Wear an undershirt in summer, yes or no?

The summer season is approaching and when it comes to planning layers and clothes there are always some doubts. Is it better to wear only the jersey? Or, on the contrary, is it more advisable to use a base layer?

Undershirt yes, undershirt no

We are going to deal with a debate that can be misleading: wearing a cycling undershirt in summer makes you hotter or cooler. Because, let's not kid ourselves, that's what we're talking about. In fact, in principle there is no unanimity around the idea, so it is best to analyze what each decision implies and why opt for one or the other.

From the start, we must avoid the idea that more clothes are synonymous with more heat. Is not always that way. In fact, some ancient civilizations do not meet this standard and there are reasons. You can see Tuareg or Berber peoples in the middle of the desert covered up to their heads. It protects them from the sun and, depending on the fabric, thin and highly breathable, their first sweat helps them to evade heat much better than if they were wearing nothing or tight clothing.

There is a lot of science behind that decision, and the centuries have made them corroborate these facts. So, is it better to wear a cycling undershirt in summer or not? Well, the general answer is yes, although with some nuances.

Me trying to figure out how to speak publicly about Blackness and archives " professionally" https://t.co/Uec39EyiJJ

— Dorothy Berry Fri Jun 12 15:24:38 +0000 2020

Why a cycling baselayer can help you in summer

As a rule, the planned layering structure of cycling clothing always works much better. Of course, it will never be the same clothing: in winter the basic layer, this cycling undershirt, has a different mission, which is to provide heat; in summer, your goal changes, and it's time to release heat, evaporate sweat better and faster.

Evaporating your sweat means physically reducing your body temperature. And that's the nuance. There are fabrics that evacuate sweat much better than the skin itself, so their mission as evaporators and coolants works like an improved second skin.

That base layer gets soaked and the wind, no matter how hot it comes, cools those microdroplets that have taken your heat away, so it cools you down better. The important thing is to choose an ideal undershirt that does this mission. Getting this wrong can be fatal.

It is no coincidence that in the middle of the Giro or the Tour, in the middle of summer, we see that many cyclists continue to wear a basic cycling shirt under the jersey. Yes, it is true that all cycling clothing manufacturers advise it, and that can make you suggest that their real intentions are to earn more money. But no, not only they say it, science says it.

And what is the nuance we were aiming for? Well, a situation that unites two weighty arguments: the first is a heat wave, extremely high temperatures that make that layer end up providing heat because it is unable to evade it, to evaporate the sweat; And also, that you do have special technical clothing for summer, that is, a jersey that can perform the functions of this base layer because it has been designed for that purpose. So, the general statement, as we say, is qualified and yes, you could do without an undershirt in summer with weighty arguments.

There are highly evolved technical clothing capable of adapting to these extreme circumstances. We refer to both undershirts and jerseys. The fundamental thing is the comfort of the cyclist. You can try a good undershirt, which will most likely be comfortable for you and will help you better regulate your temperature. In that case, choose a special second skin for summer. If there isn't an anticyclone blowing in desert air when you ride your bike, you'll do better than without it, for sure.