sweat - Exercise & Fitness Message Board

agoodguy · 08-11-2003, 01:27 AM

this might sound stupid, but id really want to know. i know sweat cools your body, so if u start wiping off your sweat as u exercise that would make your body heat up right? and cause u to exhaust faster?

Evl316 · 08-11-2003, 12:08 PM

It's the process of sweating that cools down your body, not the presence of sweat on your skin. No, wiping the sweat off your body wouldn't cause you to heat up and exhaust faster.

LauraCB · 08-11-2003, 06:12 PM

Evl316 is correct. The wiping off of sweat won't cause you to heat up and tire out; however, be sure to replentish those fluids and electrolytes. Being dehydrated and lacking those minerals will really exhaust you in a hurry.

CAPiTUH · 08-11-2003, 08:35 PM

i always thought that the presence of sweat on the skin is what cools the body, due to the sweat evaporating.

chemical explaination:
moisture on the skin absorbs heat energy from the body to evaporate and thus cools the body.

i agree it won't make a difference if you wipe it off. your body will keep sweating anyway and it will continue to keep you cool.

poletrain · 08-11-2003, 08:43 PM

I totally agree with CAPiTUH. When a liquid evaporates it absorbs energy from its surroundings, thus making the surroundings cooler.This is called an endothermic process.(highschool chem) However, I doubt seriously that wiping sweat off your body will have any kind of major impact on your workout.

[This message has been edited by poletrain (edited 08-11-2003).]