arts & Self Defense, Senior Instructor; OB Fitness Founder & Managing Director.
