I’ve mentioned in previous posts that I try to acclimate to the climate. It is summer here, and if I want to be outside bicycling, walking, or motorcycling, then I am going to be hot. I do what I can to acclimate so the afternoon heat is not as overwhelming. I keep my thermostat set higher. I open the windows for ventilation whenever the outside temperature is not too much hotter than where I would otherwise set my thermostat. I bicycle, or walk, or motorcycle even in the hottest part of the day. I would add running to that list, but I have just not been in the mood for running lately.

To help with the heat, I drink lots of fluids. In the summer here I typically average 2 ounces of fluids per mile - which is about 36 ml per km. When I lived in Arizona, I sometimes consumed 3 oz/mi - 55ml/km. I plan accordingly. But my plans do not always work like I expect. Yesterday, for example, I stopped to help a bicycle with a flat tire, stopped to help someone figure out what was wrong with his new bicycle, and stopped to chat with a police officer searching the trail for a suspect. Somehow I came up short on my fluids, so I stopped to buy some more.

I find it interesting watching people pull up to a store, step out of their air conditioned car, and stumble to get into the store. It is the heat. They do their best to avoid ever encountering the real temperature. My ex-wife did the same. Summer or winter, her ideal temperature was about 75F / 24C. When we lived where it snowed, she spent as little time as possible outside. When we lived in Arizona, she spent as little time as possible outside. The end result was that she never acclimated.

I cannot say with certainty that the people I see around here acting like zombies in the afternoon are maladapted to the heat. Perhaps they are zombies all day and all night. However, I truly recommend adapting the outside world. It is a wonderful place.