Don't Let Em See You Sweat?

[DanceMentor]

When I dance at a party or practice for a performance, I like to give it my all. Unfortunately, there is a side effect...perspiration.

What do you do to cope with sweat?
Does it bother you if your dance partner is sweating?

A couple of things that are probably good: bring an extra shirt and bring a towel.

Still you can't perfect. I notice top competitors sweat a lot. If they can do it, I guess it's ok, right?

[NeoDevin]

Antiperspirant and a couple extra shirts usually work for me at a social event.

[youngsta]

I'm lucky...I'm not a sweater. It's very rare that my shirt becomes more than slightly damp. I do bring an extra shirt though.

[pygmalion]

I've started layering, even for lessons. Like today, I wore a leatoard under a cotton t-shirt. Sweat everywhere, but my teacher didn't have to feel it.

[DanceMentor]

I forgot about that one: wearing an extra layer. That's a good one too. The only thing is I'm hot natured and I get hot too easily.

I wonder if there is a relationship with how much water you drink?

And yes NeoDevin, antiperspirant is a must. If only there was an antiperspirant dip, so that I could immerse my whole body.

Ya'll probly think I'm a sweathog now. I swear I'm not...but the other night I danced almost 6 hours in a row and I was feeling a little self conscious.

[NeoDevin]

Just bring a change of shirt for every hour after the first, and change your shirt every hour. Just go to the bathroom, dry off, reapply antiperspirant, and put on a new shirt.

[pygmalion]

Actually, there's no rule that says antiperspirant goes only under the arms. I saw a dance article somewhere on the web which made that suggestion -- use antipersprant wherever you sweat. I won't get graphic, here. :oops: :lol: Just do what you need to do.

[Hank]

I always wear black when dancing because it doesn't show the sweat as much. I also wear a long sleeve shirt because I think it's more pleasant to touch a damp shirt than a wet arm.

There are anti-perspirants available that are stronger than the usual ones found at the drugstore. Maxim is an example, and it can be ordered online without a prescription. But, no anti-perspirant is strong enough to stop the sweating that comes from exercise.

Some women have directly expressed their distaste to me about my sweating, so I assume there are even more who are offended but don't say so. But, there's just nothing I can do about it.

[danceguy]

What do you do to cope with sweat?
Does it bother you if your dance partner is sweating?

I always shower right before I go out dancing...put on a little cologne, deordorant and such, but I'm against using anti-perspirant for health reasons. While I'm not a big fan of people who stink, I think some folks are way too uppity about sweating.

Typically I don't sweat that easy, but there are many factors that weigh into this. How many people in how small of a room? Fans and/or AC? What is the weather like outside? It varies night to night at the same venues for me.

I always wear a white 100% cotton t-shirt underneath my dress shirt, short sleeved so I keep cooler. This helps most of the time unless I'm really dancing a lot or the room is warmer than usual. If I really get sweaty then I always bring a spare shirt and deodorant in case its needed. I've only ever had to change my shirt once...usually I don't need to. I also have a towel, and most of people at the places I go to have one as well.

If I get really hot, sometimes just a trip to the bathroom and a splash of cold water on the face will help a lot, sit out a few and cool off.

I don't mind women who sweat, to me that's a good sign that they are putting their all into the dance and enjoying themselves. Most of the women I've noticed that really have an offensive odor are like that before they start dancing...so that's another thread in and of itself. :? :roll:

SG

[dnquark]

I don't care about sweat. It's a part of dancing - I am *moving*, I am exerting myself, I am having fun... and I sweat. Big deal. If women don't like it - it's their problem.

I haven't found antiperspirants to be effective, so more often than not I don't even bother with them. I do make a point of being clean. If you are sweating like a pig, it makes a huge difference whether you showered two hours or two days ago :)

[pygmalion]

To be painfully honest, sweaty arms gross me out. Underarms I can deal with. But wet forearms? :shock: *shudder* As Hank says, I'd prefer the damp long sleeved shirts.

[salsachinita]

Look, if we dance that much we gotta sweat. No big deal, as long as personal hygiene standards are met.

What I really can't deal with is excessively sweaty palms :shock: ........ you can't follow their leads properly if you are struggling to make contact with their palms.......lucky for me there are very few of them out there.

One of my ex dance partners (still a favourite of mine at the clubs :wink: !) sweats like he just fell into the river, but it doesn't stop me from dancing with him (we stop dancing together for other reasons).

[Swing Kitten]

my partner sweating in moments of physical exertion has never bothered me ;)

[DanceMentor]

my partner sweating in moments of physical exertion has never bothered me

You mean like cutting the grass or fixing the car or lifting weights or cleaning the gutters or chopping wood...
...stuff like that right? :wink:

[Swing Kitten]

:roll: sure!

[twodance]

DANCERS DON'T SWEAT.... :lol: THEY GLISTEN !!

[youngsta]

Oooh, I like that twodance! :lol:

[danceguy]

You know, I was too embarrassed to say this earlier...but there is something very sexy about seeing a woman steam up the dance floor and then have that "glistening" look to her.

Mmmm hmmm. Especially if she's steaming up the floor with you! :D

[youngsta]

I agree, but I have to say last Sunday I danced with a woman whos back was DRENCHED! Horrible man...horrible! :shock:

[DanceMentor]

What about when you are both sweating and it's hot and you are dancing close, and your clothes are clinging to to your skin?

[danceguy]

Yipes, I knew I shouldn't have made that post! Oh well...words out now. :D

Did she have an open back top on youngsta? I really wish more women wouldn't do that...it makes for one clammy cross body lead... :?

[youngsta]

Did she have an open back top on youngsta? I really wish more women wouldn't do that...it makes for one clammy cross body lead... :?
Yep open back...and the sweat was ice cold! : :shock:

[SDsalsaguy]

I don't know if its just me, but I don't mind sweat -- ooops, I mean glistening -- in the least. If its come by honestly on the floor than I could care less... the only thing that throws me off a bit is when she's drenched but wearing really open backed tops & bare shoulders... so that my hands keep sliding off her when I'm trying to lead. :shock: :oops:

[tsb]

i perspire freely. consequently i have a lot of black t-shirts (which helps hide the sweat) and keep spares in my trunk along with the 2-3 in my gym bag that carries my shoes, water, shoe brush, altoids, etc. if for some reason i don't wear black i try to wear a vest.

due to the amount i perspire, i rehydrate frequently - the alternative is cramping - i used to play all-day volleyball tournaments in my younger days and frequently had cramps by 2pm. ever since i started doing 8oz. every 20 minutes whether i feel thirsty or not (by the time you feel thirsty it's too late and it will affect physical performance - studies were done by the US olympics teams) i've never cramped since.

[TheArchon]

The is sweating, and there is sweating...

I once dance with a girl, that swear in her hands, it was horriable, i couldnt hold on to her, she always sliped, so i putted more force until her hands hurt...

BTW the simplest way to deal with sweating, is, in the club i dance in, there are huge fans in the summer, i just go under it for a few min, and walla, not more sweat.

[pygmalion]

Yup. Those fans are great. One of the ballroom places I go has huge ones in a couple spots around the floor. Lovely. :D

[Neil]

You know, I was too embarrassed to say this earlier...but there is something very sexy about seeing a woman steam up the dance floor and then have that "glistening" look to her.

I agree that it's sexy if I already find the girl attractive, on the other hand, if I don't find her attractive to begin with, then the heavy sweat just makes it worse.

This thread reminds me that I've been thinking about talking to the owner of the ballroom about getting a powerful blower, around 200 cubic feet per minute. I think that could cool me off pretty quickly in between dances.

I remember one time one of the air conditioners broke down in the hotel hosting a local swing event. The room got warm, but the event director rented several powerful blowers and they made a huge difference. I would get a running sweat going on the dance floor, but then one minute in front of the fan and I was cool and dry.

EDIT: By the way, that event was over the Fourt of July weekend in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Still, the blowers were able to cool me off.

[etchuck]

I have linked some pictures of a swing dance from last night, and the address is now my sig file. Anyway, at club dances I try to wear my Seattle Mariners Ken Griffey Jr shirt over another T-shirt (and bring an extra sleeveless T-shirt too). I think if any of you wear those "authentic athletic apparel" like baseball jerseys, especially to swing dances, all that polyester and the breathing holes in the jerseys help a lot. Plus, in general, they're designed not to show any sort of perspiration.

Washing the shirt is another issue. I think you have to dry-clean it, though I haven't gotten my shirt so dirty that I have had to do that.

I just wished that at the Jack-and-Jill competition they just let me remain #24? than wear a number. :wink: I guess I should spend the couple hundred dollars on a custom-made jersey with my name and my favorite number on the back. (Hmmm dancing devil #666 available?)

Unfortunately you cannot have baseball jerseys and dance ballroom all that well, so I agree with everyone else's suggestions.

[Taita]

One of my little tricks.......

Perspiration is a fact of life. The body will perspire in order to help manage it's temperature. However, I'd rather be known for my charm and dancing ability than my perspiration :wink: . Coming from a sports background, I learned how to better manage my perspiration and apply many of the same principles to dancing. For me, that means 3 things.

1. Warmup
Be sure to warmup. Warming up will better acclimate your body to vigorous activity. Not only would this prevent injury, but I find that it helps me sweat less. This way, it's not such a shock when I start dancing and my body does not respond with excess sweat. When I can, I try to either run or go to an intense Yoga class before I go dancing. A proper warmup will also help calm the mind which may in turn lead to more efficient movement when combined with a warmed up body. Greater efficiency = less effort = less sweat 8) .

2. Clothing
Being accustomed to long hours of vigorous activity (thanks SK :wink: ), I learned to pay attention to minor details like clothing. When dancing, I try to wear natural, breathable fabrics with one exception:

Instead of a regular T-Shirt, I will wear an athletic dri-weave shirt that you can find in many sporting good stores. I find them to be very comfortable and exceptional at absorbing large amounts of moisture. I also find them far superior to dissipating because they are designed to dissipate moisture with body heat. Even after a really hard, drenching, workout, my shirt usually comes out dry. They can be a bit pricey, but if perspiration is something you are concerned about, it may be worth the investment.

3. Hydration
This is probably the most important part. In 2 words, drink water. Drink lots of water. Your body is about 80% water (90% if you hold it for a long time :wink: ). Again, drink lots of water, much more than what you are probably drinking now. I know it's not always easy or convenient, but get in the habit of carrying a water bottle with you everywhere. There are a whole host of benefits to drinking water from more energy to youthful appearance that I won't get into.

As far as perspiration, some may argue that more water = more sweat. However, also understand that more water also = greater temperature management and less of a need to sweat. You also won't pass out from dehydration :wink: .

Incorporating these strategies allows me to go longer with a consistent, high level of energy for hours with less perspiration. Naturally, it has also lead to greater enjoyment of dancing as well as better health.

Hope this helps....

Back to lurk mode....

[TemptressToo]

Well...depending on the dance...entirely understandable to sweat. My favorite (and passion) lately is swing that is VERY physically exerting. The guys especially get drenched. Most of the time, I dress light enough and show enough skin to not get that sweaty. Also, the dance hall we use is an old building with vaulted ceilings and it holds the heat. I was begging the promoter to open the doors the other day. It is starting to heat up in Florida and the hall was especially hot. It also might have resulted from my wearin a very vintage outfit (swingy dress with crinolin underneath PLUS little black kid gloves). The top was a cotton that absorbed any amount of moisture. Most of the time, I wear cotton blends that wicks away the moisture instead of holding it.

I've also found it helps to take occasional breaks. I've been unable to take as many breaks lately as I've been in demand as a partner.

[pygmalion]

Glad to see I'm not the only one conscious of my own sweat. :shock: 8)

[salsachinita]

My friend made a comment on Sunday & got me thinking; she said: "Wow, I am drenched...! How come you are still so dry? You don't sweat much, do you?"

It was pretty cool (semi-outdoor) with the sea breeze where we were dancing, and I danced more than she did......AND I know for a fact that I'm not one of those non-sweating people.

Could improved fitness have something to do with less excessive sweating..... :? ?

[tsb]

Did she have an open back top on youngsta? I really wish more women wouldn't do that...it makes for one clammy cross body lead... :?
Yep open back...and the sweat was ice cold! : :shock:

sounds like it would have been better if she'd had her top on backwards! :lol:

[dancin_feet]

Could improved fitness have something to do with less excessive sweating..... :? ?

Definitely! You can always tell the people who have just started dancing, or who don't do it that much. Within a couple of dances they are sweating, and puffing ..... not really all that attractive.

I tend to not sweat that much while at the studio because of the airconditioning. Fortunately there is no-one there who really sweats a lot or has unfortunate body odour! Makes it a pleasant, but energetic night out!

[Neil]

... Could improved fitness have something to do with less excessive sweating..... :? ?

I've heard the opposite, when you're in better shape, your body becomes better at cooling itself, that means that the sweat glands get bigger and you have more water available to sweat. A given amount of "work" requires a certain amount of energy expenditure that generates heat. "Work" is moving mass against gravity. It produces the same amount of heat whether you are fit or not. On the other hand, if you are an experienced dancer, you will waste less effort, therefore produce less heat. I think that's what's really going on. I used to run six miles per day before I started dancing, but I perspire a lot less now that I move move more efficiently, take smaller steps, etc.

[salsachinita]

... Could improved fitness have something to do with less excessive sweating..... :? ?

if you are an experienced dancer, you will waste less effort, therefore produce less heat. I think that's what's really going on.

Aha......... :P ...........thanks, Neil! You've made my day :wink: !

(another small step towards my break-through 8) )

[tsb]

Could improved fitness have something to do with less excessive sweating..... :? ?

not necessarily. bob ctvrtlik (yes, buy me a vowel) on the us olympic volleyball team sweated up a storm - he regularly went through 10 jerseys each match. i doubt any of us are as fit as he was then. some people just sweat more & i happen to be in that category. i used to envy those who didn't perspire until one told me that they got overheated more quickly because they couldn't bleed off heat through evaporation.

personally, i've noticed a direct correlation to the type and quantity of hair product i use. but as my hair is quite dark and fairly thick despite the shortness in length that might be as much a factor as the hair gel.

[JohnK]

I sweat fairly easily, and I get more exercise than most, though I still carry a few extra pounds. I suspect if I dropped those pounds (still trying), there would be a double benefit - less exertion to move that extra mass around, and less insulation to inhibit heat loss.

In the interim, though, I stick to short sleeve polo shirts, and look for the lightest weight natural fabric. So far, I've noticed that pima cotton polo's seem to be a lot cooler (the ladies say it is softer to the touch too) than the vast majority of "mesh knit" stuff that's out there. Ralph Lauren had a selection of them, though it looks like they're sold only during the summer in my area.

Also looking through the travel / tropical wear catalogs for clothing specifically designed for hot and humid climes. Taita mentioned a "dry weave" fabric above, I think there is a relatively new fabric out there called "CoolMax" specifically designed to dry 2x to 3x faster than cotton. TravelSmith.com has a couple of shirts made of the stuff, have some on order, I'll report back after a few test drives.

[pygmalion]

Cool. Please report back. They have a neat looking T-shirt dress I want that's supposed to be quick dry, hand washable. Perfect for travel or dancing, come to think of it. 8) :D

[borikensalsero]

My friend made a comment on Sunday & got me thinking; she said: "Wow, I am drenched...! How come you are still so dry? You don't sweat much, do you?"

It was pretty cool (semi-outdoor) with the sea breeze where we were dancing, and I danced more than she did......AND I know for a fact that I'm not one of those non-sweating people.

Could improved fitness have something to do with less excessive sweating..... :? ?

The fitter you are the faster you will sweat. Reason being that the body readies itself to go all out even before you go all out, hence keeping itself ready for optimal performance. The body starts cooling itself before you get deeper into the workout, if it didn’t he body would have no choice but to slow down instead of step up because of over-heating. So a deeply fit athlete will most likely (gene's not allowing acting otherwise) will sweat with a greater ease than someone who isn't as fit. It’s just the way the body functions, the more action involved the heavier we will sweat. Those that do not follow that norm is because of genes and not really the “normal” reaction of the body.

What makes a person who is a newbie sweat is not per se the dance, but the lack of knowing how to dance and the mind working against them. The mind coupled with the inability to dance causes the body to overheat at a greater degree hence causing us to seemingly sweat more as newbies. But the reasons of why yield us the understanding as to why. We have all felt our bodies get hot, our faces, and ears seem to burn, just by standing on the side, we even break into a sweat as newbies from looking at the dancers we might dance next to. Why? Because our mind is already acting on its own as to what might happen. All the extra pressure caused by the mind gives the body no choice but to cool itself down. Hence, the deep sweating we all seem to have as newbies, which is merely a reaction to the mind’s work and the body feeling that pressure. Consequently we need more energy than the dance calls for to dance, which is directly related to the amount of sweat with such ease as newbies. Not pre se, because we don’t know how to dance, but more so because our mind is causing the body to react to added pressure…

Once we are comfortable with ourselves and know how to dance. It will take longer for us to sweat only because we are dancing with a greater confidence and easiness, hence the seemingly reduced sweating, which has been caused by a lessened degree of effort as opposed to the more effort put forth as a newbie to dance. The more we dance the easier it becomes to glide on the floor as opposed to fighting for each step. Being advance directly relates to the amount of energy we use to do the same dance better and faster and seamlessly than being a beginner, hence the difference in sweat. Caused by the lack of skilled but multiplied by the mind.

The rule of thumb is that more fitness equals to more sweat faster. Not really how much a person will sweat, but when it will start, the degree of sweat is directly related to the degree of effort exerted by the body. Natural body reaction. If we were to grab 2 people and put them through the same extraneous tests, the fittest individual would end up sweating much more. Then again we can't really compare 2 people and sweating, everyone is different.... The rule still holds...

[borikensalsero]

Now... I don't mind sweat at all. As long as my partner doesn't over do the touchy touchy feely feely thing. There are times that I'm just too hot from dancing that I rather you keep your hands to yourself in the dance as oppossed to all over my neck, head, chest, hands... Besides that point, sweat all you want.

[Sarah]

The rule of thumb is that more fitness equals to more sweat faster. Not really how much a person will sweat, but when it will start, the degree of sweat is directly related to the degree of effort exerted by the body. Natural body reaction. If we were to grab 2 people and put them through the same extraneous tests, the fittest individual would end up sweating much more. Then again we can't really compare 2 people and sweating, everyone is different.... The rule still holds...

This tallies with my personal experience - when I was training for my last martial arts grading, it seemed that I only had to put my uniform on and I'd start to sweat[1].

Cheers
Sarah

[1] Not glow. Glow doesn't drip off the ends of one's hair.

[pygmalion]

It seems I sweat more when I'm fit, too. You should have seen me when I was preparing for my dance comp last year. I had to change my shirt in the middle of every lesson, that's how sweaty I got. I think my metabolism was way up from all the exercise. Or maybe I'm just weird.

I'm looking around the web for an article on this. Haven't found anything yet, though. :(

[vey]

I've noticed that when I feel a good connection and a dance is satisfying, I absolutely don't care about my partner's sweat, I just do not notice it...
On the other hand, when things are not going smoothly enough, my attention wanders and I might notice it... :(

I'm getting sweaty (and cold) very fast (I really like Borikens info and would like to think that that's because I'm terribly fit :lol: ). When I feel that my top is ... well.., quite wet, I usually warn the next person asking me, but, amazingly, nobody yet backed off inspite of my warnings (may be they were just being nice?!)... :)

[lily]

A couple of the places I go dancing have these huge roles of paper available. It's a really good idea as we can wipe away the sweat whenever we need to without having to leave the dance floor every time.

Having said that, I agree that a change of clothing is an excellent idea. Sweaty and therefore slippery hands and arms are not only rather unpleasant but more importantly they can be dangerous if the follower looses her grip.

[MapleLeaf Salsero]

Interesting Topic.

Well, I sweat just as much as the average person, however, at clubs I don´t sweat all that much. This is due to several reasons:

a) I´m very relaxed when I dance, no tension, no stress.

b) My style of dancing is slow and smooth. I don´t move around alot unnecessarily, therefore don´t waste too much energy or effort.

c) I dance all the slow songs and usually sit out the turbo ones.

d) I rest between songs regularly. Usually dance 3-4 consecutive songs, then rest 1-2.

e) I wear a 100% cotton muscle shirt underneath my shirt which absorbs most of the sweat leaving the outside shirt fairly dry.

I´ve found that by doing this I can manage to keep the problem under control.
:)