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hydration??
hi,
ive inreased my mileage and im taking water with me sipping as i go, im doing about 10 miles and wondering if i should be using a gel or some kind of sports drink, really dont wont to go mad with the sugary drinks though just wondered if anyone had any advice
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Personally I don't drink water or gels on short runs of 10 miles/90 min unless it is a very hot day. I take water on 15/16+ mile ones and a gel on 20+ milers occasionally if needed (rarely though). Train your body to burn fat not glycogen and get used to being a bit dehydrated.
However in a race where I'm pushing it I would take on some water/sports drink at the drink stations to get every advantage.
I'd love to know the "right" thing to do
Similar to Daeve here though a 10 mile run takes me around 2hrs not 90mins
Above that I'll take drink with me - usually just water or I'll pop a High5 electrolyte tab in it. I'm currently trying out Clif Shot Bloks on my LSR's as they get given out on raceday (damn expensive so will stick to my jelly babies/bananas after the marathon lol).
No right or wrong thing Daeve, it's whatever works for you.
As Daeve says, I purposely take nothing with me on training runs as I find slowing in races for drinks etc a pain so I try and train to manage without. I think its more about how long you are out for as opposed to how far you have gone. Longest run I have done is just over 2 hours.
As a marathon runner I've always been confused about quite how much fluid to take onboard. Personally, I'm more likely to become dehydrated due to the risk of getting a stitch.
However, I didn't realise that athletes who run for more than 3 1/2 hours are at risk of Hyponatremia (low blood sodium) which could be potentially life threatening.
It's about getting the right balance for what suits you!
We are all told to drink plenty of fluid but not given any advice on when to stop!
http://rhedeg.co.uk/nutrition/instant-expert-how-to-stay-hydrated-for-race-day/
Easy for me. 100ml per mile on a warm day. Don't bother with drinks during a race (marathon excepted), I drink all I need before I start.
I note that plenty of runners became injured during the last heatwave. I am sure that a large proportion of that number didn't hydrate enough.
Lets face it, we're just sacks of fluid mainly. Drying out is bound to damage our structures.
🙂