sweat gets in my eyes

[Craig]

We could start a support group.

But seriously, the only that I find consistently works is some sort of head band / bandanna which you stop and wring out as needed. On really humid days though your hands don't dry out very quickly after the ring-out.

I tend to dip the bandanna in any brooks, rinse it out, and wipe my face clean while it is still cool, which feels nice for a minute or two anyway.

You did read the "Hiking in long pants" thread, didn't you?

Tim

Additionally, I’ll wrap the bandana around my neck when not using it to wipe the sweat off my face. The cool wet bandana in proximity to the arteries in your neck helps to cool you down.

BTW, if you do decide to start a support group perhaps it could be called, " The wetter the better"

 

[WhiteMTHike]

I always wear a hat when hiking; works for me. You have to wear orange during the hunting season so I just wear the same orange hat I do during the hunting season.

 

[Stan]

If there really was a panacea, wouldn't we all know about it?

Tim

bandana ... a panacea for everything

I use it as a: bandana, babushka, napkin, placemat, pot holder, dishtowel, neckerchief (against bugs when I don't have a high collar) ... handkerchief (well, not all at once) ... you name it, you can probably incorporate a good ol' bandana into the equation.

And, get this, you can make a fashion statement with it: hiker, hippie, h.o.g., there's a style for everyone.

I'm in a good mood today, even though its raining ... we're about to leave on two weeks of paddling, camping, paddle camping, hiking ... yep, that bandana will come in handy somehow ... I'm bringing two!

 

[Tuco]

You can try the Sweat Gutr http://www.love2pedal.com/Items/Ite...weatband - Channels Sweat Away From Your Eyes

Its meant for cycling, but who knows. I have not tried it.....

 

[cbcbd]

Bandanna here. Just fold it into a band and tie it on. Plus, you can't beat the multi-purpose of a bandanna.

Or you could also try a visor - some sun shade, sweat control, and a cool head.

 

[bandana4me]

My trail name says it all

Please, though if you are going to use a bandana, DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT use the small ones. Make sure it is an oversized bandana. I just dont like looking at hikers using the small ones that do not wrap around the head fully!

 

[Pete_Hickey]

Once you become dehydrated, you'll sweat less.

 

[Bob Kittredge]

How about a $2 terry-cloth sweatband from Walmart? Believe me, the one I wear is not a fashion statement; on a typical summer day hike, I'm slipping it off to wring it out about every 10 minutes.

Note: sweat bands seem to work best if you stay upright. If I wear one while I'm engaged in some project around the yard that involves bending over, I end up with sweat on my glasses.

 

[paul ron]

No one sweats like I do... sweat bands are the cure.

 

[bikehikeskifish]

I went for an easy one-hour bike ride yesterday at lunch. I wore a coolmax (Pearl Izumi) head/sweat band. My bike computer's thermometer read between 66 and 68 degrees. 30 minutes in, I was dripping. 45 minutes in it was pouring. It was humid and evaporation was difficult, even with a bike-speed-induced breeze.

Riding with a sweat band (hiking with a bandanna) is better than not, but neither one works that well. I'm leery of the buff suggestion for the reason that I can soak through anything.

Tim
p.s. I'll challenge anyone to a one-hour session on a stairmaster and we can weigh the pile of clothes and towel(s) afterward to see who sweat more

 

[Stash]

I went for an easy one-hour bike ride yesterday at lunch. I wore a coolmax (Pearl Izumi) head/sweat band. My bike computer's thermometer read between 66 and 68 degrees. 30 minutes in, I was dripping. 45 minutes in it was pouring. It was humid and evaporation was difficult, even with a bike-speed-induced breeze.

Riding with a sweat band (hiking with a bandanna) is better than not, but neither one works that well. I'm leery of the buff suggestion for the reason that I can soak through anything.

Tim
p.s. I'll challenge anyone to a one-hour session on a stairmaster and we can weigh the pile of clothes and towel(s) afterward to see who sweat more

Ever thought of moving waaay north?

 

[bikehikeskifish]

Ever thought of moving waaay north?

No high-tech jobs waaay north. Not even that many in southern NH, actually (even before the recession.) Combine that with the fact that I can soak a bandanna hiking in the Whites in winter wearing one light-weight base layer and I'm not sure it makes much difference. My only hope is to accept the sweat output and find a way to deal with it--like bringing a second or third shirt (at least) to put on after the hard work is mostly done.

(Any time I see someone in a balaclava and down jacket at the trailhead, I wonder if they really know what they are doing. Of course they probably wonder about me too.)

Tim

 

[dr_wu002]

Ever think about just wearing a desiccator on your head? I'm sure they work for sweat.

-Dr. Wu

 

[J.Dub]

Ever thought of moving waaay north?

Tim's right...location won't help (much).

Like him, I sweat like a pig. If you passed me on the Tucks trail in winter, you'd see me in a just a lightweight longsleeve wicking baselayer in below-freezing temps. Keeping dry is a major challenge for me.

Gotta give props to the Columbia hat that several folks have mentioned upthread. I wear one trailrunning and adventure racing and it's the shiznit. (Those mesh panels on the side really help cool the melon.)

 

[Stash]

Tim's right...location won't help (much).

Like him, I sweat like a pig. If you passed me on the Tucks trail in winter, you'd see me in a just a lightweight longsleeve wicking baselayer in below-freezing temps.

I'm thinking it's time to spend a few zillion dollars on a government study.

I'll be out there in the same light stuff in the same temps but dry as a bone. I wear more and I get hot but not sweaty. If we bring in enough highly paid consultants we can find the difference between your glands and mine.

 

[DougPaul]

I'm thinking it's time to spend a few zillion dollars on a government study.

I'll be out there in the same light stuff in the same temps but dry as a bone. I wear more and I get hot but not sweaty. If we bring in enough highly paid consultants we can find the difference between your glands and mine.

Maybe this will save you (or the taxpayers) some money:

I read somewhere that one's sweating system adapts during the first year of life. If you are in a very humid area (eg tropical rain forest), your system "discovers" that sweating doesn't cool you very much and sets your future sweating to "low". If you are in a less humid environment, your system discovers that sweating is an effective method for cooling and sets your future sweating to "high". After about your first year, the system becomes fixed and you stick with the chosen strategy. (From my dim, dark memory--sorry don't recall any references.)

Some people also appear to produce more heat than others when hiking. (Anecdotal, from observations of myself and my hiking companions.)

It also wouldn't surprise me if there were other factors, such as genetic, too.

Some info (including some comments on acclimatization): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweat

Doug

 

[smitty77]

Tim's right...location won't help (much).

I used to play pond-hockey as a teen in temps as low as 10 degrees in a t-shirt. 'Twas a funny sight to see me tearing around the ice with frozen sweat-cicles in my hair.

And the wicking hat, for me, doesn't do much to curb the flow (in fact, I think I sweat a tad more), it just tends to keep it from running down my face and it absorbs more than a bandanna.

And sorry Carole, I hope my post didn't imply that was the brand you were personally using. It was just the brand I have used and knew of off the top of my sweatty head without having to do a search.

 

[Hikes4fun]

Bandanas! keeps the bugs out of your ears too!

 

[carole]

And sorry Carole, I hope my post didn't imply that was the brand you were personally using. It was just the brand I have used and knew of off the top of my sweatty head without having to do a search.

I didn’t take it that way. I just wanted to add some options with links.

The original post asked about reducing sweat in the eyes (not stopping sweat, who sweats the most, or whatever else has been added here). Several nice suggestions have been made and hopefully one will work for the OP.

Sweating is good for you but managing the sweat is possible without slowing down. Losing fat, wearing the right clothes, conditioning your body and learning to deal.

 

[paul ron]

I
Tim
p.s. I'll challenge anyone to a one-hour session on a stairmaster and we can weigh the pile of clothes and towel(s) afterward to see who sweat more

HAHAHHAHAHA... reminds me of a Japanese game show I once caught on TV. 3 big half naked guys in kids pools trying anything n everything to get themselves to sweat. The most sweat collected won a new car.