Minimizing Sweating...

[Nooch]

Is there anything? Hydrating more?

I sweat a fair amount.. doesn't matter if it's 20 degrees (like today) or 80 degrees, I sweat.. With winter right around the corner (or here already), everyone always recomends dressing warm, but just cool enough that you don't sweat under heavy efforts, because the sweat is what's going to get you cold.

I rode to work today wearing a craft long sleeve baselayer and a mavic inferno jacket, knickers, and a wool cannondale winter cycling cap (the type with the fold down ear band). By the time I got to work the hat was pretty wet.

I suppose I have a tendancy to wearing the hats, though, but perhaps I should stop and just an ear band so the sweat can evaporate off my head?

eh, who knows.. what do you guys do to mitigate the problem?

[thegunner]

your head does leech most of your bodily heat, and wool does a good job of holding it in -- is it possible your head was TOO warm?

[Nooch]

your head does leech most of your bodily heat, and wool does a good job of holding it in -- is it possible your head was TOO warm?

i suppose it's a possibility.. it certainly didn't feel *too* warm...

[thegunner]

i suppose it's a possibility.. it certainly didn't feel *too* warm...

you could try a cap and see if simply blocking the wind does enough -- i feel pretty okay down to 20~ with just a cycling cap and some sort of ear muff/band thing.

i, too, am cursed with this gift of sweating profusely.

[echelon_john]

i sweat a lot as well, and find that covering/uncovering my head isn't a practical way to regulate heat when riding in the winter. it's easy (for me) to be working hard enough when it's, say, 40 degrees, that i'm sweating, but my ears/head still get cold.

pit zips/back vent/front zips work better for me to regulate, but i still sometimes bring a fresh (dry) base layer to change into mid-ride if i'm going to be out more than 2 hours and it's cold out. kind of dorky, but it feels pretty good to get dry mid-ride, especially if the temperature is dropping.

[bicycletricycle]

ride slower?

[Nooch]

ride slower?

inevitably the few short but steep pitches I have to climb to and fro will get my heart rate up and hot... the backpack doesn't help matters..

[Hartlin]

I've always sweated a lot. In the summer I can usually deal with it, however the winter is always tough for me.

I've gotten a lot better over the years, mainly being able to endure frigid temps for the first 20 minutes of a ride, and experimenting with different layer combinations.

A big "breakthrough" I made was overdressing my hands and feet, while wearing just thermal base layers, jerseys and a vest, rather then jackets. Having the wind make it through my arm layers helped a lot with keeping my core temp regulated.

[EDS]

Is there anything? Hydrating more?

I sweat a fair amount.. doesn't matter if it's 20 degrees (like today) or 80 degrees, I sweat.. With winter right around the corner (or here already), everyone always recomends dressing warm, but just cool enough that you don't sweat under heavy efforts, because the sweat is what's going to get you cold.

I rode to work today wearing a craft long sleeve baselayer and a mavic inferno jacket, knickers, and a wool cannondale winter cycling cap (the type with the fold down ear band). By the time I got to work the hat was pretty wet.

I suppose I have a tendancy to wearing the hats, though, but perhaps I should stop and just an ear band so the sweat can evaporate off my head?

eh, who knows.. what do you guys do to mitigate the problem?

You are exercising, you are supposed to sweat. Just wear clothes that will pull the moisture off the skin and breath a little, open a zipper during an interval, etc.

[fiamme red]

I don't like jackets, unless it's extremely cold. Multiple removable layers allow me to be much more comfortable when I start to sweat.

[Nooch]

You are exercising, you are supposed to sweat. Just wear clothes that will pull the moisture off the skin and breath a little, open a zipper during an interval, etc.

Oh, I know this. but when a hat gets so wet that it takes 8 hours to dry, on a 10 mile commute when it's 30 degrees, moving at an average clip of 16mph, I'd say I sweat a fair deal more than I need to! :)

As it was, went with the jacket and just a baselayer, had all the vents open and the zipper 1/4 way down, and this was still the result.

[Hartlin]

I can only wear those heavy hats in really cold weather.

90% of the time I'm wearing my Rapha merino beanie.

[charliedid]

ride slower?

+1 It's winter....reduce the intensity and wear less clothing if you need to. I suspect you are going indoors right after riding, not setting up camping and working outside?! :p

Everything slows down in the winter, we should too.

That said, what exactly are you wearing when it's cold out?

[Gummee]

I'm gonna say 'you need to wear more wool.' 'Cause wool insulates when its wet. AMHIK

I'll also say 'more thin layers is better than fewer thick ones.' Again AMHIK

HTH

M

[christian]

your head does leech most of your bodily heat, This meme comes from a study that the British Navy conducted on service members during World War Two. The study was intended to test the effectiveness of Ventile cotton dry suits against hypothermia for service members whose airplanes crashed at sea.

The test measured heat loss from different parts of the body, with an insulating layer, a saturated Ventile dry suit (effectively a hard shell), and a bare head. That's where the 80% figure comes from.

Your head does not lose any more body heat than any other part of your body. Less, likely, given that some of us have hair.

If you cycle bareheaded in a drysuit, disregard the above.

[jh_on_the_cape]

put antipersperant all over your body?

just sweat!

[christian]

Buy an Assos Fuguhelm and cycle naked?

[slidey]

Stay home :p

what do you guys do to mitigate the problem?

[dekindy]

Experience and technical clothing.

When you get enough experience the only time you will be too cold or hot is if you ride in a group that rides a different speed than you anticipated. The way to get experience is to review the weather, especially the wind chill, and note how you dressed and the results.

Technical clothing with an emphasis on the head, hands, and feet as the trouble spots is the other half of the equation. Technical clothing sheds moisture so you can wear it in a broad range of temperatures. I purchased some Pearl Izumi lightweight and midweight jerseys and Duofold and DeFeet undergarments that made all the difference.

The first Winter that I rode outdoors I was overdressed and did not have the correct clothing. As a result my clothes would get wet and make me cold. Now I am seldom dressed improperly and experience and a large selection of technical clothing that will cover a broad range of temperatures.

[Clydesdale]

I find it helps if I dress so that I am cold in the beginning, just right in the middle, and cold again toward the end. That obviously has to be adjusted by how long you are staying out there, but if I am comfortable to start with I sweat like crazy once I warm up. YMMV

PS - when that second "cold" starts, it's time to be done soon.

[Nooch]

Eh, it's a continual learning experience.. It just struck me yesterday when I rode in that my hat was still a little damp when I went to go home, and had gotten to thinking about it, is all.

As it is, my core was fine, the base layer moving whatever out to the jacket, only to get trapped under my backpack..

This deep cold snap came on quick, so I'm just reacquaiting myself with all my winter gear at their limits!

[svelocity]

inevitably the few short but steep pitches I have to climb to and fro will get my heart rate up and hot... the backpack doesn't help matters..

Ah the backpack IMO is the real culprit for sweat. I commute daily and although my ride is only around 12 miles round trip I have a 1 mile hill climb just before my office that gets me all heated up. I sweat a lot too and the only way I've found to best regulate my temperature is to not wear any bag (messenger or backpack). Head, underarms, and my back need to be able to let the heat out. If my back is covered with a bag I inevitably get drenched in sweat.

All my commuter rigs have racks but I understand that's not for everyone. Arkel (http://www.arkel-od.com/us/all-categories/bicycle-bike-pannier-rack/arkel-randonneur-rack.html) has an interesting rack system for road bikes.

Cheers!

[Ken Robb]

Lighter weight wool shirts work well for me. Some synthetics were good for one ride but HAD to be washed immediately every time because they got smelly. Wool worked well keeping me warm even when wet and requiring washing only after several rides. A lightweight jacket(or vest w/without arm warmers) over a wool jersey gives me a wide range of adjustment. I start out all zipped up and open zippers (shed arm warmers) as I warm up. When faced with a long hard climb (they are all hard for me) I take off the jacket or vest. Depending on the ensuing descent I may bomb down the whole way and let the wind dry my shirt or if I get too cold part way down I'll get back into the jacket/vest to prevent hypothermia.

I usually ride alone so I don't have to compromise the timing of these changes/stops due to group dynamics.

Riv usually sells some nice light wool beanies.