Hydration for Endurance Athletes
The weather is getting warmer, and lots of people are getting outside to do all kinds of activities—running, hiking, swimming, biking—you name it, our members are doing it.
But the summer weather can have significantly different requirements for meeting your body's needs and ensuring you feel your absolute best while doing ALL the things.
And the one requirement that reigns supreme? Proper hydration.
If you're unsure how to hydrate properly for your outdoor activities, look no further. This email has you covered.
Hydration in general
Why we care so much about water intake:
Aids in food digestion + helps your body process fiber (aka, avoid constipation, bless)
Helps move nutrients to our cells
Carries waste out through urination, perspiration, & defecation
Protects your tissue & joints
Aids in body temperature regulation
Makes breathing easier during athletic endeavors
Allows proper muscle function to avoid cramping
Helps maintain blood volume
Where Should You Start?
The minimum recommended water intake for active adults is 0.5x body weight in ounces + 15 fl oz for every hour of activity.
130lbs = 80 fl oz
150lbs = 90 fl oz
180lbs = 105 fl oz
200lbs = 115 fl oz
225lbs = 128 fl oz
Reminder: these are just generic guidelines.
It’s useful to think of hydration on a urine color scale to get you started. We want to see light yellow urine, but not quite completely clear.
You also want to ensure your urine is plentiful before heading out for your adventure. If you're having trouble producing any urine or it's dark in color, you probably want to spend some extra time hydrating before you get on the road.
Basically, you know you’re ready for your run/hike/bike/swim/etc if your urine is relatively clear and voluminous before you get outside.
Endurance & Recreational Athletes
If you're outside often this summer and trying to schedule epic adventures, your hydration needs become more specific than just the average active adult.
We need to hit those bare minimums and go above and beyond with both plain water intake and electrolyte manipulation.
Think of your body like a system of checks and balances.
We need to balance our water and electrolytes (salt) to stay hydrated. Too much plain water isn’t always a good thing.
The five main electrolytes:
Sodium
Chloride
Potassium
Magnesium
Calcium
Sodium is the primary electrolyte lost in sweat, so we typically focus on sodium intake more than any of the other four main electrolytes.
Because sodium replenishment depends on a person's overall sweat rate, sodium intake is highly individual.
That makes it really hard to come up with generic recommendations for your sodium intake.
What Are Your Hydration Needs?
The best way to figure out how much you sweat and how much fluid you require to replenish that sweat is to do an at-home sweat test (you can order these through a lab too if you're competing in a big event like an Iron Man and you want accurate data).
Figuring out your sweat rate:
Record body weight before training session (without clothes)
Record weight after session (without clothes, towel dry)
Note duration of session
Note outdoor temperature during session
Note intensity of session (Zone 2? Zone 4? Zone 5?)
Record total fluid consumed during session (fluid consumed = sweat loss replaced concurrently)
Time for Math:
Subtract your ending weight from your starting weight first.
Then, add the amount of fluids (in ounces) consumed during the session to that number.
Divide that number by 60 to get fluid rate loss per hour.
Ta Da! This is your sweat rate. To get more accurate results, you should do this at least 3-4 times in similar weather conditions and take the overall average.
As a helpful tip: you can think of every lb lost during the session as 16 ounces of water needed to replenish that loss.
Now That You Have Your Sweat Rate:
We should aim to replace about 70% of sweat loss for intense training sessions.
Based on your previously determined sweat rate, multiply the average hourly fluid loss by 0.7 to get your ideal water requirements.
Next time you head out for training for a similar session, you know exactly how much water to take!
Individual Electrolyte Needs
Research states that individuals need anywhere from 500-1000mg of sodium per liter of sweat lost during training... so how do we find our personal needs?
We have to test and experiment!
The more you sweat, the more electrolytes you need.
We suggest aiming for 300-600mg of electrolytes per hour of activity. You can mix this with the amount of water required per hour based on your sweat rate.
To determine how much you need, think of the following factors:
Heavy sweater = more electrolytes
More humid or hot = more electrolytes
Longer distances = more electrolytes
Multiple workouts = more electrolytes
Morning workouts = more electrolytes
Pre-Workout Hydration (Morning Workouts)
Morning Runner? This is for you.
We lose water when we sleep, so we naturally wake up dehydrated. You need about 2-2.5 hours to rehydrate properly after sleep.
But we get it - a lot of people aren't waking up in time to make that happen either (:
How to shortcut this (it won't be perfect):
Within 1 hour of waking = drink 8-20 oz water with carbohydrates + 200-400mg of electrolytes.
You want to start rehydrating with something that's not just plain water.
Ideas for morning rehydration:
Low-fat milk or chocolate milk
Smoothie
Fruit juice
Cyclic dextrin
And for those of you who refuse to eat or drink before that morning run... have you actually tried fueling first and feeling the difference?
Pre-Workout Hydration (Afternoon or Evening Workouts)
This timing makes it much easier to nail a hydration strategy because you have more time to consume fluids, sodium, + higher water-containing foods throughout the day.
4 hours before running = 0.07-0.10 fl oz per lb body weight
2 hours before running = additional 0.04-0.10 fl oz per lb
Example:
140lb female = 10-14 oz 4 hours before training + 6-14 fl oz 2 hours before training.
Intra-Workout Hydration
Similar to what we’ve already discussed, intra-workout hydration is dependent on multiple factors:
Distance or time ran
Weather
Sweat rate
Time of day
General Recommendations:
12-32 oz of fluid per hour, maximum
aka 3-8 oz every 15-20 minutes
I like to carry 30 oz of water on a 60-minute run = 15 oz plain + 15 oz mixed with electrolyte or carb powder.
Post-Workout Hydration
Post-workout rehydration depends on:
how well you were pre-hydrated
how well you stayed hydrated
Fluid recommendations post-workout range from 16 to 24 oz of water in the first-hour post-session.
The addition of electrolytes is especially important post-workout.
I recommend consuming 200-500mg of sodium within your first hour back home.
Depending on sweat rate and loss, you may need more or less!
Electroytes
LMNT (single serve packets)
Redmond Relyte (scoopable tub)
True Nutrition (less salty, less flavorful, most cost effective)
