consuming liquids while swimming

Sometimes I just get thirsty or the chlorine dries out my throat.  And the catchy throat is just annoying so you drink some water to get rid of it.

I also swim in some freaking hot pools because of the stupid old ladies, so I can get really dehydrated in the pool if I'm working hard enough.

If I'm training for something long I might use water to wash down the gels or whatnot, but I don't necessarily need it if I'm not working too hard.  I also live in FL and the ambient temperature of the pool room has to be over 80 degrees.  Even just sitting around in that will get you dehydrated.

Why do you consume liquids when you run or bike?

You sweat when you swim, just like any other physical activity. 

sure, although in a 10K swim, you might very well have an opportunity to do this (via your kayak escort) in a race.

You mean consuming liquids OTHER than pool water?

I'd do all of my college workouts with just water, with an occasional 8oz(ish) serving of Gatorade that was usually in a big container on the pool deck if we had a long break and were doing lots of sprints.

I cramp while swimming sometimes, especially in my calves and the arches of my feet... but that generally happens when I'm not hydrated getting into the water, not due to not drinking while swimming.

If it's a salt water OWS, I'd really want something relatively sweet-tasting to counter that. I always eat starburst after scuba diving... You actually might get the same effect from a gel.

My longest OWS was an unsupported 5k, so I didn't drink or eat during it.

I thought this was about drinking lake water.

Oy, Your High Nerdness ... btw I was right about not training for a 5K means you can just double that and be ready for a 10K thanks for replying to my thread!

You're getting ready for Ultraman, or something like that, right? In the ocean? There is a WORLD of difference between going long in a pool (even just 5K) and in the ocean. You, and the inside of your mouth, will shrivel and dry up like a bad pickle. Drinking water helps mitigate this, at least in your mouth.

You don't take water with your gels? Crocodile stomach!

I've only ever drunk in pools when I was serious team swim training and honestly we busted out sets so hard we were pouring sweat, red in the face, and seriously needed to rehydrate. But when I did a 5K race in a pool, I didn't stop to drink and I was fine.

ding ding ding

We have a winner!

My swims typically last an hour and I don't usually drink during them.  But, the first thing I do when I get out is head for the water fountain.  Why?  Because I'm now dehydrated.  If you aren't, you aren't working very hard (which is hard to believe if you are swimming for that long).

Also, taking in gels without water is inefficient for digestion (though maybe the most practical in an OWS if you don't have access to water).

Thank you everyone for the responses.  Two things I just learned (BT is so awesome and even old dogs like me continue to learn):

- so my long swims have been lower intensity (although basically race pace), so i'm likely not sweating at the rate that those of you who are doing high intensity sets, hence my likely not needing water so much.

- i also have cramped in my calves and feet in the past and never realized it was dehydration.  Duh! 

Salt water is not 'dehydrating'.  It's mostly, surpise, water.

It probably isn't due to dehydration.  But, rather, swim fitness (over pointing toes, tensing up to try to maintain form as you tire, etc.).

Yanti, (side question) what are you doing for your 10K training?

Yes, ultraman coming up in 2.5 weeks.  lake swim though, not ocean, so no salt.

okay, so not so duh, but that makes sense as well.  fortunately, hasn't happened in quite awhile so maybe my fitness is better.

Good luck!!! I bet you'll have a blast!

Seriously, up to now, not very much. I snorkel without a mask, snorkel or fins (just goggles), swim from one cool set of coral to another, freedive, and take pictures of sea life.

But I'm looking to get into marathon swimming and now I'm in the ocean every day. If I were going to be really serious, I'd do what it looks like you're doing and get in the pool at least once a week and do several varied very long sets of short intervals (100s, 200s, ladders).

So far my ocean workouts are not too structured (I'm only three days past the 10K race), but I'll be looking to put in 5-7k every day, and although I can't see myself floating on breaks too much, it'll still have intervals (push it to that sightpoint, rest or swim easy, repeat) in the sense of different speeds and focusing on different things (like turnover).

There's actually not a ton of material out there on how to train for very long OWS. I think Steve Munatones wrote a book, but a lot of it focuses on triathlon swimming.

I am thinking of such things quite a bit these days.

You could stick a small bottle down the back of your jammers.

You could wear a tri top and wedge a bottle in the pocket.

You could wear something like one of those elastic-strip only Amphipod belts with clip-on bottles.

I chew Extra or some kind of "sports" or "hydration" gum; I find it really helps with the dry mouth.

It's not safe to OWS alone.  Get someone to paddle next to you and have them hand you water.  OR, stick closer to the shore and do loops so you can leave a bottle on the shore.

On long open water swims, especially in very hot weather and during the daytime, you have to drink. It isn't a big concern for triathletes since our swims are short and fast, but for the Olympic level open water swimmers going 10 kilometers they swim through a floating dock aid station.

For military open water swimmers who are swimming slowly, mostly with their fins, often fighting outgoing tides, drinking during the swim keeps you hydrated and improves your bouyancy since the drinks reservoir or canteen you drink out of adds floatation as it is emptied. Hydration reservoirs can be inflated to maintain bouyancy during very long swims too.

Awesome. Where can I get these? Does trisports stock them by any chance?