Lorretta Arrington refuses to let the sweltering summer slow her down.

“I value my health a lot,” says the Georgia Perimeter College Academic Affairs employee, noting that so far this summer she has completed multiple runs, rides and a triathlon. “I usually compete in 20 events a year.”

Arrington dodges the hotness and humidity with simple adjustments like biking before the sun rises and swimming in the lake earlier than normal to avoid elevated temps and crowds. She also ups her intake of fluids.

However, GPC director of Health, Wellness and Recreation Rodney Pegues says that, unlike Arrington, people too often dial down the pace of their summer fitness routines.

“A lot of times, they just don’t want to get hot and sweaty,” he says. (See Pegues’ 10 Cool Tips for Summertime Fitness.)

Neither heat nor sweat is a deterrent for Michelle Solomon, Student Services, Decatur, who despite the sizzling summer is exceeding her annual fitness targets.

“I made a goal to participate in at least one 5K a month, but now I do at least two,” she says, admitting high temperatures do make it more challenging.

Newton Campus English instructor Deborah Byrd is hopeful that a summer road trip will pull her and her husband out of their fitness slump.

“We never work out anymore,” she confesses. “We used to climb Stone Mountain, take bike rides, work out at the gym, swim, hike and play tennis; and we can’t figure out why we stopped.”

The Byrds soon will spend three weeks traveling by car, with ample time to hike, swim and sightsee at national parks.

“We hope our trip will jumpstart us out of inertia,” she says.

When it comes to fitness, enthusiasts such as Gelia Dolcimascolo, of Dunwoody's Learning and Tutoring Center, says it’s business as usual for her.

“Summer is no different for me than the rest of the year,” she says. “Ballet classes, swimming and walking keep me cross-exercising.”

Water fitness is a biggie for adjunct accounting instructor Karyn Smith, who’s anticipating her family’s vacation to Camp Brosius in Wisconsin.

“One of the events at this camp is a challenge to swim one mile in the lake before breakfast,” Smith says. “I did this in 2012, but it took me over an hour, and I nearly missed breakfast!”

While Smith—who teaches online for GPC—is training to shave her swim time, she’s also enjoying her new tandem recumbent bike. She bought the cycle so that she and her daughter Bella, who she describes as “cognitively impaired but mobile,” could hit the trails in Normal, Ill., where they’ve lived for the past six years.

“I know I need to stay healthy to care for her as long as possible and keep her healthy,” Smith says.

Similarly, Lt. Jorge Portalatin Torres, Public Safety, gets physically active with his son—and there’s no slowdown for summer.

“About a year ago, my now 15-year-old son came to me wanting to do a father-son activity and, as a result, we started training in mixed martial arts or MMA,” Portalatin says.

“I get to spend time with my teenage son doing something he loves to do … and it is a great form of exercise that keeps me in shape, which is great given my profession.”

Working out with loved ones—during summer months or anytime—is always a good move, Pegues says. The wellness expert also stresses the importance of enjoying one’s self during this time of year. 

“Everybody wants to eat and drink and have a good time, but just try to balance it out with some physical activity.”