Excessive sweating during a workout can leave you clammy, smelly and embarrassed, but you don't have to suffer as excessively as you perspire. Once you figure out why it's happening, you can find the most effective way to treat it.
Why It Happens
Several causes can be behind excessive sweating during workouts. They can be transitional or temporary, such as menopause, fear, medication side effects or a workout area that is too humid to allow sweat to evaporate. Excessive sweating during workouts also can be a sign that your body is getting used to your exercise routine, ACE Fitness says. If you exercise consistently, your body can adapt to the workouts and produce greater amounts of sweat sooner than you are used to because it is rapidly getting rid of extra heat. If your excessive sweating during workouts is an ongoing issue or you sweat excessively even when you are not working out, you might be suffering from hyperhidrosis.
Hyperhidrosis
Hyperhidrosis is the technical term for excessive sweating. While the condition can hit anytime, anywhere and without consistency, it can occur when you normally would sweat, such as when you are anxious or exercising, but in excessive amounts that can literally leave you dripping wet. Primary hyperhidrosis, also called focal hyperhidrosis, occurs in focused areas of your body, mainly your palms, armpits and soles of your feet. Secondary hyperhidrosis, which makes your entire body sweat, results from an underlying medical issue, such as infections, cancer, lung and heart disease or an overactive thyroid.
How to Tell
If you sweat excessively even when you are not working out or in a state or climate that would normally make most people sweat, you are a likely candidate for hyperhidrosis. A trip to your doctor is in order to ensure that you don't have an underlying condition that requires treatment. Your doctor can run a starch-iodine test or a paper test to determine if your sweat is beyond the normal scope and then offer treatment. Treatments include medication as well as procedures that either turn off your sweat glands or your body's signal to send out excessive sweat.
What You Can Do
You can stave off your excessive sweating -- and the potential body odor that comes with it -- with antiperspirants, frequent showers and targeting the sweat zones. Apply antiperspirant to your hands and feet. Dry your feet thoroughly after you shower to prevent bacteria from thriving; try odor and moisture-absorbing foot powders. Natural-material shoes, such as leather, let your feet breathe, and natural-fiber clothing does the same for your skin. Opt for cotton and wool, which absorb sweat and provide aeration. Athletic socks and apparel are available with specialized moisture-wicking fibers that help pull sweat off your skin and onto the material's surface, where it can dry quickly.
