Andreas Behm is no stranger to heat. He tells his athletes there are some things they have no control over and especially when it comes to weather.
With temperatures generally in the 90s and climbing to as high as 110 degrees, training through the hot and humid weather in the state of Texas is part of the deal to Behm.
But athletes in Texas aren’t the only ones facing the heat. With track and field competitions extending through the months of August and summer training for the upcoming cross-country season, athletes all over the country are forced to face the troubles of training in difficult summer temperatures.
Behm is in his sixth year as volunteer assistant coach at track and field powerhouse Texas A&M, along with the responsibility of overseeing the training of a post graduate group of athletes.
Prior to his work with Texas A&M, Behm was an assistant coach at Athletes’ Performance, a training facility for NFL, MLB, and NBA players in Tempe, Ariz. With a summer season running from early March to late September, learning how to cope and adapt to the weather is important in successful training.
“One has to be able to train and execute under any conditions, even when it is
hot outside,” Behm said. “We generally try not to adjust training based on weather conditions.”
Luckily for Behm, most of his athletes are from Texas and have been training in hot temperatures their entire careers.
For those athletes that aren’t accustom to training in the heat, there are training factors that can help on those hot summer days. USA Track & Field Associate Director of Sports Medicine
and Science Dr. Robert Chapman attains a Ph.D. in Human Performance/Exercise Physiology and has been involved in the sport most of his life. He says simple hydration and choosing the coolest part of the day for higher intensity training are two of the biggest factors runners should pay attention to while training.
“More blood flow can go to the muscles to fuel the workout than the skin to help cool you,” he said. “You will run faster and get a better training effect than running in the hotter parts of the day.
You may think it is making you tougher, but from a training adaptation standpoint, it is just slowing you down.”