Acclimating to hot pavement.

Has anyone here acclimated to running on hot pavement?

Does anyone here have issues with it?

I don't like the idea of having to wear a shoe for running in the middle of the day because of hot tarmac...seems like the foot should be able to acclimate to it, after all, my dog can run on it just fine, (and frankly my pads feel tougher than my dogs feet pads at this point) and the Indians in Mexico that run all day across the desert STG seem to do okay...so it seems it is possible for the foot to adapt to all but the most extremely hot pavement.

Has anyone got any tips?

I am spending a minute or so a day walking on the black asphalt in the hottest part of the afternoon, and will very slowly increase the time to avoid injury, and see if my feet can adapt to it.

If anyone has any tips they would be much appreciated :)
 
no tips I'm afraid... The only method is barefoot, barefoot and more barefoot.

Today was the 1st time in a couple of years that the tarmac has been soft and melting. Once there is a lovely coating of dirt, macadem and soil on your feet it becomes easier. Perhaps only wash your feet once a day and allow them to build up a barrier.
 
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I run twice in the morning and during the summer the earlier the better. If I am out late running, then I try to stay on the painted lines when there are some for relief.
 
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I found this:

"The possibility of a burn occurring depends on three primary factors: surface temperature, thermal properties of the hot surface, and contact time of the skin to the surface. There is a distinction between an object's surface temperature and the temperature of the skin after touching that object. The reader must not confuse the two. Depending on the type of material of the hot object, the skin temperature can be close or significantly cooler, after the 5-second contact time, than the temperature of the hot surface. For metal objects (which typically have high thermal conductivities) the heat transfer is rapid and will heat the skin to within a few degrees of the temperature of the metal surface within the 5-second rule. For lower conducting materials such as wood, plastic and insulative coatings, the thermal conduction is slower and the skin temperature may be significantly lower than the object's surface temperature after a contact time of 5 seconds.
For metals which have high thermal conductivities, The temperature at which a burn will occur depends on the metal's surface temperature and contact time. For surface temperatures below 44°C (111°F), no burns will occur for up to 6 hours of contact time1. As metal temperatures increase above 44°C, the contact time resulting in a 1st degree burn decreases dramatically. Skin in contact with metal at a temperature of about 60°C (140°F) has only a 5 second contact time at which a first-degree burn will occur."
 
I run twice in the morning and during the summer the earlier the better. If I am out late running, then I try to stay on the painted lines when there are some for relief.


Thank ya Sir....Ever run any races on hot pavement?




Holy cow, I just calculated your half and marathon mm paces, you are officially my hero now lol

Do you race Skin to Ground?


I think there may be a good chance that you are the fastest active Skin To Ground marathoner out there...I dunno of anyone faster that is an active marathoner and I looked a lot.

As a former competitive runner, (a long long time ago) you are an inspiration for me.
 
Skin in contact with metal at a temperature of about 60°C (140°F) has only a 5 second contact time at which a first-degree burn will occur."

That's with metal but not far off from my own observations. I recall last summer checking the road surface temps and it seemed then that I could run just fine at 130ºF but a stretch of darker pavement which was 135ºF felt like I was going to burn my feet after just a short bit. I'll have to start checking again I'm curious if the feet are tougher this year. The hot pavement does seem to toughen them up pretty quick. Is wasn't until after my first few hot pavement runs a month ago or so that I really felt the thickness to my pads this year.
 
This time of year if its between 11am and 6pm I'll run on the trails and avoid the pavement due to the heat...there is not much getting used to it....I like trails better anyways so no great loss. The painted white lines and small amount of grass on the side of the road have saved my feet many times the last mile or two on mid-day pavement runs. I think you can get blisters easier on the hot pavement too.
 
A good friend is a vet - and she constantly warns about running dogs in the heat of the day and especially on tarmac. First off the dog is running with a fur coat on, heats up quickly and cannot get rid of heat like we do. The dog's paws can indeed burn. So if it is too hot for you - then consider it too hot for the dog. With greatest of respect advise check with your vet on exercising with your dog on a hot day.....
 
A good friend is a vet - and she constantly warns about running dogs in the heat of the day and especially on tarmac. First off the dog is running with a fur coat on, heats up quickly and cannot get rid of heat like we do. The dog's paws can indeed burn. So if it is too hot for you - then consider it too hot for the dog. With greatest of respect advise check with your vet on exercising with your dog on a hot day.....
For this same reason, I started taking my older dog in the morning before sunrise, and the young one in the afternoon.
 
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I have learned there is no point being a hero and running on hot surfaces. If you end up with a blister or two that will make your running less enjoyable until they have healed.
I adjust my running times to suit the temperature.
Here in Adelaide our summer temperatures can reach 46C which I can tell you is damn hot. I will run in the early morning at 5:30am on those days.
I did an evening run this year on a hot day, it had been 40C+ during the day and it was 38C at 8pm at around sunset when I ran a 6km.
The concrete surfaces were bearable but the brick paths were particularly hot as they were the last to be out of the sun. Keeping an eye out for shaded spots and running on them is the best advice.
I had got some bad blistering around 3 years ago from hot surfaces, they teach you valuable lessons.

Neil
 
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