I use a single water bottle holder belt that has 2 small pockets that hold 2 gels as well

---

Brian Stover USAT LII
Accelerate3 Coaching
Insta

I tried a camelback, and having the weight up on my shoulders/back proved troublesome.

The fuel belt has been great. The 4-bottle version holds 28 oz of drink, and that's all you really need for a 2-hour run. It's so comfortable to wear, you hardly know it's on. The single-bottle version works nicely, too. But, those are only 20 oz.

As an adjunct to your strategy -- there is nothing wrong with starting the run with 20-30 oz of drink in your stomach. It sounds like a lot, but since you're starting out easy anyway, it works great. Good practice for race-day running with a full stomach. I chug a liter of Gatorade before my long runs. It has made a terrific difference to my ability to hold pace the whole way, and recover quickly.

Nothing up to 2 hours (water before), fuelbelt with a thinner powerbar for 2-3 hours or transition runs in the heat. Wont touch it until the last hour though.

I just run with a small bike bottle (500ml) in my hand, and do say 2x1h loops...sometimes, I will refill earlier when it's really warm

Kevin,

I use several approaches, depending on the situation:

For 'shorter' long runs (between 12-14 miles @7:15 pace), I wear a fanny pack with a 28oz bottle.

Some of my longer long runs are multiple 7.4 mile loops. In this case, I wear the fanny back and stash extra bottles in the bushes at the start of the loop. I swap out every loop.

For my long canyon run, which is an 18mile out and back, I wear a Camelback Classic. It's not the best solution but it works. The advantage is that I have all the liquid I need (72oz). There are several disadvantages, though. First, the camel back has to be tightly adjusted. I suffered a serious case of chafing the first time I wore the unit in a singlet. The bouncing caused the shoulder straps to chafe. Camelback sent me an elastic chest strap which helped a bit. Also, after each drink, I tighten up the shoulder straps. Since then, no problems. The second issue I have is with sipping through the tube. I have difficulty taking a deep drink when running at pace, primarily because I have problems breathing through my nose and drinking. The solution here is to slow down.

Also, chugging something 10 minutes before you start the run also help prime the system.

Hope this helps.

Martin

I carry fluid on anything longer than about 1hr. I have a double bottle/waist thing that even has a liitle pouch for goodies.....I like drinking every 15 min or so as it mimics what I do in longer tri's. I can carry 2 large bike bottles = ? 56 oz. I bet the fuel belt with more little bottles bounces a little less but its only half the liquids that I can carry. I think mine is a "Ultimate" - I think thats a brand..... I can go 3 hrs+ without refueling....

Dave

Thanks y'all,

Super good advice from all of you. Now that winter had broken in the east I have to think about how to deal with the out of doors. thanks again



Kevin

for people who hate carrying/strapping things with them you can stash things on the route... I do my long runs past my dad's house and leave water and gu in his mailbox, I make it an out and back so I hit it twice... I know people who stash things in bushes, and other various places, but animals hang out in bushes, so personally I stay away from that one

I never take any fluids along unless I am running over 1.5 hours or it is really hot outside. I used to run with a group on Sundays that had water/gatorade stations set up (hidden in the ditch) at a few spots on the run. Last summer I got a fuel belt and this works great. I have a camelback system for a few adventure races that I've done but I wouldn't use it on a regular long run.

For anything longer than an hour I use the Camelback Flash Flow. It's 45oz, has room for goodies and is worn around the waste. I think it's one of the best pieces of gear I have.

I dont know if this is possible, but i like to get my hydration along the way, stop at water fountains, and maybe get a gatorade at a store if its hot out. If its really long, ill just carry a water bottle in my hand, i dont find that too bad, and somehow it gives me something to think about.

I did 18+ miles Saturday and had my wife carry fluids on her bike. It would have worked great but our 6 year old son was riding as well and they got behind me. I ended up not seeing them until mile 10. Fortunately there was a place to get a drink at mile 8. After I met up with them, they still didn't get much in front of me. My wife gave me a water bottle around mile 13. I should have kept it as I got ahead of them again and could have used another drink around mile 16. It was not to be and I had to wait until I finished for another drink.

I often run up to 12 miles without carrying fluids, although not when it gets really hot.

I have carried a single bottle in a pack and used a fuel belt with 6 bottles (42 oz.). I don't seem to run as well when carrying the fluids though and prefer to stash something along the trail if I have that option.

Don

---

Don

Tri-ing to have fun. Anything else is just a bonus!