Running In The Heat Calculator – UPDATED 2021 – A Complete Guide

Running in the heat isn’t always easy, but don’t let this stop you from hitting the pavement over the summer. Instead, consider looking for ways to better prepare yourself before heading out in warmer weather.

A temperature calculator, commonly known as a running in the heat calculator, is a good starting point to judge your pacing correctly when running in warm weather.

In this article, we share how to calculate the correct training pace depending on the temperature. Since most people react to different temperatures, finding out the optimum temperature that’s best for your body can help you in your training and even a race scenario.

Understanding this and educating yourself on how to run in extreme heat is critical to performing at a high level.

Running In The Heat Calculator – A Complete Guide

A running in the heat calculator is a tool that helps runners determine the optimal pace when running in hot conditions based on their fitness. If you intend on running outside when the sun is at its hottest, you must understand how your body responds in a hot environment. That means learning how hard you can push yourself and when you should hold back. It can also help you to pace yourself in a marathon when the conditions get warmer.

Learning how different temperatures affect performance is an important factor for not only racing but training too. That is why using a heat calculator can be beneficial to runners that struggle in the heat. Below are some of the most common running heat calculators available. Just remember to use the results as a simple guideline, as everyone is different and most calculators are based on the average person.

– Runners Connect Temperature Calculator
– Run Smart Heat Calculator
– Run Hive Marathon Heat Calculator

 

Race Equivalency & Conversion Calculator – How It Works?

A Race Equivalency Calculator converts raw finish times from races you have run into virtual performances, if you will, that are comparable to performances from other races and even of other runners. At the most basic level, this tool allows you to determine whether you are getting better or worse over time.

To ensure the race equivalency and conversion calculator provides the most precise calculation you’ve got to make sure environmental factors such as weather, topography, and the overall continuity of both races are on par with each other.

Likewise, if during your last race, your finish time was slower than your previous race’s finish time, this probably means you should spend more time improving your running technique or maybe try a new running and exercise routine. Or, if in a previous race, then you’ll know that you’re trending in the wrong direction.

By looking at your previous times, you can try to figure out whether or not you are going faster or just getting slower. Also, here’s what the race conversion calculator as designed by Pete Riegel looks like.

T2 = T1 x (D2 / D1)1.06
T1 = the time achieved recently on distance D1
T2 = the predicted time for distance D2
D2 = the distance over which T1 time was achieved
D2 = The distance for which T2 time is foreseen.

Essentially, what Riegel’s race equivalency calculator is doing is telling us what to expect in an upcoming race based on how you performed in a prior race.

So, if you’d already clocked a half marathon time of 1hr 50min (110 minutes) but was curious how you might perform in the full marathon, here’s how you’d calculate it.

T2 = 110 x (26.2/13.1)1.06 = 233 min = 3hrs 53min

 

Running In Heat & Humidity Chart

The Running In Heat And Humidity Chart shows us that as humidity increases, your body must work harder to cool itself down. Your lungs have to push out more moisture to make up for what the air is already carrying, and you have to sweat out more salt.

The more humid it is, the more difficult it is to maintain a quick running pace because your body needs more energy than it would if the air had less moisture in it.

Humidity affects how much energy we need to exert to cool off and how fast we run. When the air has more humidity, it’s harder to cool down our bodies because they don’t evaporate moisture as effectively.

Running Temperature Chart

The running temperature chart shows the association between temperature and humidity. When you are working out in hot weather, replenishing fluid loss is paramount for peak performance.

This chart tells you the conditions that will help your body’s muscles function efficiently. Failing to rehydrate can mean feeling sick and sluggish, while severe water loss can endanger your health.

What some runners have begun doing is incorporating both the temperature and dew point, which simply tells us how much water is in the air, into pace adjustment calculations. You’d of course need a weather app that factors in dew point to do so.

However, how it works is you add the temperature and dew point together to determine how much to adjust your pace.

So, let’s say the temperature was 84 degrees and the dew point was 60, that would make the adjusted calculation 144, which according to the calculation below would tell you to adjust your pace by 3%-4.5%.

100 or less: no pace adjustment necessary
101 to 110: 0.0% to 0.5% pace adjustment
111 to 120: 0.5% to 1.0% pace adjustment
121 to 130: 1.0% to 2.0% pace adjustment
131 to 140: 2.0% to 3.0% pace adjustment
141 to 150: 3.0% to 4.5% pace adjustment
151 to 160: 4.5% to 6.0% pace adjustment
161 to 170: 6.0% to 8.0% pace adjustment
171 to 180: 8.0% to 10.0% pace adjustment
Above 180: hard running not recommended

Another point this running temperature chart underscores is why it’s crucial to drink enough fluid when running in the heat. Therefore, make it a habit to carry plenty of water when exercising in the heat. In fact, you should be drinking at least one quart of fluid per hour.

So just to recap, in this article you learned how the running calculator can help determine the best training pace for running in the heat. Likewise, we covered how to use a Temperature and Humidity Chart to determine the outdoor temperatures that your body can handle.

Armed with this information, staying fit and healthy this summer should be a breeze – no pun intended. But just remember to stay well-hydrated and contact your physician before making a final decision as to whether your level of fitness would allow you to run outside during the hottest time of the year.