Skip to content

Top Navigation

Shape Shape
  • Fitness
  • Healthy Eating
  • Beauty
  • Sex and Love
  • Celebrities
  • Mind & Body
  • Lifestyle
  • Video
  • Shop
  • Sweeps

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Your Profile
  • Newsletters
  • Email Preferences
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Log Out
Login
Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Shape

Shape Shape
  • Explore

    Explore

    • The Keto Meal Plan for Beginners

      Everything you need to know to get started with this high-fat, low-carb diet. Read More Next
    • 10 Things I Learned During My Body Transformation

      Twenty months and 17 pounds later, I came away with 10 big lessons. Read More Next
    • The 30-Day Squat Challenge

      The ultimate 30-day squat challenge, featuring 12 squats that tighten and tone. Read More Next
  • Fitness

    Fitness

    See All Fitness
    • Workouts
    • Cardio
    • Strength Training
    • Bodyweight Training
    • Yoga
    • Exercise Recovery
    • Exercise Tips
    • Race Training
    • Workout Trends
    • Playlists
    • Workout Clothes
    • Workout Gear
  • Healthy Eating

    Healthy Eating

    See All Healthy Eating
    • Healthy Recipes
    • Diets
    • Food & Nutrition
    • Healthy Cooking
    • Healthy Drinks
    • Weight Loss
  • Beauty
  • Sex and Love
  • Celebrities

    Celebrities

    See All Celebrities
    • Interviews
    • Celebrity News
    • Celebrity Workouts
  • Mind & Body

    Mind & Body

    See All Mind & Body
    • Coronavirus
    • Transformations
  • Lifestyle

    Lifestyle

    See All Lifestyle
    • Travel
    • Fashion
    • Healthy IRL
  • Video

    Video

    See All Video
    • Workout Videos
    • Cooking Videos
    • Weight Loss Videos
    • Celebrity Videos
  • Shop
  • Sweeps

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Your Profile
  • Newsletters
  • Email Preferences
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Log Out
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

  1. Shape.com Chevron Right
  2. Fitness Chevron Right
  3. Exercise Tips Chevron Right
  4. 6 Weird Things You Didn't Know About Sweating

6 Weird Things You Didn't Know About Sweating

By Hallie Levine
August 09, 2016
Skip gallery slides
Save FB Tweet
Straight from science (and your sweat glands)
Start Slideshow

1 of 6

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

The Fitter I Get, the More I Sweat. Why?

Credit: Getty Images

"There are two main reasons. One is that as you improve your fitness, you tend to exercise more intensely, which can make you sweat more," explains Mary Beth Brown, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the Department of Physical Therapy at Indiana University. "The other is that you get better at sweating the more you do it." You'll start perspiring earlier in your work­ out, and more of your sweat glands will be activated to help rid your body of excess heat.

But keep in mind sweat isn't the only measure of how hard you're working—some work­ outs leave you less drenched simply because of the nature of the moves. "How much you sweat is tied to many factors, including what type of activity you're doing, your age, and your genetics," says Kory Gill, M.D., a sports medicine specialist at the Texas A&M Health Science Center. A better indicator of your performance is how difficult it is to talk midway through an activity. During a moderate­ intensity workout, you should be able to speak in broken sen­tences; during vigorous exercise, you should be able to manage only a few words at a time. (BTW there is such a thing as excessive sweating. Here's what you need to know.)

1 of 6

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 6

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Why Does Sweat Burn My Eyes?

Credit: Zeljko Dangubic / Westend61 / Offset.com

"Sweat contains salt, which can irritate the eyes. Plus, it's slightly acidic compared with the eye's fluid," Brown explains.

Fortunately, there's no evidence that salt from sweat can harm your eyes, says Stephanie Marioneaux, M.D., a spokeswoman for the American Academy of Ophthalmology. If perspiration is interfering with your workout, wear a sweat­ band or a moisture­-wicking hat or visor to trap forehead mois­ture before it has a chance to creep down into your eyes. Keep artificial tears on hand to use if you do get an errant drop. (Some good news: sweat spreads happiness! No, really.)

2 of 6

3 of 6

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Is Hot, Sweaty Yoga Really Any Healthier Than Regular Yoga?

Credit: Getty Images

Cranking up the thermostat in the studio has only modest perks. "Some people find that the heat improves their flexibility and range of motion, making it easier to get into poses," says Cedric X. Bryant, Ph.D., the chief science officer for the American Council on Exercise, who has studied hot yoga. If you're hop­ing to sweat off a few pounds, though, forget it. Bryant says that the difference in calorie burn between the two types of yoga is almost negligible.

While most healthy people should be able to make it just fine through a 90 minute hot­ yoga class, the room's humid­ity poses some risk. "When humidity is high, sweat stays on the skin and doesn't evaporate. That reduces your body's ability to cool itself," Bryant says. "To stay safe, drink cold water every 15 min­utes or so to help keep your core temperature out of the danger zone." If you're doing hot yoga for more than an hour straight, swap water for an electrolyte­-spiked sports drink to make up for the sodium and potassium you're sweat­ing out. And if you start feeling dizzy or nauseated or develop a headache, leave the room immediately to get some cool air.

Be especially careful during Bikram yoga, which is more extreme than regular hot classes: Rooms are kept at 105 degrees with 40 percent humidity. (Hot­ yoga classes are typically 90 to 95 degrees with no set humid­ity.) Bryant advises starting with shorter, cooler classes and work ing your way up to a full-­length Bikram session. (Here's more on the heated vs. cool fitness class debate.)

3 of 6

Advertisement

4 of 6

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Why Do I Sweat for So Long After My Workout?

Credit: Shutterstock

"When you stop exercising, your body continues to generate heat to fuel functions like restocking your energy stores and redistributing your blood flow," Brown explains. As a result, your core temperature can stay elevated, triggering perspiration even postshower.

To cool down and dry off quicker, you should actually refrain from taking a super cold shower or splashing icy water on your face. "The chilly temp constricts your blood vessels, causing hot blood from your skin to rush to your core, raising your body temperature," says hydration expert Stacy Sims, Ph.D., an exercise physiologist in San Francisco. Instead, when you're done exercising, take a coolish (not freezing) shower, then stand in front of a fan to evaporate any lingering sweat before it beads up.

In addition, sip ice-cold water before and during your workout, Sims suggests. Her research found that this minimizes the rise in your core temperature, so you'll stop sweating sooner.

4 of 6

5 of 6

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Can You Really Sweat Out Toxins?

Credit: Shutterstock

"Yes and no," says Juan Del Coso, Ph.D., a professor of human physiology and exercise at Universidad Camila José Cela in Spain, who has studied the issue. "When you sweat more, you do lose some toxins, but not enough to have a measurable health benefit." If your body needs to get rid of something noxious, your kidneys flush it into your urine, not your sweat.

In fact, hitting the sauna after a hangover can backfire. "When you force your body to perspire, your kidneys respond by trying to conserve water, so you urinate less, which can make you hang on to toxins," Bryant explains. You're better off drinking plenty of water and eating veggies with a high H20 content to recover after a rough night.

5 of 6

6 of 6

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Why Do I Sweat When I'm Nervous?

Credit: Shutterstock

Blame your prehistoric ancestors. Unlike the sweat you produce at the gym, which is mostly water, the type you pump out during anxiety- provoking situations is laced with pheromones that stimulate your amygdala, the area of the brain that controls your fight-or-flight response, according to research from Stony Brook University. This probably evolved to help protect us from danger: If a fellow cavewoman saw a tiger or other predator and couldn't call out to warn you, a whiff of her nervous sweat would give you a heads- up that something was wrong, says Lilianne R. Mujica-Parodi, Ph.D., the author of the study.

The last thing you want is for your pheromone- packed sweat to broad- cast "She's freaking out!" when you're trying to play it cool during a job inter- view or a blind date. So don't stop at your under- arms when it comes to applying antiperspirant— also hit around your groin, where apocrine glands produce nervous sweat, Mujica-Parodi says.

Also try working up a sweat at the gym before the stressful event, Mujica-Parodi suggests. When you're anxious, your levels of the stress hormone cortisol rise in order to give you energy to fight or run away. "But today most stressors don't involve fighting or fleeing, and the extra cortisol only makes you more nervous and reduces your ability to think analytically," she says. Exercising gets rid of the excess so you can stay focused—and dry— when it counts.

6 of 6

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook
Trending Videos
Advertisement
Skip slide summaries

Everything in This Slideshow

Advertisement

View All

1 of 6 The Fitter I Get, the More I Sweat. Why?
2 of 6 Why Does Sweat Burn My Eyes?
3 of 6 Is Hot, Sweaty Yoga Really Any Healthier Than Regular Yoga?
4 of 6 Why Do I Sweat for So Long After My Workout?
5 of 6 Can You Really Sweat Out Toxins?
6 of 6 Why Do I Sweat When I'm Nervous?

Share options

Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Login

Shop | Shape

  • Gym Bags
  • Juicers
  • Exercise Mats
  • Foam Rollers
  • Shaker Bottles
  • Workout Videos
  • Activewear
  • Workout Tops
  • Training Shoes
  • Exercise Bikes
  • Shop More Next

Shape may receive compensation when you click through and purchase from links contained on this website.

Shape

Magazines & More

Learn More

  • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
  • Customer Service this link opens in a new tab
  • Advertise this link opens in a new tab
  • Content Licensing this link opens in a new tab
  • Affiliate Program this link opens in a new tab

Connect

Follow Us
Subscribe to Our Newsletter
Other Meredith Sites

Other Meredith Sites

  • 4 Your Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Allrecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • All People Quilt this link opens in a new tab
  • Better Homes & Gardens this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Insights this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Surveys this link opens in a new tab
  • Cooking Light this link opens in a new tab
  • Daily Paws this link opens in a new tab
  • EatingWell this link opens in a new tab
  • Eat This, Not That this link opens in a new tab
  • Entertainment Weekly this link opens in a new tab
  • Food & Wine this link opens in a new tab
  • Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Hello Giggles this link opens in a new tab
  • Instyle this link opens in a new tab
  • Martha Stewart this link opens in a new tab
  • Midwest Living this link opens in a new tab
  • More this link opens in a new tab
  • MyRecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • MyWedding this link opens in a new tab
  • My Food and Family this link opens in a new tab
  • MyLife this link opens in a new tab
  • Parenting this link opens in a new tab
  • Parents this link opens in a new tab
  • People this link opens in a new tab
  • People en Español this link opens in a new tab
  • Rachael Ray Magazine this link opens in a new tab
  • Real Simple this link opens in a new tab
  • Ser Padres this link opens in a new tab
  • Siempre Mujer this link opens in a new tab
  • Southern Living this link opens in a new tab
  • SwearBy this link opens in a new tab
  • Travel & Leisure this link opens in a new tab
Shape is part of the Instyle Beauty Group. © Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
© Copyright . All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.shape.com

View image

6 Weird Things You Didn't Know About Sweating
this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.