Fellow Londoners, how are you doing?
We’re set to reach record high temperatures of 39 to 40 degrees Celsius in the UK. As I write this, it is 37 degrees Celsius, the fan is on, the windows are closed to keep heat from coming in, and I’m drinking ice cold water, and yet…IT’S SO HOT!!
I said I wouldn’t complain, but I’ll admit, it’s getting to be a little too much now…🥵
If you’re also struggling to keep cool, here are eight things you can do to make this heat more bearable and keep safe:
- Drink plenty of water – I know this sounds super obvious, but we actually intake less water than we think. We’re meant to have 1.5 to 2 litres a day. I don’t know about you, but most days I’d be lucky to get even half of that. You can enjoy other cold drinks too, but make sure you drink at least 1.5 litres today, especially as you will be sweating most of it out!
- Keep windows closed – As I mentioned above, I’ve been doing just that this week. It may seem counter-intuitive but there is literally no wind and no cold air, so you’d just be letting heat in and making your house even warmer. And that is why I have been singing ‘No Air’ by Jordin Sparks and Chris Brown all week 😝
- Keep curtains closed – I’ll admit that I am not doing this one as I love letting the light in, but with the sunlight comes heat, so keeping your curtains/blinds closed will also keep heat out.
- Stay home (unless its absolutely essential to go out) – Travel officials and health experts have warned people not to travel – especially using public transport – unless it is essential (and no, that does not mean going to the beach). They’ve literally described this weather as life-threatening, so…don’t do it.
- Wear cool clothes – No, I don’t mean cool like chic, I mean cool like cooling. We all know not to wear thick, tight-fitting, long-sleeved, wintery clothes (at least, I hope so), but did you know that lighter colours keep you cooler? Keep those black, grey and other dark clothes in the closet, and opt for brighter colours this week.
- Avoid coffee – Ouch, you heard that right! Again, this is another one that I have not been doing. But beverages like coffee (even iced), tea and alcohol are dehydrating. Please see point one for a replacement option 👀
- Take cold showers – OBVIOUSLY! To be honest, this only cools you down for a few minutes to half an hour tops, but it’s better than nothing. Plus, it’d be gross not to!
- Try and enjoy it – I know it’s hard, but soon it will be rainy and cold again, so let’s enjoy the sun whilst we can.
I bet people in constantly hot countries are laughing at us right now, but this is the reality of living in the UK: we don’t do heatwaves well!
Take care!
With Love, Abi X
Abi's World 