Anyone use these a couple days before the event to hydrate? If so what brands have you used and how do they work?
Nuun. They seem to work well for me. The taste is pretty good, and the are easy to carry around.
They are only effective if you’re drinking sufficient amounts of water as they help you retain water. According to the International Sports Medicine Institute when in heavy training you should drink 2/3 ounce of water for every pound of body weight on a daily basis.
I would recommend starting usage about 7-10 days before the event because if you crash hydrate (Suddenly spike your water intake) you’ll simply be hydrating your bladder.
That said, they work and work well.
Bob
I use the salt stick ones, and just about evey day for me. You have to guage when you need them through many different ways. If you are cramping a lot, and they relieve them, then that is a good indicator. Get your blood tested for all the minerals, and see what range you are normally in. If I take nothing, I drop to the low range or even lower, so I have to supplement most of the time. It will vary widely with people on what/if they have to take anything. Use them in long training and see if they make your time out there better. Dont just load up right before the race having not tried it all out before, and many times.
Others factors you can control is your diet too. For me it was not about diet, I just lose a lot of salt in my sweat, and I drop twice as much magnesium through my urine than most normal folks. Other people go all day in Hawaii, and dont lose hardly anything. Do your shorts get white with salt on hot days?? Lots of things to look at and play with before you find the exact formula…Good luck…
X2 for NUUN, great company with great products. easy to use and easy to carry for long runs and rides. i have never had any bloating issues with them like alot of people get with gatorade and such. They do mix well with carbopro and other things to add just a bit of flavor. alot cheaper than sports drinks too.
I use NUUN and really like it. I also use that at times in lieu of a soda or juice at dinner as it tastes great.
I use them during long races as I hope I am getting enough sodium prior to the race with a good pre race diet. I use the cheapest of them all…Thermotabs. they are just your standard salt tab that you can have Rite Aid order for you and cost about $5 for 100 tabs. I think they work just as well and I actually like to suck on them during the bike. I will pop one every 30 minutes on hot long rides as I sweat a bit and have had problems with cramping in the past.
You don’t need them unless you are only drinking water during your event/training. If you are drinking any sorts of sports drinks or taking gels, then you get enough to balance fluid intake.
Marketing hype and waste of money … especially when you factor in that exercise induced cramping has absolutely ZERO to do with electrolyte imbalances.
Can you fill in the blank for me.
Muscular cramps during exercise are caused by ___________________.
… especially when you factor in that exercise induced cramping has absolutely ZERO to do with electrolyte imbalances.
_____ excessive pace/effort above and beyond physical abilities. In other words, going too hard/too fast for the conditions of the day. Someone can be in the best shape of their lives, but if they push it beyond what they are capable of even the slightest on a hot day, or in tough conditions, or on a tough course, they will have simply pushed above their limits. And no electrolytes, compression gear or miracle pill is going to make a lick of difference.
This has been studied over the years. There is no physiological link and no real proof that imbalances in electrolytes cause cramping during exercise.
Cramping is basically caused when the ATP is not getting regenerated fast enough and the muscle fibers shut down. ATP is made through fueling (glycogen sources, lactic acid when you’re above LT, and fat conversion in the liver). In studies of athletes who report cramping and those that don’t, the electrolyte ratios in their blood are equal to or GREATER than those that didn’t. In other words, your body knows how to regulate the ratios of electrolytes so that it maintains a fairly steady balance so the muscles neuro transmitters will work. Having “lower” electrolyte levels is a myth as the body regulates the ratios so things will work. Being a heavy sweater and turning into a salt lick during longer efforts (I am one of those as well) does not mean that you need to take in more salt to compensate for it. you get enough in your normal diet to cover any losses during even 10+ hours of exercise.
The only real reason to take in any sort of electrolyte is to balance the intake of fluids. The danger of course being hyponatremia which is excessive water intake dilluting the salinity in your blood. THAT is where it becomes an issue. Not because you need more electrolytes to function, but because you’ve flooded and dilluted your system and the body has no mechanism to balance it out.
No one has died from dehydration during a race. People do die from excess fluid intake that is not balanced.
I hope no one is really listening to this guy, that thinks he knows the one and only reason people get cramps…You really know when someone is full of shit, when they say that have the one and true answer to one of the complicated functions of the human body…Just put him in with the same folks that think everyone should be eating the exact same diet, the trash bin. And he is supposed to be a coach too, I feel bad for his clients…Everyone else just ignore him…It’s not that he is not accurate in one aspect of cramping, but it is not the end of the story by any means…
Rick I am going to have to disagree with you here.
Calcium, Magnesium and Potassium are big transport mechanisms in muscles and for use of ATP->ADP. Think about the cross links etc.
With all of them, but PARTICULARLY magnesium you can have normal blood levels but be intracellularly depleted.
but I do NOT think people should be using in them in the days leading up to a race - you need them whilst racing (especially hot climates).
I hope no one is really listening to this guy, that thinks he knows the one and only reason people get cramps…You really know when someone is full of shit, when they say that have the one and true answer to one of the complicated functions of the human body…Just put him in with the same folks that think everyone should be eating the exact same diet, the trash bin. And he is supposed to be a coach too, I feel bad for his clients…Everyone else just ignore him…It’s not that he is not accurate in one aspect of cramping, but it is not the end of the story by any means…
I never said what I was stating was the end all be all. Please feel free to take it however you want. And please feel free to believe all the hype of the sports nutrition industry. Bottom line is though, there is little to no proof that you need to replace electrolytes DURING exercise.
Of course everyone needs them in their overall diet, but IT IS MY OPINION on the information that I have read over the years that the need for electrolyte tablets of any sort (unless you are only drinking water during an event or exercise) is utter bullshit.
But do your research. Other than stuff Gatorade and Hammer puts out, there is very little scientific evidence that electrolyte imbalances cause cramping during exercise. This is not some new fangled idea, it is even one of the things that they talked about in my coaching seminars. It is a common notion.
Now, I do not know the exact causes of exercise induced cramping, but the general concensus is what I have listed. Of course things like excessive dehydration and nutrition can have some affect to compound problems. But even in the case of excessive dehydration (4 - 6% weight loss) the end result is not always cramping. In fact, most elite athletes studied routinely go into some level of dehydration with little effect on performance.
Rather than call you out as a complete idiot as you have basically me, I’ll just state my opinions and leave it to the reader to do their own research. Because you have offered nothing of value here, regardless of results and pedigree.
Rick,
With all due respect, I have to agree/disagree w/ you on a few points:
Bottom line is though, there is little to no proof that you need to replace electrolytes DURING exercise.
(2) Questions An athlete you coach is racing Kona in October. Based on the above statement, do you recommend his electrolyte intake during the 140mi race be ‘0’? If not, what is your recommendation? Athlete A & Athlete B are racing Kona. They are identical twins, with identical fitness levels heading into the race. Athlete A takes in ‘0’ electrolytes and Athlete B takes in ~750mg of Na per hour. Who do you believe will have a better race and why?
In other words, going too hard/too fast for the conditions of the day. Someone can be in the best shape of their lives, but if they push it beyond what they are capable of even the slightest on a hot day, or in tough conditions, or on a tough course, they will have simply pushed above their limits.
Agreed, but if they are pushing beyond their limits and needing to slow down, I don’t think we’re talking about their limiter being cramping. In the 1,000’s of athletes I’ve consulted with & 100’s of races I’ve personally competed in, VERY few of them state they cracked due to cramping…so I’m not sure what your statement above has to do w/ electrolytes & or cramping.
You also make specific note of a *hot *day & I’m wondering why as you indicate that cramping is a result of a lack of ATP production. If this were in fact the case, temperature should not be a factor at all.
Cramping is basically caused when the ATP is not getting regenerated fast enough and the muscle fibers shut down.
I’d agree with you that in *some *circumstances cramping could be caused by a lack of ATP, but this is NOT true in the vast majority of cramping cases. In rare circumstances, cramping is caused by there not being enough ATP present for relaxation but most data suggests otherwise, even anecdotal data…i.e. athlete has a foot cramp 1/2 way through a swim - lack of ATP?
Also, completely anecdotal, but if ATP shortages were the primary cause of cramping, why is muscular cramping MUCH more present in races in hot weather? You run 26.2 miles in Anchorage or Honolulu, I can guarantee you the # of athletes being hindered by cramping will be significantly higher in HI. Why?
So the above is anecdotal, specific clinical example…many times patients with hypertension are given sodium and potassium supplements for muscle cramping. Why? Because their cramps are caused by lack of ATP? No, because of the diuretics they’re prescribed cause an abnormal loss of electrolytes and therefore need to be replaced to reduce cramping. That same process can be applied to exercise since during exercise an abnormal amount of electrolytes are lost during perspiration and to a certain degree, urine.
With all of the above being said & as the president of a company w/ one of our product lines being electrolyte replacement caps, I often see them being over-used & FULLY agree w/ you that an athlete shouldn’t start popping them like candy simply b/c they have a calf cramp at mile 15 in an IM. Going back to your 1st post, I do agree that more often than not, athletes take electrolyte caps as a Band-Aid to fix other holes in their game which are completely unrelated to electrolytes.
With that, why do you think you’re having trouble finding scientific evidence by anyone other than Gatorade about electrolyte imbalance and cramping DURING exercise? It’s because Gatorade is arguably the only company w/ an interest and a large enough budget to look into conducting *proper *research. I imagine you care about it as well, but are not going to plunk down a $100K+ to properly fund a study. As such, in our sport we look at *carry-over *studies from other fields where the results would be similar. In this case, there is little reason to believe that cramping would be PRIMARILY caused by something other than cramps which are caused at rest (notably dehydration and electrolyte imbalance).
Always like to hop into a good debate here & there & hope to cross paths w/ you at Columbia…I’ll be down there w/ a few of the pros on our Team who incidentally will be consuming electrolytes on race day ;o)
I never said what I was stating was the end all be all. Please feel free to take it however you want.\
Ok, but here is what you said, among other things;
This has been studied over the years. There is** no** physiological link and no real proof that imbalances in electrolytes cause cramping during exercise\\\
I’m sorry if I was not quite as nice as I should have been, but we went through all this in another thread on electrolytes, and I just got amped up when I saw your sh, I mean OPINION spouted off here again…The other coaches who are basically slamming your position have been much more tactful in rebutting you OPINION…I’m not going to go into all your studies and why you believe what you do here again, but there is lots of actual proof out there that this stuff works for many people, and I’m one of them. Just about every coach that has been around awhile will also tell you that they have athletes that make miraciulous recoveries during races and training. You try and pigenhole everyone into one human machine, and when people try and do that, it is a big red flag. And when you ask the readers to do their own research, I suggest that instead of sending them to books and papers like you apparently do, how about some real research, the kind that a lot of us have pushed the limits on. ANd it was not in any book, but out on the playing field, where all good sporting research gets done in endurance sports. Then it usually ends up in a book years later, when most of the eggheads have figured out what went wrong with their theories…
To the OP, if you haven’t done it in training, don’t do it for a race. I am convinced through the process of elimination (as well as my neurologist) that doing something similar - salt tabs prior to April 08 IMAZ - caused my DNF
I use electrolytes, I don’t cramp. I don’t use electrolytes, I cramp. Ergo, using electrolytes prevent cramping… for me.
And over the years I have tried many different solutions. What works for me is Hammer Endurolytes. What works for you might be something different.
What works for me is Hammer Endurolytes. What works for you might be something different.
You’d need to take about two dozen endurolytes per hour to replace what you lose. Do you take that many?
You’d need to take about two dozen endurolytes per hour to replace what you lose. Do you take that many? \
Do you know this person. otherwise how do you know how much they lose? It seems to me that they have found the amount to replace, to keep from cramping by trial. You should know this, people vary widely on how much sodium and other electrolytes they need in training and racing, from 0 to a lot…
You’d need to take about two dozen endurolytes per hour to replace what you lose. Do you take that many? \
Do you know this person. otherwise how do you know how much they lose? It seems to me that they have found the amount to replace, to keep from cramping by trial. You should know this, people vary widely on how much sodium and other electrolytes they need in training and racing, from 0 to a lot…
That’s the amount that a typical person might need for typical sweat rates and typical sweat compositions. Most people aren’t that far off. But hey, if it “works” for them.