Are you hydrating enough to run in this weather?
Are you one of those runners who wears a fuel belt well-stocked with water? Do you strategically place water bottles along your route? Or are you the runner who says, “eh, I’ll drink after my run.”
If you are neglecting your fluid intake during your runs, you won’t be running your best. Most importantly, you’ll be putting your health at risk.
You should always be concerned about your hydration; however, this time of year the importance is even bigger. So what’s the big deal?
Being properly hydrated helps to prevent overheating or heatstroke. Your body uses sweat to cool itself. Without enough fluid, your sweating will be impaired and your core temperature will rise. Not only will this negatively impact performance, but it is also very dangerous.
When you become dehydrated, your blood volume is decreased. This leads to a greater strain on your heart because it must begin to pump faster in order to deliver the proper amount of blood to your organs and working muscle. When this happens, your effort will be higher for the same work load and your performance will suffer.
Regular Hydration
On a regular basis, you should be drinking to thirst. Monitor your urine color and aim for a pale yellow.
Hydration In Preparation For Running or other Outdoor Sports
When you have a long run or endurance activity coming up, strive for excellent hydration the day before. If you start in a dehydrated state, you are setting yourself up for a negative experience. Aim to consume about 7-10 oz of fluid in the 10 to 20 minutes prior to exercise.
How much should I drink while Running?
This answer varies so much from person to person and climate to climate. The best way to know is to do an informal sweat test.
Weigh yourself without clothing after you have eaten your pre-workout meal.
Record the amount of fluid you drank on the run.
Weigh yourself without clothing after your run before a post-workout snack.
Remember that there are 16oz in every pound. Add your weight lost in ounces to ounces of fluid consumed. Weight Lost in ounces + Fluid consumed in ounces = Sweat loss
If your run was 2 hours, divide the sweat loss by 2 in order to figure out how much sweat you lost per hour. If your run was just 1 hour, you’ll already have your sweat loss per hour.
To recover, drink 16-24 oz of fluid for every pound lost. For the future, aim to drink your sweat losses while running.
Example:
Let’s say you lost 2 pounds on your 3 hour run and drank 30 oz while running.
2 X 16 ounces = 32 ounces lost
32 ounces lost + 30 ounces consumed on the run = 62 ounces
62 ounces / 3 hours= sweat rate of approximately 21 oz per hour
**To recover, drink 32-48 oz fluid.
**In the future, aim to drink 21 oz of fluid per hour of exercise
If you lost less than 2-3% of your body weight, you’re on the right track! If you lost that much or more, it is time to drink more!
Electrolyte Drink, do you need it?
Generally speaking, if you are running 90 minutes or more, you should plan on drinking an electrolyte drink or incorporating some type of electrolyte supplement in with your water. The amount of electrolytes lost in sweat varies widely.
Happy Hydrating!