We hope everyone is enjoying the sunshine and managing to stay cool as the UK continues to bask in this heatwave. 

It’s been a busy couple of weeks across The Edge HPL, from record-breaking endurance feats to athletes stress-testing hydration strategies in real heat conditions. 

• Last week our Senior Performance Nutritionist & Creative Chef, Tiffany Williams, returned from maternity leave!

• In aid of Movember, Hercules Nicolaou - ultra-endurance runner who previously visited The Edge HPL for VO₂ max and lactate threshold and sweat testing - successfully ran across Greece covering 1208.2 km in 13 days 22 hours and 23 minutes, becoming the fastest person to ever complete the feat. This is the equivalent of running more than two marathons every day for two weeks! Bravo, Herc 👏

• The football off-season is in full swing and the first players have visited us for testing and nutrition support.

• With this hot weather, many of our supported athletes have undertaken recent sweat rate testing - the highest we’ve seen? A huge 3.2 litres per hour from a professional tennis player. For context, they were playing in 30 degree heat at 80% humidity - it doesn’t get much more extreme than that!

• In-line with the above, we’ve never been busier with sweat tests. Our at-rest sweat test measures sweat sodium concentration (how many milligrams of sodium lost per litre of sweat); which can vary by up to 10-fold between individuals. Sweat testing removes the guesswork and allows us to tailor an athlete’s hydration strategy based on their actual losses. 

👉 Read more: Personalised hydration: What’s in your sweat and why does it matter? 
👉 Book an Advanced Sweat Test. Use code HEATWAVE10 for 10% off. 

As the UK experiences a spell of unusually hot weather, endurance athletes face a challenge that fitness alone can’t solve: racing and training in the heat. 

Sessions that felt manageable a few weeks ago can suddenly feel far harder, with hydration, fuelling and recovery all becoming more difficult under thermal stress.

Many athletes prepare thoroughly for the distance and effort of race day - but not for the conditions. 

Most winter training happens in cooler environments with lower sweat rates, reduced sodium losses, and far less strain on hydration and fuelling strategies. Race day can flip that completely, with higher temperatures increasing cardiovascular strain and significantly impacting performance.

Here are some of the team’s top tips for managing training and competing in the heat:

• Prioritise hydration before, during, and after sessions - add electrolytes if you’re a heavy or salty sweater. 

• Fuel early into longer sessions and races, as heat can reduce appetite and gut tolerance later on. 

• Manage effort, not pace. In hot conditions, maintaining your usual pace may come at a much higher physiological cost.

• Use simple cooling strategies such as cold drinks, ice towels and shaded recovery where possible.

• Practice your race nutrition and hydration strategy in the heat before race day - not just in cooler, easier training conditions.

👉 Read our full blog: Nutrition and heat stress - how do they interact?

Tiffany Williams, Performance Nutritionist & Creative Chef (BSc, Pg.Dip, SENR) 

In light of Tiffany returning from maternity leave this month, we thought it was only right that she introduces herself to any new faces. 

Tiffany supports athletes and non-athletes alike with optimising their health and performance through delicious, functional nutrition. Collaborating closely with elite performance chefs, she translates complex dietary needs into tailored, high-performance menus that fuel professional athletes for success.

Tiffany’s available services:
• Free 15-min discovery calls 
• One-to-one initial nutrition consultation (75-min)
• Nutrition consultation packages (series of three or five available)
• Ongoing nutrition support (3-month package) 

Hydrating in the heat: Don’t wait until you feel thirsty to hydrate - by that point, performance has already started to decline. In hot conditions, consistent sipping and early fuelling are key to maintaining pace and protecting performance.