Effects of changing seasons on sporting performance

Changing seasons can affect your body and sporting performance, which declines. This is mainly due to temperature changes in both the environment and your body.

Being aware of the various factors that can affect you as you exercise, especially when exercising outdoors, is essential for understanding how it affects your muscles and how to counteract it to prevent injuries.

So we are going to tell you about the main factors that affect sporting performance when the seasons change.

Decrease in body temperature

At this time of year the temperature is lower and this affects your body heat and the amount of energy your body consumes.

The body reacts to low temperatures by using and redirecting body heat to the vital organs to ensure that they function properly, thus increasing calorie expenditure. This reduces the heat available to the muscles, which can lead to muscle and joint pain, cramps, etc.

To avoid these negative effects, it is important to increase your calorie intake (especially when training) with foods rich in carbohydrates and fats, as these provide the most calories, and therefore the most energy.

Muscle contractions

When we feel cold, our muscles contract, i.e. they become stiffer and tighter, decreasing our flexibility and increasing the risk of injury. This is because low temperatures reduce the flow of blood around the body, so less blood is supplied to the muscles than usual.

To avoid this, it is important to make your muscles more flexible and raise their temperature, and to do this we advise stretching before you train.

Weaker immune system

As explained above, the body responds to a drop in temperature by increasing its energy expenditure to maintain the body’s temperature. This weakens the body’s defences and makes us more susceptible to disease-causingviruses and bacteria.

This is further exacerbated by the fact that cold, dry air allows viruses and bacteria to survive longer in the environment.

To prevent this, we recommend following a balanced and healthy diet that is rich in vitamin C and zinc, as these help to boost the body’s defences.

How to improve performance

In addition to the above recommendations, to reduce the effects of changing seasons on your sporting performance, you should:

• Choose suitable clothing. It is best to wear three layers; the first layer should be a technical, thermal and breathable fabric that keeps you warm and allows you to wick away excess heat and sweat. The second layer should be warm thermal clothing made of technical fabrics that prevent the accumulation of sweat during exercise. And the third layer should be designed to cover your joints and head (gloves, hats, neck warmers, breathable shoes that keep out the cold, etc.), as this will prevent you from losing heat and drastically lowering your temperature.
• Eat more carbohydrates. These will help to increase your energy intake and raise your body temperature. It is best to eat whole grains, nuts, fruits and vegetables as these are complex carbohydrates that take longer for the body to digest and ensure a constant flow of glucose into the body.