Efficient bodies sweat a lot …
Originally published between 2011 and 2014, this post has been updated but preserves its original publish date as content is migrated from the archives of The Flavored Word.
I have always been a sweater. Wait a minute … that doesn’t look right. Not the knitted pullover your head kind of sweater … but the body-ridding itself of toxins, excess salt, heat … that kind of sweater. I mean it’s not like I stink or anything, but when I finish a run my pores drip with the salt-laden liquid. When I stand on the sidelines of a mid-summer’s day soccer match, I sweat. A lot. Not just dab myself off with a kerchief kind of sweat. More like a NO, I did not pee my pants, it’s just a lovely line of body juice runneth over my shorts, kind of sweat. Which, by the way, is why I never EVER wear khaki-colored shorts on a hot summer day. It’s also why I can’t stand to golf; makes no sense to me to shower and dress “course appropriate” only so I can look like I’ve peed my pants at the first turn.
People sweat for the same reasons (physiologically speaking) as the rest of the animal kingdom—to rid our bodies of excess heat. To help cool ourselves down. But here’s the thing … not everybody sweats as much as others—skinny, fat, out of shape, in shape, men, women or otherwise … (OK, pregnant people sweat more. Certain medications make people sweat more. Drinking too much alcohol makes you sweat more. Diabetics sweat more. But for the sake of my point, I’m referring to people without any extraordinary circumstances.)
I read once that since sweating is the body’s way of regulating its temperature, more efficient bodies sweat more. Make sense? So, the better in-shape you are, the easier it is for you to begin sweating.
Again, makes sense? Yes. Yes it does.
Skinny people, however, don’t seem to mind sweating. Have you ever noticed that? They can attend countless garden parties under the relentless summer sun and still look fabulous, regardless of the tiny sweat beads accumulating on their foreheads. Overweight people, on the other hand, seem to be bothered by sweat more than their skinny counterparts (What? It’s true!) … have you ever noticed that? Like the ones who simply must find a place in the shade to sit down while the said skinny garden party attendees sip their cocktails and chat about how lovely the weather is. For the record, I hate garden parties.
Even at my skinniest I was a sweater—no, still not the knitted pullover your head kind of sweater; so much, that at times I was embarrassed … not everyone buys the “my body’s more efficient than yours” line. Yet even way back when I was running marathons, eating nothing but leafy greens, and abstaining from alcohol, I still sweated. A lot. And I don’t even drink Mountain Dew. I suppose it’s just one of those things that make me who I am … YAY me.
But you know what? I like sweating. There’s nothing quite like finishing a long, hard run in the summertime and feeling the sweat run down your body. It’s like your body’s way of telling you,
“Way to go! You did it! While everyone else is attending garden parties you just did something good for yourself.”
And you know what, I’d rather be a little late to the garden party than skip my runs in the summertime. Besides, as you might recall, I’m not a big of garden parties anyway.
BTW, there’s no real point to this post, just a few hundred words on sweat. Oh, and for the record, IF I were a sweater—yes, the knitted pullover your head kind of sweater—I would be cashmere … sleeveless, of course.
Cover image created with Google AI.
DISCLAIMER: I’m a writer and an editor. And I try my best to make sure every post is articulate and free from errors. However, being that I edit my own work—and it’s next to impossible to properly edit your own work—I admit, occasionally there may be an error or two I miss. But doing so doesn’t make me an idiot so don’t be mean. Just smile, pat yourself on the back for finding an error and be glad you’re not the only one who makes mistakes sometimes … xoxox
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