Water & Electrolytes

We're having some really nice weather right now. When it comes to running-- it's too hot for me. Sometimes, I feel like a melting snowman on my lunch-time runs. As I read over how your Sunday long run went, I thought that it might be a good time to share some things I've learned through reading and experience. As the post title eludes to, I'd like to talk about water and electrolyte replacement.

Here's an easy way to find out how much water you lose per hour (keep in mind the rate in which we sweat has a lot to do with the temperature):

• Weigh yourself naked.
• Get dressed, :>), go run for an hour at long run pace (in the weather and time of day where you'd sweat the most).
• Get undressed, dry off, hop on the scale.
• This will tell you how much water you lose per hour, which means you know how much water you'll need to drink per hour to stay hydrated.
• For example, if I lost 1 lbs. in that hour, I need to convert the lbs. to ounces (usual water bottle measurement), so I know how many ounces of fluid to drink per hour: 1 (lbs.) lost X 16 (oz.) = 16 oz. of replacement fluid. You may find that you sweat less or more than that per hour. You don't know until you try it and in different temps.

With the above exercise in mind, here are some thoughts on electrolytes:

• Sodium (Salt) and Potassium (Bananas and other fruits) are main elements.
• They must be replaced.
• Common ways to replace: Sports Drink, supplement pills, fruits, etc...
• If they're not replaced at an adequate rate, then "bonking", muscle cramps, heat exhaustion, and even heat stroke can happen.

With both water and electrolytes in mind, here are a few things that I do in thinking on a long run and during a long run:

• Hydration takes place before long run day. I drink water all day/night by sipping on a water bottle most of the time. Don't get over hydrated (causes brain swelling), and if you're belly sloshes, then don't drink anymore water until it stops. I'm always adequately hydrated.
• I take 18 ounces. of sports drink (mixed from powder-- Gatorade bought in the bottle is too high in fructose, so I use the powder).
• I take two swigs every 10 minutes of sports drink (my whole run). Which means I have logistical planning to do with regard to sports drink refills (usually half-way point). Also, I have used a fuel belt in the past where I could have more than one bottle.
• Try to eat 2 bananas a day for the rest of your life.
• Contradictory to popular belief, salt is not your enemy. The big "salt scare" was in reaction to high blood pressure findings back in the day. If you're regularly running your diet has plenty of salt and will sweat it out. If you don't have enough, it will cause problems when you run.

A couple last thoughts:

• As we lose water/sweat and keep sweating, there's a point when drinking "straight" water will hurt us. When the level of salt/potassium get very low, the water drank at this point further dilutes it in our system, because it acts like a flushing agent. So, I think I'm doing good by downing the water, when in reality, I'm flushing all the goodies out. When this happens, you'll possibly get leg cramps, stomach cramps, dizziness, nausea, puking, and may become listless/incoherent. If this starts to happen, it's too late. (you are "bonking").
• Something to think about: Some people have forgotten that a bottle of sports drink is really a bottle of water with powder electrolytes. 18 ounces of sports drink is 18 ounces of water with some goodies. If you don't like the sweetness-- you can lessen the concentration of mix, or you can just get over it. It's a whole lot better than drinking only water and possibly causing a bunch of yucky stuff.
• This coming marathon, I will be drinking sports drink every 10 minutes, grabbing a little cup of water at each aid station, and pouring water on my head to cool down my core temp. These can be done on long runs as well.

That's enough for now. I hope that helps a little. I could get more into the science of it, but at this point of the game, that would just cause confusion. I hope your training continues to go well and I pray that you be smart and determined in your running.

Love ya,

Jason