The weathermen are promising an Indian summer this year in the UK, and just in case they do get it right you should to know the best way to cool off after a training session in the heat. Happily, a group of researchers from sunny Texas have done the job for us.
Subjects taking part in their study had their temperatures monitored as they completed four training conditions, consisting of two sets of six 30-second sprints (with 30 seconds of rest) in a chamber heated to 38¡C. Each sprint was followed by a cooling period, with several cooling methods compared:

[MAM] a. passive cooling at room temperature (22¡C);
b. fan cooling;
c. fan cooling with water;
d. non-cooling passive recovery in the same heat chamber where the trials were conducted.

The researchers found that the addition of air flow (fan) with or without water spraying was no more effective in cooling the subjects' bodies than passive exposure to a cooler temperature. They concluded that athletes attempting to induce rapid cooling do not need a fan or a hosepipe but simply to get out of the heat and into a cooler environment. They also offered the highly scientific advice that people who need to go back into a race or match should probably avoid the water spray option as their kit and other equipment would be soaked! Sometimes it is reassuring when the men in white coats state the obvious.

The Journal Of Strength and Conditioning Research 15 (2) 247-254

Nick Grantham