How to prepare for running in hot weather

As the warmer weather starts to approach, your running schedule needn’t taper off. With raising temperatures into the summer months, its crucial that you plan ahead for any runs so you can stay as safe and hydrated as possible as it starts to get really hot.

Avoiding direct sunlight where you can

It sounds obvious, but it is usually cooler early morning or later at night (or even post cool-change for our Melbourne readers), take advantage of the slightly lower temperatures. Take advantage of the extra daylight in the warmer months with taking your runs post sundown and pre-sunrise.

Try planning your run in more shaded areas like wooded parks, rather than say, an exposed river route will help keep you protected from direct UV exposure.

Apply sunscreen

So important! Ensure to apply a good quality sunscreen in all areas of exposed skin prior to your run, even if your run is 100% in the shade, it’s critical to stay sunsafe, so please ‘slip, slap, slop’

Keep Hydrated

Running in hotter weather means you’ll be likely sweating more, so make sure that you stay hydrated before, during and after running.  If you can run with a water bottle, do so – if you can’t try and find routes that have water fountains stationed throughout so you can continue to drink water at staggered intervals as you run!

Wear the right footwear

You could have the perfect outfit, water and sunscreen sorted – but what you wear on your feet is just as critical in Summer. Whether you’re planning to hit the trails or sticking to road running – our range of Womens Running Shoes and men’s Running Shoes has something for every activity at The Athlete’s Foot.

Those road runners among you will be looking for something that can offer ultimate support for high impact running. If you’re running in summer, opting for sneakers with breathable mesh uppers will help with breathability. We are big fans of our range from New Balance and Asics which will offer all weather footwear.

New Balance Fresh Foam X 1080 V12

Asics GT-2000 10

For those of you who skew more towards trail running, we’d still highly recommend a flexible mesh upper to help air flow, but also consider sneakers in a darker silhouette which will be easier to clean on dryer dusty trails on hot days. In particular we love the trail running sneakers for men and women from Hoka and On Running.

Hoka Speedgoat 5

Hoka Challenger Atr 7 Gore-Tex

Come rain or shine, road or trails, we know you have a love of running. Make sure you’re prepped for the sun at The Athlete’s Foot.