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16 Jun 2026You hear a lot about staying hydrated and keeping cool to avoid dehydration and heat exhaustion when temperatures in the Central Valley start climbing into the 90s or higher. If you live in Fresno, you know that the summer months can become unbearable in more ways than you’d imagine. Sunburn is only the start.
One thing that isn’t addressed as often is the impact of the Central Valley’s excessive heat on your joints. You’re not imagining the chronic pain you’re feeling in your legs and arms, spine, and shoulders. Heat affects both your joints and your recovery time. Our guide helps you understand why this happens.
Summer Weather’s Impact on Your Joints
Summer’s heat brings about several changes in your body that cannot be ignored. It’s why you need to adjust your usual routine before, during, and after a workout in hot weather.
Barometric Pressure
When it’s hot, the barometer (air pressure) often changes, too. This causes the pressure dynamics on your body and in your joints to shift. When it’s extremely hot, the synovial fluid in your joints expands slightly as your body tissues swell.
This change in pressure can irritate the nerves within your joints, causing stiffness and aching. You don’t even have to have done anything strenuous for this to happen.
Dehydration
Staying hydrated is important throughout the year. Around 60% of your body weight is water, and 66% of that water is found in your cells. Water helps your blood flow and brings electrolytes, nutrients, minerals, and vitamins to your organs and cells. It maintains your blood pressure.
Most people require 2 to 3 liters of water in their daily beverages and foods. In summer’s heat, that changes. When training in the heat, you sweat to help keep your body cool. That sweat evaporates so quickly that you may not realize you’ve been sweating. If you’re not replacing the sweat you’re losing, you will become dehydrated.
Friction and Wear
If you do lose water to sweat, it thins the synovial fluid found in each of your joints. Synovial fluid lubricates your joints. Without adequate fluid, friction builds as the joints move and starts to wear down the cartilage, causing pain and potential injury.
Vasodilation
When your body heats up, your brain tells your cardiovascular system to move the blood closer to the skin’s surface. Blood vessels dilate to bring blood to the surface for cooling. In the process, fluids are pushed from capillaries into soft tissue.
If that extra fluid builds up in your ankles, fingers, knees, or hips, it can make the joints feel tight, which can affect your range of motion. With a reduced range of motion, you risk straining muscles or experiencing pressure and tightness.
Don’t Overlook the Impact the Air Quality Index Has on Joints
One issue that is often overlooked is the impact of the Air Quality Index (AQI) on summer workouts. In the hottest summer months, the Central Valley’s air is trapped by cooler mountain air. This means agricultural dust, ozone, and pollen are trapped.
When you exercise, you breathe more. When you’re breathing in poor-quality air, your respiratory system triggers an inflammatory response that can worsen joint pain.
Expect Recovery to Take Longer
After a summer heat workout, you may notice you feel sore for a longer period than in the winter. Heat impacts recovery.
Accelerated Glycogen (Carbohydrate) Depletion
Heat increases the rate at which your body uses carbohydrates. When those stores deplete, you may notice you feel increasingly tired and weak. It doesn’t take long before you burn through the energy you usually have.
Cortisol and Inflammation
Training in heat triggers a stress response. Your body increases the release of adrenaline and cortisol to get through the workout. That also increases inflammation and slows cellular repair.
Elevated Baseline Heart Rate
When it’s hot, your heart rate increases by up to 20 beats per minute to help keep your core temperature close to normal.
With your cardiovascular system working overtime, less amino acid, oxygen, and nutrient delivery goes to your damaged muscle fibers. Your muscles have to wait before your body focuses on healing.
Tips for Fresno Athletes
Winter routines won’t work in the summer. You need to adapt your workout plan for summer to ensure you don’t strain muscles while favoring an achy joint.
Pre-Workout
Two hours before your workout, drink 16 to 20 ounces of electrolyte-rich water. It needs time to get drawn into the bloodstream and circulate sodium and other electrolytes. This provides your joints and sweat glands with water.
During Workout
Try not to go outside for your workout between the hottest hours of the day (10 a.m. to 6 p.m.). Work out early in the morning or towards sunset, when the valley air is coolest, and the AQI isn’t going to increase.
If you do train outside, even in the cooler hours, look for shaded paths where the tree cover helps block the sun and keep temperatures down. Mountains and sections of the Clovis Old Town Trail are ideal.
Post-Workout
After your workout, go inside and take a cool shower or bath to lower your core temperature. If that’s not possible, sit in front of an AC or a fan with cool, damp towels on your neck, armpits, and groin.
Protein helps with muscle repair, but you also want to increase antioxidants to help your body recover. Tart cherry juice, frozen grapes, and blueberries all help. Tart cherry juice is believed to help reduce joint and muscle pain.
A Summer Recovery Plan for Everyone
Our summer recovery plan is perfect for fitness enthusiasts, professional athletes, and Fresno-area residents who simply like getting outside to explore nature. Use this checklist to make sure you’re protecting your joints when you’re active.
| Typical Winter Routine | Extreme Heat Routine | |
| Before Your Workout | Drink about 16 ounces of water a couple of hours before. Choose warm or room temperature water to avoid lowering your core temperature. | Drink 16 to 20 ounces of electrolyte-rich water a couple of hours before your workout and have a few sips before starting. Aim for ice-cold water to lower your core temperature. |
| Intra-Workout Fuel | Water only | Water and electrolytes |
| Post-Workout | Normal stretching. Eat 15 to 25 grams of protein and 1.2 to 1.5 grams of carbs (for every 2.2 pounds of body weight). | Immediate cool shower or bath. Have antioxidants afterward, like tart cherry juice. |
| Rest Days | 1 or 2 each week | 2 or 3 each week, or switch to low-intensity for active recovery |
| Sleep Environment | Regular thermostat setting | Cool room of 65° to 68° |
| Water Intake | Total of 80 to 100 ounces, drinking some each hour during the workout | Total of 120 to 150 ounces of water and electrolyte water or beverage, drinking some each hour |
Staying inside doesn’t have to be your only option. Whether you’re used to a daily jog or walk or training alone or with your team to stay on top of your game, you can help your body adapt to summer’s heat. Make sure you know and respect your limits to protect your health and your joints.
If you feel it’s becoming too difficult to keep up with your fitness goals this summer, Premium Sports & Orthopedics can help. Schedule an appointment to work with the team and stay in shape while avoiding injury or joint strain.
