Moving involves a lot of effort, not only mental, with so much to sort out and arrange, but physical too what with packing your entire life up and moving it somewhere else. On a hot day, all that lifting and activity can make for a miserable experience. Our tips will help to make moving home on a hot day a bit more bearable!
There’s no way around it, unless you’re very wealthy and can afford to get someone to come in and do all of the sorting, packing and lifting for you, moving home means you’re going to have to put some physical effort in! The obvious potential for injury aside, the practical need to move countless pieces of furniture and pack box after box can but a toll on your body, and in warm weather, you’ll need to be extra careful.
On a hot and humid day, our bodies natural cooling system has to work harder which can not only put greater strain on our hearts, but it can lead to us feeling lethargic and wiped out. In an ideal move, no one would choose to move on a boiling hot day, but choosing the weather isn’t something we get to do, and most people would probably prefer a hot sunny moving day over a wet and windy one!
Take regular rests
Although it can be tempting to power on through, on a hot day you need to take a bit of time out. Even if it’s just 15 minutes to stop and have a drink and a sandwich, make sure you have a sit down in the shade or somewhere cool so you can take a breather.
Taking a rest when you feel like you need to can make you more productive, helping you to top y#up your energy levels before you get back into the hard work heavy lifting.
Stay well hydrated
Sounds obvious doesn’t it? But when you’re busy, it can be easy to be on the go for hours before you realise you’ve not stopped for a break or even a sip of water.
Cups of tea and fizzy pop won’t cut it or properly hydrate you, so on moving day you should be aiming to drink as much water as possible and if it’s hot, you should be aiming for an absolute minimum of around 2 litres a day, significantly more as you’ll be active, so keep a refillable water bottle close to hand all day and take regular sips.
Use sun protection
Even on cloudy days, harmful UVA & UVB rays can still prove damaging. According to Cancer Research UK, the sun can be strong enough to cause sunburn from March to around the middle of October here in the UK. On moving day you’ll likely be spending time outside, carrying moving boxes to and from your car or van.
As well as the risk of sunburn you’ll also sweat more which can lead to dehydration. Even minor dehydration can make you feel lethargic, so as well as using sun protection, keep your head covered and try to stick to shaded areas when you’re outdoors.
Replace lost electrolytes
Have you ever been for a run or even a long hike on a hot day and felt dizzy, tired and generally not too great afterward? As our bodies sweat we lose minerals like salt which can leave us low on not only salt but other key minerals like magnesium and potassium too.
It is essential then that on hot days we are actively replacing those lost electrolytes if we want, or indeed need, to keep on expending energy. Various foods will help to replace lost electrolytes, but you could opt for a sports drink like Lucozade or even choose the kind of gel packs that runners and athletes often use.
Recognise the signs of dehydration
You don’t need to be lost in the middle of a Sahara desert to experience become dehydrated. All too often busy day is not only mentally and physically demanding, but you’re likely to be flat out all day, which makes it more likely you could forget to eat and drink enough.
Not being properly hydrated combined with increased sweating in hot weather can mean that levels of key minerals get too low. When this happens we start to experience some of the side-effects of dehydration which include feeling tired, headaches, dizziness and a faster than usual heartbeat.
If you ignore the first warning signs and do nothing about them, you could go on to show more serious signs of heatstroke which needs immediate attention and could take upwards of half an hour to recover from. Do bear in mind that if after drinking plenty of water and resting somewhere cool for 30 minutes you still feel unwell, you may need to seek medical attention. The NHS website has some great advice on dealing with recognising the signs of heatstroke.
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