Dehydration
Dilemma
I race at approximately 170 175lbs in season and am 5”11. Very lean body type. After having tested my sweat rate over the past 30- 45 days, I have determined my average sweat rate while biking in colder weather less than 60-70 degrees is 5 lbs per hours. I lose approximately 3lbs per hour while running in temperatures under 60-70 degrees.
As you can assume as temperatures rise into the 80-90 range, and the distance increases, I face an even faster burn rate to dehydration. I have found during biking, I can only put about maximum 50 oz of water per hour in me. While running, I can take in maybe maximum 25 -30 oz of fluid.
Here is my question.
I know it is not about how many calories to put in my body per hour that is affecting my performance but it is getting enough fluids in me to slow down dehydration. I take in 270-300 calories per hour of racing using either CarboPro or Infinit Nutrition. I typically take in 1000 mg of electrolytes per hour.
I know anything over 2% net fluid loss/ body weight in a race leads to performance impairment so by the time I get to the run in an 70.3 race, I am already sweated out and can’t post the run times I am capable of. My bike performance starts to decline as my sweat loss increases towards the end of the bike. Race pace doesn’t even matter as I am a heavy sweater even at at a Zone 1-2 bike or run pace.
I realize that the only difference between me and other Championship qualifiers is that they sweat so much less than I do avoiding the huge physical toll or handicap that I have. If I can solve the dehydration or fluid intake issue, my racing will change dramatically.
What is the answer to this dilemma? How do I manage fluid consumption of putting more water in your body to race or how to hydrate enough to race at pacce over any 70.3 or greater distance. This is the key to my season. I have already read all of EN material on testing and measuring but nothing exists I think on solving the issue.
EN Thoughts?
0
Comments
Did you read Dr. Kitima's wiki post on Hydration Status? http://members.endurancenation.us/Resources/Wiki/tabid/108/Default.aspx?topic=Monitoring+Hydration+Status
I think it addresses some of the ways you can address your problem.
I have some hunches/suggestions, but want to be sure dehydration is what we are dealing with.
Jennifer, I did read this thank you for sending to me. I can up my soium intake but ultimately I know it is loss of fluids. I have been training to take in more water but I think I have found my body's limit at the amount I can take in. Maybe continuing to train the body to take in more is the answer.
Penny I will take any hunch you have. When I get really dehydrated, I start to cramp up and muscles lock up. Legs aren't tired from the effort or pace only the body is sweated out. As I have taken in more water to experiment wiht where my intake threshold is, I have found for now at least my body can ony absorb so much fluid before I am water logged. I am wide open to any thoughts. Maybe I just can't see the answer. The old forest for the trees analogy.
yes, during some training sessions and some races not all the time i do have salt crusties. I wuld say as a rule I probably have some level of salt crusties.
- how much do you drink per hour on the bike and how much sodium does this include
- same as above for the run
Towards the end of last season, I ramped up my fluid intake to 48 oz on the bike with 1000 mg of sodium and on th run with about 16-20 oz per hour same sodium. Usually by the time I got to the run the damage had been done as a cumulative affect to where performance was already impaired going into the run. I usually could go 6-7 miles at pace into the run then just had no more water left in me and then water intake didn't matter no matter how much ai drank.. That is about it.
You can also increase you sodium on the bike. I'd go up to 1,500 mg and see if that helps.
That is a lot of sodium to take on the run with that amount of fluid.
How long after you finish do you urinate and what color is it?
most races urine is darker in color and sometimes it takes a while maybe 30 minutes to an hour after to urinate until I get alot of fluids back in me, .
Richard,
You already have some great advice from the other ENers here - but you also might be interested in this reply that I just sent to a cycling friend of mine (who is also a researcher) regarding his question about hydration/cramping/electrolytes – and I thought you (and some of the other endurance nuts here) might benefit from the answer…
Hi Shawn,
I use various sport drinks to prevent cramping after hard exercise, but I’m not convinced I have found the perfect one. The literature on these drinks makes confusing claims, such as:
-Sugars are needed for best absorption of salts
-The ideal ratio of Na/K is ….
-Too much Na is dangerous
-Too little Na is dangerous
-Too much K is dangerous
-Trace metals (Mg, Mn) are important
-Vitamins (VitC, riboflavin) help
-The ideal solution to drink has the same composition as sweat. (This is a cool idea, but sweats from different people, different exercises, different nutritional status and different parts of the body vary. Also, you lose or use-up stuff in other ways – kidney filtration, metabolic breakdown (sugars, vitamins)…
It makes sense to me that a practical way to meter these additions to your body is to add them to *all* of the water you drink. That way, you get them roughly in proportion to the water you lose which is related to your energy exertion and may eliminate some environmental variables like temperature. I don’t see the manufacturers stressing this though, and I could be wrong.
It has been a while since I researched this, so I am probably forgetting some of the claims and confusions. In your studies, have you found anything solid? Do you have practical recommendations? My current favorite is Vitalyte, but it has more sugar than I think it should have. I think all the commercial products add sugar to make the product sell.
See you next summer on the trails?
Scott
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My reply:
Hi Scott - good to hear from you – and most definitely you’ll see me on the trails as soon as they’re clear of snow!
Yeah - the whole elyte and hydration thing is a mess - there are SO many competing ideas and theories - and the only things that anybody can agree on are:
-a blend of different elytes is best, with sodium by far the most important, then potassium, then any of the others…
-a blend of sugars, at a low level, will enhance absorption of both elytes and H20 (this is why the WHO - World Health Organization gives dilute saline/sugar solution to dehydrated refuges – it hydrates faster, maintains cardiovascular function, and reduces gut bloating)…
-the “commercial” products that do the best job of elyte/hydration are Gatorade “G-Series” and Powerbar's new “Ironman Perform” drink (for short spins in moderate conditions)…
BUT, when you start going “longer” and need more calories, those extra calories really screw things up - they slow the absorption of water and elytes and lead to gut bloating and eventually to cramping (gut and leg cramps).
-this sucks, because the harder you go (intensity), the slower your gut absorption becomes…
-this double-sucks, because the hotter it gets, the more you need the fluid/elytes, and the slower you're able to get them out of your gut and into your blood/muscles…
You will also hear all sorts of rubbish about needing protein and antioxidants and other stuff in your hydration drink – but its all marketing blather. You don’t need protein unless you’re done with your workout – or if you’re going really long (like an ultra) – and in both situations, you want to get anything other than H20, sugar, and electrolytes from your FOOD.
I've been mixing up my own "blend" for years. It is a blend of maltodextrin, sucrose/fructose, and potato starch – three different types of carbs that are absorbed very differently from the gut. Because they use different transporters, they empty quickly and the risk of GI bloat and cramping is much reduced.
I've used this blend for Ironman-distance triathlons and ultramarathon runs (50-100 miles) with decent success - but even then, you still need to go to “real foods” for the really long events. For elytes, I use sea salt from the grinder - more grinds for really hot days and fewer grinds on less hot days. I know it doesn’t sound very scientific, but it allows you to “customize” your electrolyte intake based on conditions, workout, and fitness level.
Here is my Wicked Fast blend:
* The flavor is fairly mild (I hate the overly sweet taste of most commercial sports drinks).
(1 rounded scoop = about 35g from the Country Time lemonade canister):
-1 scoop lemonade mix (sucrose/fructose) = 140 calories of "fast" carbohydrates
*I use Country Time lemonade or 4C Ice Tea mix, depending on taste that day.
-1 scoop maltodextrin = 140 calories of "medium" carbohydrates
*I use Carbo-Pro powder, but there are lots of plain maltodextrin powders out there)
-1 scoop potato starch (amylopectin) = 140 calories of "slow" carbohydrates
*I use Manischewitz because you can find it in any grocery store)
-2 "twists" of sea salt grinder = approx 1/4 tsp of salt (about 1g) = approx 450mg sodium, 450mg chloride, 100mg potassium/magnesium/calcium
*I use a pink sea salt from the local grocery store
Total = 420 “mixed” carbohydrate calories with 1,000mg total electrolytes
*you can adjust the amount of sweetness/flavor with more/less lemonade mix and the amount of elytes with more/fewer twists of the salt grinder.
I usually carry this mixed with water in a single 24-ounce insulated bottle with another bottle of plain water. If I need more calories than this 450 - such as in an Ironman or Ultra, then I'm switching over to real foods like PB&J sandwiches, Ensure, Boiled Potatoes, Granola Bars, etc.
I'll also roll out having already taken my 2 Energ-Ease capsules (for endurance/stamina) and if I'm out for over 3 hours, I'll pop a few Recover-Ease capsules (the BCAAs can help enhance hydration and delay central fatigue - but you don't need them for shorter workouts). Of course, I'll finish the workout with 4 capsules of Recover-Ease to enhance post-exercise recovery.
Hope that helps – and good luck on your next long hot ride!
Shawn
Here is what my Infint looks like (zero protein and high on the BCAAs, touch of caffeine, little more maltodextrin than sugar, and fairly high on the elytes)
Supplement Facts
Servings Per Container (25) Serving Size: 2 Scoops (68.07 g)
Ingredients
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 250
Calories from Fat: 0
Total Fat: 0g - 0% of daily value Saturated Fat: 0g - 0%
Sodium: 471mg - 19% Potassium: 136mg - 4% Total Carbohydrate: 62 - 20%
Dietary Fiber: 0g - 0%
Sugars: 20 Protein: 0 - 0%
Vitamin A (Beta-Carotene): 0 - 0% Vitamin C: 0 - 0% Vitamin E: 0 - 0% Selenium: 0 - 0%
Calcium: 38 - 4% Magnesium: 28 - 7%
Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet
Maltodextrin Dextrose Sucrose Citric Acid Natural Flavors Sodium chloride Potassium chloride Magnesium gluconate Calcium gluconate Isoleucine Valine Leucine Caffeine