You’re hot and sweaty and ready to throw in the towel. Can grabbing an ice pack and holding it in your hands or dunking your hands in cold water give you the motivation you need to eke out an extra set or two or run an extra mile on the treadmill? That’s what a new study presented at the American Heart Association 2012 Scientific Sessions suggests.
Cool Hands and Exercise Performance
The research involved 24 middle-aged, obese women. The women ran on a treadmill and did bodyweight exercises including lunges and push-ups three times a week over the course of the 12-week study. While exercising, each group held a device that circulated water to their hands. For one group of women, the circulated water was at room temperature, while the other group’s hands were exposed to water chilled to 61 degrees Fahrenheit to keep their hands cool during exercise.
The results? The women whose hands chilled were more likely to stick to their workout, and they got better results. The “cool-handed” women lost almost 3 inches from their waistline, lowered their blood pressure and improved their walking times. The control group didn’t experience any changes in their walking speeds, waist measurements or blood pressure. Plus, they were less likely to stick with their exercise routine.
Stay Cool, Exercise Longer?
Why did women with cool hands experience better exercise results? Researchers believe the cool water helped to lower their core body temperature. The lower temperature made their workout feel more comfortable, and they were able to work a little harder because they didn’t overheat as quickly.
This isn’t the first study showing that staying cool improves exercise performance. Another study published in the Journal of Athletic Training showed that participants who wore a cooling collar when working out were able to exercise longer before exhaustion set in. Wearing a cooling collar helps to lower core body temperature and brain temperature. Brain temperature appears to be one determinant of how long a person exercises in a warm environment before having to stop from thermal exhaustion.
When you work out, especially in a warm environment, your core body temperature rises, and your brain sends the signal to slow down. When your temperature reaches a certain critical level, the message gets stronger, and your brain tells you to stop. Keeping your core body and brain temperature lower during a workout can help you exercise longer because it feels more comfortable. As the authors of this study suggest, holding a cold water bottle while you’re working out may have similar benefits to using a hand-cooling device.
Another option for keeping your core body temperature down during a workout is to wear a thermal neck wrap. You can find these handy wraps online. Simply soak them in cold water and wrap them around your neck before a workout.
The Bottom Line?
Don’t forget the fundamentals. Hydrate well before and after a workout, and drink cold water every fifteen minutes during exercise. Don’t depend on thirst to tell you when to drink. Wear light, cotton clothing rather than synthetics. These will all keep your core body temperature down when you work out and make your workout feel a little easier.
References:
American Heart Association (2012, March 13). Cool hands may be the key to increase exercise capacity. Science Daily.
J Athl Train. 2011 Jan-Feb; 46(1): 61-68.
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