I'm gifted in one area: sweating, so - in the name of science - I took to a heat chamber with a pro rider

Could his heavy sweating be the reason Steve Shrubsall will never win a Tour de France stage? The heat chamber may hold the answers...

Steve Shrubsall (left) and Jan Bakelants (right) in the heat chamber
(Image credit: @precisionfandh)

Be they hidden, untapped or in plain sight, we all have talents. Some have athletic ability, others have artistic flair. I don’t have either of these, but, I’m an incredibly gifted sweater. Yes, I leak in great gushing rivulets at the mere sight of a static cycle – show me 300 watts for 20 minutes and I’ll show you a very damp floor indeed.

I’d had my sweat rate - put simply, the amount of water lost through sweat - tested before; I was provided with some wildly inconsistent readings. So, when the team at UK-based Precision Fuel and Hydration contacted me with an opportunity to not only test my sweat and sodium losses in their new heat chamber, but to do so in the company of two Tour de France stage winners – Victor Campanearts and Jan Bakelants – I dug out my best base layer and made a beeline for their headquarters.

Victor Campenaerts at a team presentation
Victor Campenaerts

Whole-body sweat rate - 2.04 litres per hour (L/h)

Average power - 185W, 3.0 watts per kilo (W/kg)

Sweat sodium concentration - 957 milligrams of sodium per litre of sweat (mg/L). i.e. Moderately salty sweat

Jan Bakelants drinking from a bottle
Jan Bakelants

Whole-body sweat rate - 1.88 litres per hour (L/h)

Average power - 173W, 2.45 watts per kilo (W/kg)

Sweat sodium concentration - 1,044 milligrams of sodium per litre of sweat (mg/L). i.e. Moderately salty sweat

Steve Shrubsall with a coke and snack
Steve Shrubsall

Whole-body sweat rate - 2.92 litres per hour (L/h)

Average power - 143W, 1.55 watts per kilo (W/kg)

Average heart rate - 143 beats per minute

Sweat sodium concentration - 1,024 milligrams of sodium per litre of sweat (mg/L) i.e. Moderately salty sweat

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