I’m a sweaty bugger, run hot, and drink a lot of water. This causes multiple problems and always has done for any physical activity I do. Any advice to help with this?

Helmet pads get saturated with sweat, which by design (Bell) is drawn to the front pad where it needs squeezing out regularly before it drips down. In the interest of longevity I only wash them properly every couple of rides, but spray them with antibac after every ride. Glasses (anti-fog) end up with sweat drops on them whatever I do, which then smears when I wipe them. They’ll be fogged up anyway within a minute of stopping, but do clear up quick once moving. Jersey gets saturated with sweat, so any stop longer than a few minutes I start getting a chill unless I put another layer on. Gloves are soaked after a ride and always need washing. Knee and elbow pads always damp, same washing routine as helmet pads. Shoes and socks sweaty too. All standard cycling problems I think, but I have all of them at the same time, every time, and worse than anyone I know.

All this sweat needs to come from somewhere, so I also drink quite a bit of water to stay hydrated, especially when climbing in hot/humid conditions. For a full day out I’ll take 3L which is about the practical limit for carrying. I don’t use a bladder system, mainly as I found it difficult to track consumption and too easy to drink out of habit. I do add electrolytes for anything more than a short spin.

I’m not fat or unfit, pushing my limits or getting exhausted, and I think my gear is all well-chosen for breathability and ventilation. It’s all manageable but is a PITA for MTBing and commuting whatever the season, both during and after rides.

I’m half expecting that it’s partly genetics, and the only solution would be to get a lot fitter but avoid making use of that fitness to go faster.

Story of my life mate.
There was a thread on here about Halo sweatband things a while back that might be useful for you. I just deal with it.

I ride in Queensland and apart from on very cool mornings (today was 5 degrees for example), i’m saturated when i commute or hit single tracks. I wring my shirt out at the end of a ride. We all squeeze the sweat out of the head bands.

The best thing i’ve done is ditch the backpack (except for commutes) and dropped the assumption i needed 1 litre of water for every hour on the bike.

The reason being that the backpack makes me hotter by blocking my back. I often notice steam evaporating off me when i stop. Makes no sense to block that with a backpack.

I now carry a 1 litre Sigg bottle on the bike and keep another in the car for when i finish.
The screw top requires that I stop to drink, which means i don’t do it as habitually. Over a year or two i’ve accustomed myself to not drinking quite as much. This winter i’ve often ridden hard 2 hour rides with barely a drink.

I only really use electrolytes if the temperature is 35+

BTW there’s a lot of myths about the amount of water people need:
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/25/upshot/no-you-do-not-have-to-drink-8-glasses-of-water-a-day.html

I’m the same.
Every item of clothing gets washed after every ride.
I rarely go on group rides because all the faff and stopping leads to me getting very cold. I tend to ride with people who like to ride rather than stop and chat.
Hydratio. As above, bin the backpack and you will feel cooler and feel less inclined to drink. I also make sure that I am well hydrated before a ride. I tend to need a wee before I start the ride and another few in the first hour. As above I can manage on maybe 600ml for a few hours and will drink from streams after that, obviously depending on the location
I don’t wear glasses, gave up on them a long time ago and just accept that I will get mud in my eyes occasionally, although a decent mudguard will stop most of the spray and slop hitting your face.

yup, i do the same
i will consume 1.5 litres over a 2 and half hour group ride, ~13 miles, 2500ft
this drops slightly in the winter.
I make sure i buy quality clothing, sweat wicking gear, and wear base layers if necessary, i ride with water bottles on short rides (currently can only carry 900ml) or bladder bum bag evoc thing for the full 1.5 litres.
however, on longer flat rides my water and sweat is much less, can easily do a 10 mile commute to work with no water requirement.
ive got some oakley glasses which have a flip out nose piece, which lifts them away from your face, works pretty well at reducing fog

The Halo headband has been a revolution for me.

I have (over time) conditioned myself to needing less water intake, but I’m still a sweaty sod.

Same for me, although fortunately I’m not very smelly. One reason I don’t like riding into town is that whilst I can take it easy I’m always sweaty and my normal clothes are a mess afterwards. I’ve not found that going packless makes a lot of difference when MTBing though – I’m still sweaty either way.

I have found though that I drink less if I am eating less carbs. Storing carbs in your body needs a lot of water, so if I am dieting and trying to burn fat I drink far less.

I’ve always had occasional irregular heartbeats, and having read that sometimes it’s due to electrolyte imbalance I thought I’d try adding a little bit of electrolyte mix to my drink and recovery on all rides instead of just on hot weather, and it has helped a lot. If I sweat a lot, it stands to reason that I’d need more electrolytes as well as water.

Re clothing, I under-dress so I’ll be wearing summer tops well into autumn and in spring, but then exposed skin gets chilled, particularly on road even though my core temp is fine. So I like using arm warmers or lately I’ve got long-sleeved summer tops which are fashionable for roadies now. Or long sleeved tech Ts for MTB. Works pretty well.

Also, just got a Halo headband and it does work as advertised, even though mine is a little tight.

Positives though – I sweat because I run warm which means I can cope with cold weather easily, and I’m really good at sweating which means I can also cope with very hot weather easily. This is worth a good few places in races on hot days 🙂

Same problem here, seems to have gotten worse into my 30s & 40s. Its really put me off winter riding as every trip out of the door mean my base layer is sopping by the top of the first climb & i spend the rest of the ride uncomfortable.

I just bought the Oakley DRT5 helmet – needed a new lid, but the silicon strip for channeling sweat off the face was the main reason behind choosing the Oakley – not worn it on a ride yet, but dead happy with the fit, and reviews suggest it works well

If you are too hot you are overdressed or your clothing is not well chosen, close fitting Lycra is much more breathable than baggy MTB shorts and tops.

Getting fitter doesn’t make you sweat less, your body adapts by sweating more to remove the excess heat from the increased power output.

Another one here. I tend to buy breathable clothing and helmet, ditch the backpack, add nuun tabs to water bottles for longer rides and above all I don’t bother with waterproof jackets. No matter how breathable they are I am a sweaty, smelly mess half way up the first climb.

If you are too hot you are overdressed or your clothing is not well chosen, close fitting Lycra is much more breathable than baggy MTB shorts and tops.

Hmm in theory, but I sweat ALL the time when riding unless I’m so under-dressed that my skin is uncomfortably cold. And that only works for constant levels of activity – even if I’m perfectly dressed for riding along the flat I’ll sweat loads on hills of course and get cold when going down the other side.

If you are too hot you are overdressed or your clothing is not well chosen, close fitting Lycra is much more breathable than baggy MTB shorts and tops.

nah, it’s just how some people are. I’ve been pouring with sweat and it’s frozen into icicles on my face.

For some of us it’s a reaction to exercise and only loosely related to heat.

halo headband

Down a litre of water before every ride.

wash everything all the time

Sometimes I’m surprised at how little physical activity it takes to make me sweat. Also a few bites from for something with generic-not-particularly-hot red chilli on it.

Tight padded lycra squashing everything together is definitely not the answer!

Sometimes I’m surprised at how little physical activity it takes to make me sweat.

Yes, I sweat doing housework and hoovering two sets of stairs has it dripping off my noise when the house isn’t really that warm in general and I’m quite comfortable when sitting.

I’m also in the incredibly sweaty all the time club. My helmet pads are literally wringing wet every ride, and I have to do a gross ‘lean head forward and squeeze’ thing before any descents to prevent sweat in my eyes.

I had been wondering about a headband so I think I’ll give it a go seeing as its helped others @jimdubleyou

I too get hot when doing the hoovering, difference is I know that I’ll get hotter than I would be sitting at my desk so I take my jumper off beforehand. Same as when I’m out on my bike, riding uphill jersey only, long downhill extra layers go on. There is no clothing system invented that can cope with the difference in your body’s heat output between rest and flat out, like when riding downhill and then uphill.

So You’re saying I shouldn’t ride around in a wooly jumper?

I wish you’d told me thirty years ago. I’m so thick.

I’m the same. Will be looking into one of those headbands.

Skiing is even worse I find. Could be in a long sleeve t-shirt while moving then in buckets as you stop and then immediately freeze.

Any advice to help with this?

As well as fitness; muscle mass, body size, age all have an effect. If you’re a bigger older rugby player shaped dude and you’re doing something like mountain biking, you’ll probs going to push out more sweat.

As always, the fitter you are, the less you’ll sweat compared to someone doing the same exercise who’s less fit, but you really can’t beat biology. We’ve just got the one way of cooling down, and some bodies have to work harder to do that.

nickc

If you’re a bigger older rugby player shaped dude and you’re doing something like mountain biking, you’ll probs going to push out more sweat.

*tick*
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DAMMIT

I’m as sweaty as everyone above. Always have been, even when I was properly fit (top 20 Expert cat national level on a regular basis and 2 stone lighter than now). So i guess its just genetics – raced with a mate who never broke sweat even on the hottest days, lucky bugger.

I can’t even go for a walk at lunchtime without getting back to the office with a soggy shirt. Have to pick colours carefully!

I always start a ride under-dressed (be bold, start cold) but get very damp no matter what the temp. Stopping is a real problem when its chilly as I then get cold very quickly, so always carry a spare top (for the pub) and an old light down jacket in case of emergencies. Its a pain.

Always wear a buff under the helmet to aid evaporation and stop sweat running down. Also keeps bugs off my baldy bonce and avoids tiger stripes on sunny days!

I’d read previously that avoiding certain things like caffeine, alcohol and spicy food as well as keeping hydrated can reduce sweating, but where’s the fun in that?

I saw the Halo thread, and the Sweat Gutr also mentioned. From what I read my head is too big, and I don’t think I have any room for it neither under the helmet or on my forehead between my glasses and helmet. Might be worth a try still.

I do use a hip pack for shorter rides or nothing for even shorter, but I’m not one to head out under-equipped. My back gets about just as sweaty, it chills quicker due to not being covered, and I have less/no options for carrying another layer for stops. Both packs have a vented design back.

With water I drink regularly but no particular schedule or target. I’ve just learnt how much I’ll go through in different durations in different seasons. In summer I make sure to drink in the car on the way to the start location. I’m not keen on taking water from any stream, even with a filter, I looked into it and read some horror stories on here.

I have good mudguards, I won’t go without glasses though as a line of protection, I’d feel unrelaxed without any. And for the insects too. The ones I have are pretty decent with anti-fog when on the move.

My clothing is decent MTB stuff, not heavy or thick. I won’t go lycra. I do start rides with fewer layers in anticipation of warming up.

Getting fitter doesn’t make you sweat less, your body adapts by sweating more to remove the excess heat from the increased power output.

What I suggested was getting fitter but avoid making use of that fitness, would that help?

As always, the fitter you are, the less you’ll sweat compared to someone doing the same exercise who’s less fit, but you really can’t beat biology.

I hope this is correct. Why is that, does a fit person produce less heat for the same power output?

Why is that, does a fit person produce less heat for the same power output?

I doubt they do, maybe a little bit. But it’s complex. There’s probably a difference between riding using fat and riding on stored glycogen but that’s a guess.

However skinny people will probably find it a lot easier to cool down. We’re all sweating all the time, but it evaporates – if you’re skinny enough you don’t need to sweat as much cos your muscles aren’t insulated, and it’s evaporating before it can make your clothes wet.

Why is that, does a fit person produce less heat for the same power output?

they generally use less energy for the same output. Less energy, less heat, lees heat, less need to cool down. Plus as Molly points out fitter people have less natural insulation, so run cooler too.

I’ve been very fit and unfit. Can’t say it made a difference. It’s genetic, I sweat reading about spicy food. 😂

The smaller the body the faster it cools. The relationship between surface area and volume is not linear.

waterproof jackets.

I once wore one for a run because it was below freezing outside. Never again. T-shirt and shorts whatever the weather, because it never takes me more than 5 minutes to start sweating.

So I like using arm warmers or lately I’ve got long-sleeved summer tops which are fashionable for roadies now. Or long sleeved tech Ts for MTB. Works pretty well.

+1 for that. My favourite is a patagonia capilene top which seems the best out of a bunch for wicking away and evaporating off the sweat so it doesn’t become a wet chill factor.

I tend to whip off the helmet on longer climbs to help with heat dissipation and have now ditched a Specialized Prevail helmet which, despite the massive vent holes, just seemed to hold in the heat. Possibly due to deep channels?  i replaced it with a Kask model though slightly regret not trying the Kask Valegro which specifically designed to help the air circulate and gets good reviews for that.

– if you’re skinny enough you don’t need to sweat as much cos your muscles aren’t insulated, and it’s evaporating before it can make your clothes wet.

as above – surface area to body volume makes a huge difference. Personally ( and it must be something metabolic) I am the opposite – I run cold all the time. Normally have at least one more layer on than the folk I am with.

Its not just how well insulted you are and surface area to volume ‘cos I am not very tall and a bit overweight and a pal who is much skinnier than me runs a lot hotter and sweats more at the same speeds. there must be something metabolic as well

Like the rest of you above I’m a sweaty bugger, just walking from the station to work briskley has me needing a change of top when I get there, so have to be careful with what I wear! I even get sweaty thinking (getting stressed) about getting sweaty if I’m going out or going into a meeting.

Commuting by bike means a total change of clothes and some times having to put wet stuff back on later to go home!!

I could honestly ride naked and be a total sweaty mess.

I know I’m over weight at the minute so no doubt that has an impact but even when I’ve been a lot fitter I’m still sweaty. At 5’9″ and 16st I know I need to lose 2 or 3 stone, but I’m not actually very fat……

I’m glad I’m not the only one in the sweaty mess club.

It’s a vicious cycle. More water = more weight = more energy needed to get up the hill = more heat = more sweat.

I’ve just accepted the fact I’m going to be sopping wet most rides.

I must admit overall I’m not bothered by the sweatiness except for two things – sweat on glasses and the commuting thing.

Being able to wear contact lenses is huge for me, because if my shades get really grimed up I can simply remove them. Or what I was doing recently is putting them on my helmet for climbs and back on my face for descents. Not possible for me with prescription specs. But two rides in my Halo headband seems to be helping that significantly.

Do any of you get the sweats after exercise? I commute to work, cool off, have a cool shower, get dressed and sit down at my desk. About 5 minutes later my body thinks I am still cycling and my shirt gets sodden.

Oh yeah, takes me bloody ages to cool down. I stopped showering at work as it somehow seemed to make it worse. I know it sounds grim, but I make sure I shower in the morning before setting off and have a ‘special areas’ wash at work. No body has told me I stink, and people still come to my desk to talk to me so it must be ok!!

I’ve only used the Halo band for running at the moment but it does seem to do what it’s supposed to do.

I also sweat profusely. The Halo band works well as does the Head Sweats bandana but they still come overwhelmed. The main issue is that with contact lenses when the sweat gets in my eyes I can hardly see as well as being painful.
Fortunately I’m not a smelly sweater, I assume reeksy is 😁