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I need fluid intake help for Half Ironman or longer
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 2010-07-19 3:38 PM |
New user 5 |  Subject: I need fluid intake help for Half Ironman or longerI have always had a problem with dehydration and drinking enough fluids during race and training. I just quit the Racine 70.3 because I was cramping coming off the bike. It was a very hot race, but I didn't think it was too bad until.... I weighed myself post race. I am 6', 227 pounds, 16.9% body fat (don't look like the typical tri pro) Race day morning I weighed 227, ate breakfast, drank water and sipped gatorade until race start. I chugged about 10 ounces 15 minutes before race start (man, its tough to pee while swimming in a wetsuit, fyi). During the bike, I took in 55 ounces of fluid. 25 ounces of water and 30 ounces of special drink mix that has more sodium and potassium than gatorade type stuff. I thought this was enough, but as usually, it wasn't. After the race, I weighed myself and lost 10 pounds!!! This was just from a swim/bike. In the past I have lost 17 pounds in a HIM, 21 pounds in a HIM, and 14 pounds in an Olympic. I feel as if I drink plenty, until the bloated feeling and can't drink any more. Does anyone have any advice for keeping properly hydrated? Do people lose more weight than others in their sweat? When I sweat, I leave behind large amounts of salt on my skin. Please help if you have any advice. I am doing the Cedar Point HIM in September and need to train and practice with new hydration tips. |
| 2010-07-19 6:36 PM in reply to: #2990727 |
Expert 1360   | Subject: RE: I need fluid intake help for Half Ironman or longer During my Half IM in June, i drank around 100 oz (I'm a little iffy on the imperial units), a little over 3L on the bike (or 6 pounds). At each aid station, I probably took in another 200 mL or so which would have been around 2L on the run (4 pounds). I would suggest training your body to be able to drink more on your training rides. Everyone sweats differently, will have a different salt content and sweat volume, you need to find what works for you. With the cramping coming off the bike, I would think that means one of two things 1) you pushed harder on the bike than you were trained to do or 2) your electrolytes were out of balance. 30 oz of a drink mix with electrolytes very easily could not have been enough considering that from the sounds of it you are a pretty salty sweater. Also, how was your energy level? if you only had 30 oz of something with calories in it during the bike, you were likely setting yourself up for a bonk unless it was an ultra concentrated bottle of Infinit or something like that. Gatorade would have around 200 cals in 30 oz. During a half IM, you should be taking in around that much per hour (or more) at your size. |
| 2010-07-19 7:19 PM in reply to: #2990727 |
Champion 19812    MA | Subject: RE: I need fluid intake help for Half Ironman or longer I agree with what she said ^^^ You can do a sweat test to see how much you are actually sweating..here is a calculator You can train yourself to drink more. 55 oz in 2.5-3 hours isn't very much fluid intake. Try to drink more like 1.5 to two bottles an hour which would be about 36- 44 oz per hour not ~20 which you were doing. You sweat and pee salt water so drinking plain water dilutes your electrolytes in your body. Best to replace the salt water you sweat and pee with fluid with salt in it. |
| 2010-07-20 1:26 AM in reply to: #2991171 |
| Master 5557 , California | Subject: RE: I need fluid intake help for Half Ironman or longer IMCdA this year was about 88 degrees and I was finishing off my profile bottle (24 oz?) every hour. I stopped to relieve myself twice on the bike and once on the run, and was in the "safe" zone on this chart: http://beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=217060&start=1 But everyone is different. The best thing to do is practice in the same temperatures if you can to acclimatize, and figure out exactly what kind of fluid intake you're going to need on race day. Edited by spudone 2010-07-20 1:27 AM |
| 2010-07-20 11:38 AM in reply to: #2990727 |
Veteran 740 The Woodlands, TX | Subject: RE: I need fluid intake help for Half Ironman or longer The questions you bring up are good and I doubt you'll find easy answers. I have a lot of the same questions. Most of the info you see published seems to indicate that people in extreme conditions can process less than 40-oz of fluid per hour. The Hammer web site has a number of articles about this topic that are interesting. I know that when I run in the Texas heat and humidity, I sweat off around 7 lbs per hour. If the goal is to make sure you don't loose more than 3% body weight and the end of the day, the numbers don't add up. I can handle this for a 3-hour long run or ride, but not for a 12-hour day. |
| 2010-07-20 11:59 AM in reply to: #2992387 |
| Master 5557 , California | Subject: RE: I need fluid intake help for Half Ironman or longer Can people "train" their systems to metabolize fluids at a faster rate? I don't know about this, but if you train in the heat your body will eventually acclimatize so you don't sweat as much. |
| 2010-07-20 10:37 PM in reply to: #2991171 |
| New user 5 | Subject: RE: I need fluid intake help for Half Ironman or longer you and daffodil had some good advice and thoughts. I guess I'll try practice drinking 30oz per hour on my training rides just to see how I handle it. 100ounces seems like a lot in 3 hours though. I'm doing a 60 mile ride this weekend and I'll force myself to drink that much. My drink mix is about 300 calories per 20 ounces, so I get a lot through fluid and then another 100/hour or so by snacking on a clif bar. |
| 2010-07-21 4:31 PM in reply to: #2990727 |
| Extreme Veteran 476 WI | Subject: RE: I need fluid intake help for Half Ironman or longer Interesting. I might have to separately post my issue which seems to be opposite of where this thread is going. For this thread: Instead of training your body to take in more, what about training your body to take in less calories and/or fluids to use them more efficiently for what you do take in? I don't mean to suggest playing catch up with your energy level while training/racing, that could be dangerous. But knowing each person has an optimal level of calorie and fluid intake could you actually be training your body to only use what it takes in and not rely on some of the stored glycogen and fat by training to take in more? I intake a ton of calories, but try to space them out. This is all a mystery to me, and I know there is science out there to tell us how much we burn and what we should take in. The trick is to figure it all out for a swim, bike, run since each burns more or less based on one's own intensity of each event. |
| 2010-07-21 7:44 PM in reply to: #2992453 |
Extreme Veteran 504 SW Florida Gulf Coast | Subject: RE: I need fluid intake help for Half Ironman or longer spudone - 2010-07-20 12:59 PM Can people "train" their systems to metabolize fluids at a faster rate? I don't know about this, but if you train in the heat your body will eventually acclimatize so you don't sweat as much. Once you acclimate to heat, you actually sweat more (and earlier). However, salt losses through sweat and urine are reduced. I agree with many of the recommendations made above. I do not tolerate the heat well at all and have a lot of trouble with events or training days lasting longer than 3 hours. I usually take in about 35-40oz of fluid an hour during training. Some days, I take in even more. It's a tough road. I often feel like 'g-shotts' mentioned above, in that some folks seem to be naturally better equipped to handle long distance in heat/humidity. Edited by shellabree 2010-07-21 8:09 PM |
| 2010-07-21 8:37 PM in reply to: #2990727 |
Veteran 930 Morgan Hill, California | Subject: RE: I need fluid intake help for Half Ironman or longer Somewhat related question: do you carry your preferred liquid on the run, or rely on aid stations to get enough? |
| 2010-07-21 8:38 PM in reply to: #2990727 |
Master 2210 Columbus, OhioCoaching member | Subject: RE: I need fluid intake help for Half Ironman or longer If possible, drink colder fluids. This makes them more palatable, AND they cool you off better and reduce sweat rate. This could mean stopping for something at a gas station, using Camelbak or insulated bottles, freezing bottles overnight, etc. |
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