NFL Team Doctor Breaks Down How to Stay Active Safely in the Heat

On the latest episode of The Educated Patient Podcast, host Mike DeMarco spoke with Maria Kyriacou, M.D., a primary care sports medicine physician at Baptist Health Orthopedic Care, part of Baptist Health South Florida. Kyriacou serves as a team physician for the Miami Dolphins, the Florida Panthers and Inter Miami, and she explained that heat acclimation is a structured, progressive process, not something athletes can skip.

New players arriving from cooler climates, she said, get extra attention during training camp. Teams gradually increase how long players train, how much gear they wear and how intensely they push themselves over the course of days, rather than throwing anyone into full-intensity heat exposure on Day 1.

Kyriacou said the same acclimation principles apply to nonathletes, whether someone is visiting Florida from a cooler state or has lived there for years. She recommends adjusting workout intensity, duration or the time of day exercise happens rather than pushing through discomfort. Physiologically, she explained, the body redirects blood circulation toward the skin to support sweating and cooling once core temperature rises, which pulls resources away from working muscles and leads to quicker fatigue.