It’s August. It’s summer. It’s hot and kickoff time across the country when preseason soccer practice begins. Players will expect to get hot and sweaty as their coaches try to get them fit. However, a combination of hot/humid weather, tough conditioning drills and players not used to practicing in the heat can make August a deadly and dangerous month.
Despite all the warnings, the National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research reports that 24 football players (19 high school, 3 college and 2 professional) have died of heatstroke since 1995.
The main problem associated with exercising in hot weather is water loss through sweat. However, drinking water is simply not enough. In extremely hot weather, the body will sweat at a faster rate than the system can absorb water. So how can we reduce the amount of sweating while helping the body regulate its core body temperature?
The answer is the Arctic Heat Body Cooling Vest. A cool, lightweight vest that will not only help protect athletes from heat-related illnesses, but will also allow them to work harder for longer.
The Arctic Heat Cooling Vest was originally developed for soccer players in Australia and is now used by international teams in all other major soccer codes around the world. Rugby League, Rugby Union, Soccer and Australian Rules Football use the Cooling Vest to protect their athletes and improve their performance. It was also used at the Athens Olympics by all the major sports nations, including many of the US teams. The military in Iraq is even using Arctic Heat cooling vests.
“The Arctic Heat Cooling Vest, designed for soccer, will legally enhance performance and also help protect the health of athletes,” said Dr. John Surie, President of Arctic Heat USA.
The icy cooler vest can be worn under game uniforms, can be used as a pre-cooling device before conditioning exercises, and can be used as a recovery tool between or after sessions.
However, inquiries from local football teams have so far been limited. “There seems to be a different mindset in football that you have to make the players run hard and make them sweat to toughen them up. We think it’s better to calm down and cheer up the athletes. Most of the other sporting codes in the world now agree. agree with us,” said Dean Sainsbury of Arctic Heat.
Arctic Heat has also developed a range of unique cooling blankets and cooling caps that can be used to immediately treat players who have become overheated. “Cooling caps can be worn during a game to cool players down. When they get to the dugout, they can take off their helmets, put on the cooling cap and cool off,” said Dr. Surie.
The lightweight Arctic Heat Cooling Vest uses a two-stage cooling process. The vests contain a gel-like substance that can be frozen or chilled. The cooling vests are made from Woolmark’s Sportwool, a special body cooling fabric that incorporates vapor management technology, which helps wick moisture away from the skin and allows the wearer to stay dry.