Thermal Behavior Augments Heat Loss Following Low Intensity Exercise

Area of Science:

• Exercise Physiology
• Environmental Physiology
• Human Thermoregulation

Background:

• Post-exercise recovery is crucial for physiological restoration.
• Thermal discomfort can impede recovery and overall well-being.
• Understanding factors that influence thermoregulation during recovery is important for optimizing performance and comfort.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if active thermal behavior alleviates thermal discomfort.
• To determine if thermal behavior accelerates core temperature recovery after low-intensity exercise.
• To examine the impact of upper body cooling on physiological responses during recovery.

Main Methods:

• 12 healthy subjects completed two trials involving 60 min of exercise followed by 90 min of recovery in a controlled environment (27°C, 48.6% RH).
• Subjects wore a suit perfusing water; in the 'behavior' trial, they could self-activate cool water for upper body cooling during recovery, unlike the 'control' trial.
• Physiological variables including core temperature, mean skin temperature, skin wettedness, skin blood flow, and sweat rate were monitored.

Main Results:

• No significant differences in physiological variables were observed between trials during exercise.
• Following exercise, the behavior trial showed a significant decrease in mean skin temperature within 10 min and reduced upper body skin temperature for 70 min.
• Core temperature recovered 17–31 min faster in the behavior trial, which also reported reduced thermal discomfort and augmented cumulative heat loss within the first 30 min of recovery.

Conclusions:

• Actively engaging in thermal behavior, specifically upper body cooling, significantly accelerates post-exercise core temperature recovery.
• Thermal behavior effectively alleviates whole-body thermal discomfort during the recovery phase.
• Promoting heat loss through targeted cooling strategies enhances physiological recovery and comfort after exercise.