New research from the University at Buffalo suggests the thermal comfort of young men and women can vary during exercise and the recovery stage. Findings were published in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise.

Ten men and 10 women in their early 20s rode a stationary bike at a low intensity while wearing a neck cooling device operated by the subject. Despite similar changes in skin temperature during exercise, female subjects wanted more cooling compared to their male counterparts.

During continued monitoring after exercise, the skin temperature of men gradually returned to normal levels in about 1 hour. Although their skin temperature returned to normal in about 10 minutes, women continued to desire more neck cooling, suggesting their core temperature remained elevated.