How to survive the summer, according to the season’s biggest haters

For What It’s Worth is a live podcast about the stuff we use, the trends we question and the products we can’t stop talking about. Stream new episodes bi-weekly on YouTube, hosted by NBC Select editorial director Lauren Swanson and NBC Select reporter Zoe Malin. Shop our product picks below and on Amazon.

Surviving the hot, sweaty, humid summer is quite the feat, especially during this year’s seemingly never-ending heat waves. Often, doing so requires you to call in the reinforcements: products that keep you as cool, hydrated and sunburn-free as possible. In the inaugural episode of For What It’s Worth, NBC Select’s live podcast, hosts Lauren Swanson, editorial director, and Zoe Malin, reporter, break down their summer essentials and hacks that help them cope with unbearable temperatures.

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ZOE: I remember my first summer moving back to the city after living in Chicago for a few years, and it was the first day we were back in office since 2020. It was right after Labor Day, and it was at least 90-something degrees. I walked out of my apartment, and I think I must have forgotten how to dress because I was walking to the office, I live 15 minutes away, drenched. I was dying. And I was walking up to the door to get into the office, and I was like, Oh my god, I’m meeting half these people for the first time in person today. This is so embarrassing. And I opened the door, and I’m like, oh my god, we all look this way. We are all sweating through our clothes. We all look dead inside. I was like, Wow, okay, this is kind of nice to know that we’re in it together. Because we all feel the same way. There’s no enjoying this. You’re being cooked.

LAUREN: You’re being cooked from the inside out. You’re like the lobster in the pot.

ZOE: That’s how I feel, like I’m being air fried.

LAUREN: So that’s what we’re going to talk about today.

ZOE: How to manage it. How to just get through it.

LAUREN: How to get through summer. This is Zoe, I’m Lauren.

ZOE: Let’s chat.

LAUREN: And we’re going to talk about summer. Welcome back.

ZOE: Welcome back on the hottest day on planet Earth,

Lauren: On the hottest day in 12 years in New York.

ZOE: That makes me sick. It actually makes me sick. When I looked at the weather app and I saw 98, 97, 100, I felt nauseous. I felt anxiety bubble in my whole body.

LAUREN: What’s the real feel?

ZOE: The real feel is 100% at least 104.

LAUREN: 103, close.

ZOE: I really can’t with it. Is this going to be a no-outside-run summer?

LAUREN: This is like a snow day.

ZOE: Right!

LAUREN: We shouldn’t have had work today.

ZOE: Exactly, I feel the same way.

LAUREN: We should have all stayed inside. I had to check on my 90-year-old neighbors and be like, Do you need groceries? Please stay inside.

ZOE: Seriously.

LAUREN: Nobody should be outside right now.

ZOE: I agree. Once I realized that there’s nothing I like about this, I decided that I’m just going to be a summer hater, and that’s going to be part of my identity. And some people are like, you’re nuts. And then other people are like, you know what? I actually agree with you. We should all just say it. But it also is very different when you’re in a city versus suburb, I think. In the city –

LAUREN: You’re outside, you walk everywhere.

ZOE: You have no choice but to walk and to be outdoors. Even if you’re trying to limit being outdoors, you still have to do it at some point. But I was thinking back to when I was an intern at my local newspaper many years ago, and I was living in the suburbs, so I’d wake up, work out inside, then shower, then get into my air conditioned car, then go to my air conditioned office, then get back in my air conditioned car, and then go to my air conditioned home.

LAUREN: You’re like, what do people complain about? This is lovely.

ZOE: The only thing I had to complain about was walking from my car in the parking lot to the office. So I was really not suffering. You’re suffering here in the city.

LAUREN: You’re suffering, the trash smells on the sidewalk, everything smells, everything’s wrong, we’re all miserable. But at least, like you said, we’re miserable together.

ZOE: But I feel like the interesting thing is when you meet people who have never had a summer in the city, and they are like, What do I do? What do I wear? I love those people. Because I just feel like, let me stand on my soapbox for a moment here. And it is interesting that we all have our little tricks to just survive.

LAUREN: Great segway, Zoe. What are your tips? What are your tricks?

ZOE: Well, you have to have a neck fan. You must.

LAUREN: You got yours from Amazon?

ZOE: I literally don’t even know why that was the one, but I was just like, This looks fantastic, and it is. I’m obsessed with it. I charge it every night. You don’t have to do that, but I just cannot have this thing break down.

LAUREN: You can’t be mid-subway commute and then have it absolutely crash.

ZOE: Absolutely not. I would die. I also think one thing for me that is so key is you need to be as cool as humanly possible before you leave your home. In my tiny little bathroom, when I’m doing my makeup, it’s so hot, so I have an enormous fan blasting and I’m freezing. I feel like that prepares me well to go outside because then at least my body temperature is starting low. I’m not starting high, which I feel like is important. I also have these body wipes that I keep in my bag because you feel so disgusting. You always feel disgusting in the city, that’s part of life, but especially when you’re hot and disgusting, there’s literally nothing worse to me than feeling that way and having to be at the office for eight hours, or go to dinner with your friends. I can’t enjoy being there because I’m so uncomfortable. So I carry those everywhere, and they smell lovely, and you really feel like you just took a shower.

LAUREN: Which ones are they?

ZOE: I think they’re from the brain, Yuni. I’m almost positive. And I discovered them last year. I originally got them because I would wipe off after a run and then go to brunch with my friends or something. But then I was like, I need to subscribe and save — this is one of my subscribe and save items — and carry these with me all summer. Taking four or five seconds to wipe yourself off after you’re in the heat, you feel like a new person. That’s huge. I also think my water bottle sling is essential.

LAUREN: Calpak?

ZOE: The Calpak one. Fantastic. Oh, and a cooling towel, of course. I am a huge cooling towel person.

LAUREN: That’s another Amazon one?

ZOE: The Sunkeen Amazon ones are the bomb. They come in a pack of four, and I will use them at home right before I leave, again, to lower your body temperature. But also, I always put one in a Stasher Bag and keep it in my bag because then it stays freezing, and you can use it whenever you want and carry it around.

LAUREN: That’s a good tip. Okay, so rank them. What’s your rank? Build your team.

ZOE: I would say neck fan first.

LAUREN: That’s your non-negotiable.

ZOE: Yes, I’m not leaving the house without that this time of year.

LAUREN: And you have the one that’s –

ZOE: That’s around your neck. And I was like, is this going to be bulky and annoying? No.

LAUREN: You see them everywhere now. I feel like last year was the first year that I started seeing them everywhere. I don’t think I’ve seen them in previous years.

ZOE: Me either. I honestly never heard of them. Maybe they were around, but I just didn’t notice.

LAUREN: They honestly look like a pair of headphones.

ZOE: They totally do.

LAUREN: I brought mine one time on a picnic in the park, and I think I sold about four.

ZOE: I believe it.

LAUREN: I’m like, here’s my Amazon link.

ZOE: People experience it one time if they try yours, and they cannot go without it again. I want to get another one, not a neck fan, but there’s one that I see on TikTok that you clip to your pants and then air blows up your body.

LAUREN: Have you seen the one that’s a hat? It has fans on it.

ZOE: I’ve seen that, too.

LAUREN: I feel like you should get it.

ZOE: I feel like I should get every fan imaginable, and then you’ll hear me whirling.

LAUREN: Oh, Zoe’s coming.

ZOE: Literally. So my neck fan is non-negotiable.

LAUREN: That’s your starter.

ZOE: Then I would say the cooling towel.

Lauren: Number two.

ZOE: Then the body wipes, then the water bottle sling. Because the water bottle sling is a nice to have.

LAUREN: It’s good for a walk.

ZOE: Right, but I don’t think it’s mandatory. I do love it, I will say. It’s the best. It’s so nice, too, because it has pockets. I put my keys in there, my AirPods, my phone — the bomb.

LAUREN: Do you go on walks a lot in the summer?

ZOE: I try to not ever go outside in the summer, but if I have to walk somewhere — for example, the grocery store, take my dog to daycare, go to an appointment — then I bring it. I don’t even use a purse. I’ll just use that.

LAUREN: What are your fitness roles in the summer? What do you do? Because you’re a runner, and we were just talking about the joys of running in the summer.

ZOE: Oh, yes. So joyful.

LAUREN: What do you do instead? Do you do the treadmill as much as possible?

ZOE: My philosophy is to minimize suffering in the summer, so I will not run outside. If it’s a cooler day and I can run really early or really late, fine, I’ll do it. But it’s not just the temperature, it’s the humidity. Like, I cannot breathe, you know?

LAUREN: Yes, and then it’s more like swimming than running.

ZOE: Exactly. And I don’t know about you, but if I have a bad run, I get so depressed.

LAUREN: I’m sad, I’m angry, the rest of my day is ruined.

ZOE: I’m always like, I shouldn’t have even run.

LAUREN: I might as well have walked.

ZOE: It doesn’t even count. No, you literally just ran 10 miles. It counts, but you just feel so gross, so I would rather run on the treadmill. I’m fine with it. I tell myself that this is a moment in time, it’s fine, I know I will have a better run. So, I’ll just run inside. There are days that I’m like, it’s a little overcast, the humidity is not horrible, so if I run at six AM or really late at night, it’s fine. Most of the time, though, I’ll just go inside. I just can’t. I’ve had two experiences, one last summer and then one before that, where I really thought I was going to throw up. I was like, I don’t know if I’m going to make it through this run. And that made me feel like, you can never do this again.

LAUREN: Especially with the hills in the park — those will kill you, plus the heat and the humidity. Last year, I was walking up the hills, and I was like, what is wrong with me? I’m not going to be able to make it through the marathon. I can’t even walk up this freaking hill. I’m on mile one. I had to stop at every water station.

ZOE: I think the other thing people don’t remember is how your muscles seize, and that scares me, too. My calves will hurt so badly, and that feeling is very scary to me.

LAUREN: Then it’s time for a swim. That might be my game plan anytime during the heat wave. I don’t think I’m going to run. I think I’m just going to go to the pool.

ZOE: So many people do that. But if you’re training for a marathon, or you’re just a runner or whatever, I think you need to accept that you have to go slower.

LAUREN: That’s such a non-runner thing to do, though. They’ll run through a broken foot. I had a broken toe, and I was like, I think I can run the Brooklyn Half.

ZOE: I’ve done that, too.

LAUREN: Like, no. You’re crazy.

ZOE: But you have to accept it because it does not have anything to do with you. It’s your circumstances. But it’s such a hard thing to accept and it sucks.

LAUREN: All right, so, what do you do for beauty in the heat?

ZOE: I try not to wear makeup.

LAUREN: What are your starting players for beauty in the heat? Do you use spritzes, sprays?

ZOE: I’ll use a hypochlorous acid spray if I’m really sweaty, but I really try not to wear makeup. I can’t handle the feeling of it on my face.

LAUREN: Do you ever go in with a tinted moisturizer?

ZOE: Yes, I’ll do tinted sunscreen, and that’s it. I can’t do anything else. I physically cannot do it. If it’s really, really hot, I won’t even do a tinted sunscreen. I’ll just do sunscreen, period, done, move on, because I know that I’m going to be so insanely hot. I also will carry around those little wipes since you can use them on your face, too. And I’ll wipe my face off so I feel clean. I would rather not wear makeup. I can’t handle it.

LAUREN: What about hair? Because you have curly hair.

ZOE: Yes, my hair expands.

LAUREN: What’s your curl type?

ZOE: I have no idea.

LAUREN: We’ll figure out.

ZOE: I will walk outside and feel my hair growing, just expanding. So if it’s a day that I need to wear my hair down for something, I’ll just kind of accept that it’s going to be larger than life. Then, other days, I will slick it back. I have a hair wax stick, and I don’t know what brand it is, but I love it. I’ll put my hair in a braid and call it a day. I can’t deal with it.

LAUREN: That’s what I do, too. On these hot days, it’s a banana clip, it’s a claw clip, it’s hair up. Don’t even worry about it.

ZOE: It’s not worth it.

LAUREN: But my hair isn’t curly so that makes it a little easier.

ZOE: I feel like that’s part of the reason I hate the summer. Curly hair is not built for the summer. It’s simply not. People are always like, Your hair is curlier, and it looks more defined in the humidity. That’s great, but I feel like my head is 17 times its average size. I just feel it.

LAUREN: Like a bobble head.

ZOE: Yes! I once took a video, I have to find it, of me right before I left the house and what my hair looked like. And then, after 10 minutes outside, it looked like I’d been electrocuted. It grows that much. It’s not a good time.

LAUREN: Crazy, I hate it. I have a good hack, though. I used to use this a lot. In my first apartment in the city, I was too cheap to run the air conditioner, but I had one, so I’d sometimes use it. In my second apartment, I only had an air conditioner in the living room, and I was too cheap to buy one for the bedroom. So I would run a fan with a bowl of ice near it because I was thinking, oh, let me DIY this. It did not work. I would be nice and cold in the shower, but the second I stepped out, I was instantly warm. The second I took the ice out of the freezer, it instantly melted. It did not work. But I learned this one hack that when you’re outside and it’s really hot, if you put a little peppermint oil behind your neck, then every time any little bit of wind catches it, it sends shivers down your spine.

ZOE: I love this.

LAUREN: You have to reapply it every 15 or 20 minutes, and some people are sensitive to peppermint oil, so it can cause a little rash, but who cares? It’s in the back.

ZOE: I feel the same way.

LAUREN: And it works.

ZOE: I want to do this. I’ll try anything.

LAUREN: We were just talking about this. I feel like I’m bleeding money right now with the air conditioning unit, trying to keep my little Bombay cat nice and cool. And he has no idea it’s 104 degrees outside. He’s in a perfect, air-conditioned, 68-degree apartment, nice and cozy, sleeping, no worries in the world, and I’m over here dreading the ConEd bill. So I’ve got a lot of cheap little hacks.

ZOE: I love that. I love little hacks. I bought multiple fans for my dog. One to put in front of her crate, one to carry with us because I won’t let her go on the ground in this heat. Even with booties, the whole thing makes me so nervous.

LAUREN: Can I tell you what happened to me the other day? I was walking, and I know flip-flops are not good for New York, but I’ve been wearing them because they’re in right now. And I was walking on the street, and I thought somebody stepped on the back of my flip-flop because I was in the middle of the street crossing and my foot was stuck, like I had gotten stuck on gum, or like somebody had stepped on my shoe. It was stuck on hot tar because it was melting. And I got stuck on it, and I was like, I’m going to get hit.

ZOE: That is my fear about my dog’s paws. Even with the booties, I don’t like the whole thing. It makes me so nervous. And she’s eight pounds, she’s tiny, so I carry her in her bag everywhere, and I got a fan to clip onto the bag to give her a little breeze. She’s an indoor dog. She loves to be indoors. She’s wee-wee pad trained. She loves her indoor life. But when we walk to my family’s apartment, or we go to daycare, or I have to take her to the vet, she has to be outside for however long. So for that little amount of time, I try to make her as comfortable as possible. I’m dying, but she’s happy, so that’s what matters. And then my cats, again, like you said, are so crisp and cool in the apartment all day long. But they bake in the sun.

LAUREN: Yes! Mine is sunning on the windowsill.

ZOE: They’re so happy because they’re cold and selectively warm. I’m like, you don’t even understand what we go through as human beings.

LAUREN: Oh, he has no idea that it’s hot outside. He’s sitting on the windowsill, just living his best life.

ZOE: He’s like, Wow, this is amazing. I’m cool, but I get the sun.

LAUREN: The amount of money I do pay, and I will pay, so that he is as naive to the outside circumstances as possible.

ZOE: In his little bubble. Yes, I feel the same about mine — whatever you need. Whenever I go away in the summer, I tell my pet sitter, Please keep it at this temperature. If you’re cold, I put blankets out for you. You cannot make it warmer. Don’t do it. I’m that person.

LAUREN: The things we do. So, I have “would you rathers” for summer.

ZOE: For summer? I’d rather be in Antarctica.

LAUREN: Would you rather be hot and glowy or cold and pale?

ZOE: Cold and pale.

LAUREN: Me too. That’s pretty much my resting state.

ZOE: Me too.

LAUREN: Would you rather walk 20 minutes in New York City summer or do a treadmill run at noon?

ZOE: Treadmill run.

LAUREN: Treadmill run anytime.

ZOE: I will not run in this. I refuse to do it.

LAUREN: Exercising in this heat it’s just non-negotiable. Marathon training season for the New York City Marathon just started. We’re at the beginning of it and everybody’s running in the park. It’s 100 degrees in the park.

ZOE: It’s horrible.

LAUREN: You can’t run in the park. It’s crazy. Would you rather wear jeans in 95-degree heat or a sundress in an arctic air-conditioned office?

ZOE: A sundress in the office because if you hold a hot cup of coffee or something, there’s ways to get your temperature up a little bit. That’s why I hate summer so much. In the winter, you can do things to make yourself warmer, and then you can reach a middle ground. In the summer, you’re stuck.

LAUREN: Right, you can’t shed your skin.

ZOE: There’s only so much you can do to stay cool, and then at some point, you’re just suffering.

LAUREN: I would rather be cold, too, and then layer. I am a habitual blanket user in any season, so I need the air around me to be cold enough to use a blanket. Which blanket I use will change based on the environment outside. Like I had my little knit one that has holes in it yesterday even though it was also 95 degrees, so I was blasting the air and then I was like, I’m just going to be with my little blanket. Would you rather never use SPF again or never use deodorant again?

ZOE: I mean, I don’t want cancer, so I guess I’d have to just smell.

LAUREN: There are other things you could use instead of deodorant. I feel like you could just rinse off.

ZOE: But have you ever gone on a run and forgotten to reapply deodorant? It feels uncomfortable. It’s not even just about the scent. It’s that the feeling is uncomfortable. But that would be a really tough life.

LAUREN: To not wear sunscreen?

ZOE: To not wear deodorant. Well, I guess I could never wear SPF again and just stay inside. And as an indoor cat, I wouldn’t be upset about that.

LAUREN: I guess that’s an option. But would you even need deodorant at that point, because you’re also not outside?

ZOE: I would.

LAUREN: You would? Inside?

ZOE: Yes. The no-deodorant life is not one that I subscribe to. It’s just not for me.

LAUREN: Good for you.

ZOE: Even if I never saw human beings again, I would still need deodorant. I couldn’t do it.

LAUREN: You couldn’t be stinky?

ZOE: No.

LAUREN: I’m okay with a little stink. I would like on my tombstone to be: Lauren, she always smelled good.

ZOE: Isn’t that the best compliment?

LAUREN: But I can never get there. I’m chasing that constantly.

ZOE: It’s so funny.

LAUREN: Would you rather have sweaty bangs or a sticky sunscreen face? I feel like sweaty bangs means congested pores on your forehead.

ZOE: I agree with you. I think I’d rather have a sticky sunscreen face.

LAUREN: Would you rather be stuck outside without water or without sunglasses?

ZOE: Without sunglasses.

LAUREN: I cannot go without sunglasses. My poor little eyes are so sensitive. I need to have sunglasses.

ZOE: I do too, because our eyes are very light, that makes sense. But if I don’t have water, I will perish.

LAUREN: Like, an emotional support one?

ZOE: Yes, for sure. I have a water bottle sling, which, I was like, am I really going to do it? And then I was like, I’m never not doing it again. It’s the best thing ever because I have to have water.

LAUREN: I’m okay without water. I’m a little bit of a camel, and I also have anxi-pee. If I drink too much water, and then I get anxious when I’m outdoors, I’m going to have to pee while I’m outside. And in New York, where are you going to find a bathroom? So, I know where all the bathrooms are.

ZOE: Oh, yes, of course.

LAUREN: Go to a hotel. Go to a restaurant, pretend you’re ordering something, and be like, I changed my mind, and walk out. I have to have sunglasses, though. I also don’t want little wrinkles.

ZOE: I know, but I would rather have no sunglasses.

LAUREN: The thing that changed my life was prescription sunglasses.

ZOE: The best, I agree for sure.

LAUREN: Would you rather skip summer completely or extend it three months with perfect AC? Would you skip summer?

ZOE: Yes.

LAUREN: Me too.

ZOE: The thing about me is that I think I’ve always hated summer, but I was resistant to say it because everyone’s like, I can’t wait till summer. So I was like, in the corner being like, really? But whatever, I’m not going to ruffle feathers. I’ll just go along with the crowd.

LAUREN: And everyone’s like, summer’s almost over.

ZOE: I know, and everyone gets upset. And then I realized a couple years ago that I am my worst self in the summer. I’m miserable. I don’t want to do anything. I can’t get comfortable. I hate every single part of it. I don’t like the beach. I don’t like the pool. There’s nothing enjoyable for me.

LAUREN: I hate the beach.

ZOE: Me too. I’m sorry! I hate the beach.

LAUREN: You get sand everywhere. My feet are disgusting. Here’s the thing — I just was at the beach on Sunday. I hate the beach because they have those clean-off water stations still on the sand. And then you have to walk up the sand. There’s no point.

ZOE: Such poor design.

LAUREN: I hate sand. I think oceans are scary.

ZOE: Me too, none of our business.

LAUREN: I get way too much sun. I hate being hot. There’s the risk of umbrellas flying in your face at any moment.

ZOE: Danger. I agree, it’s miserable.

LAUREN: All right, final thoughts on summer — what’s your top tip?

ZOE: To stay indoors. And I know it sucks about the air conditioning bill if you have to pay one, but remember, it’s a couple months. That’s what I tell myself.

LAUREN: Hopefully, a couple days with this heat wave, and then it’s over.

ZOE: And hydrate.

LAUREN: Hydrate, electrolyte power…

ZOE: Drink your water, salt your food, all the things.

LAUREN: Have some watermelon, something that cools your insides down.

ZOE: Have a popsicle.

LAUREN: Oh, those are my favorite.

ZOE: Just visit Mr. Softie. We need something to get through.

LAUREN: I have a couple of races on Saturday and Sunday, and sometimes during the summer, they’ll give an after-race treat and it’s a popsicle. And I’m like, you get me.

ZOE: They understand. I also feel like, in the summer, there’s no Diet Coke limit. There’s no iced coffee limit. Do whatever you need to get through.

LAUREN: It’s like airport calories and airport food. Those don’t count. Those aren’t real. Summer ice cream is just –

ZOE: It’s infinite. There is no limit. Froyo –

LAUREN: The limit does not exist.

ZOE: Whatever you need to do, I completely agree with you.

LAUREN: All right, well, thanks for joining. Thanks for watching… until next time. Hopefully it’s cooler!

ZOE: Oh, please.

LAUREN: Fingers crossed.

I’m a reporter at NBC Select and I co-host our live podcast, For What It’s Worth, with editorial director Lauren Swanson. In this article, I summarize Episode 1: I hate summer. I included a summary of the episode, a transcript, products we recommend during the podcast and related articles.

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