1. Run early morning or evening when it’s cooler. If you have to run at midday then choose routes with shade, and try and avoid concrete or asphalt surfaces which will reflect the heat.

2. Wear appropriate clothing– shorts and tank tops, in sweat wicking material and loose fitting to allow cooling evaporation. Try and avoid dark colours which will absorb the heat.

3. Wear a hat or sunglasses– squinting into the sun can give you a headache which really puts a damper on your run. And if you wear a visor then it still allows the heat to escape through your head, but keeps the sweat out your eyes!

4. Slow down! Give yourself a break. Running in the heat can feel so much harder so give your body a chance to adapt. Run by effort rather than pace for your first few runs.

5. Hydrate! Before, during and after. If you’re running a long run, plan stops where you can refill your water bottle or buy a drink. And don’t wait until you feel thirsty to hydrate, start drinking little and often along the way.

Some of my favourite options for hydrating:

Before a run (especially in the morning when I wake up dehydrated) or post-run– Vita Coco.
Coconut water is particularly good for hydrating – it contains easily digested carbohydrates in the form of electrolytes and natural sugar, and more potassium than 4 bananas! Vita Coco use 100% coconut water, and you can also get it mixed with other fruit flavours (if you’re not such a fan of coconut)- pineapple and peach & mango are my favourite!

During a run– High 5 Zero.
These sport drinks tabs are perfect for adding to your bottle of water on a run. They contain Vit. C and electrolytes, including sodium, magnesium and potassium. They come in various different natural flavours (Citrus is my favourite!), and are made with no artificial flavours or preservatives. The handy tube the tabs come in is also really convenient for popping in your bag if you’re travelling- whether to a race, festival or weekend away!

Post-run – Okobay ices
These are my new favourite way to cool down after a run! A frozen treat made from coconut water, they both hydrate and cool you down which has been great after some seriously hot and sticky runs in the last few weeks. They have all the aforementioned awesome properties of coconut water, and come in 2 different flavours. I’ve only tried the Original at the moment, but am keen to give the Pineapple a taste!

The only negatives I would say with these ices is that they are made with only 50% coconut water from concentrate (although the other ingredients are natural), and are pretty hard to get hold of! Currently only large Tesco stores, and specialist shops such as Whole Foods and Planet Organic stock them, so hopefully they will branch out a bit.

Okobay also apparently have a Coconut Milk Ice Cream in the pipeline too which I might have to check out… 🙂

How do you keep cool when you exercise? Are you a fan of coconut water? I do admit, it’s an acquired taste!

Beki x

PS. Don’t forget to enter my giveaway to win a Tefal Juicer! I was sent the Okobay Ices to review but all other products and opinions are my own.