1st let me say having a chronic condition that is exacerbated by the heat really sucks. Throw in the related heat related problems such as dizziness, cramps, etc from the heat make things worse. Even though I mowed my lawn this morning, I’m still feeling the effects of heat issues some 7 or 8 hours after I finished.
I was hydrated, still hydrated, but the heat still is making me feel awful.
That said be careful outside in the heat. If you start drinking once your thirsty, you’re too late. Rule of thumb, taken from my bike racing days, drink something cool and with electrolytes every 15mins. You should down at minimum a quart of liquids per hour of outdoor activity. Better to run to the bathroom to pee than to run to the emergency room because you didn’t drink enough.
Here’s a link to the warning signs and symptoms of heat related illness from the CDC. Yes heat can have an effect on the healthiest of us all. Be careful.
I had a weird one yesterday that I think was heat related. We were doing some work in the yard late morning before it got too hot, but suddenly I started to feel very lightheaded. I came into the house and looked at my Fitbit and saw my heart rate had dropped to 54. My heart rate is NEVER 54. My normal resting heart rate is between 63 and 66. I took my BP and it was 185/88; I’m normally about 130/70. I just drank some water, took it easy for a while, and took my BP about every hour and things slowly went back to normal. These symptoms don’t match either heat stroke or heat exhaustion, but I have little doubt it was heat related.