How much do salt tablets help while biking?

Triathlon Forum
1

I’ve been finding it more and more difficult to do longer rides in the heat lately.

I did a 60-miler on Saturday and it was over 100 degrees F throughout the ride. I found myself taking in LOTS of fluid and I noticed fatigue sooner than usual.

Should I be taking salt tablets on rides like these? If so, when do I take them, how often, and how many should I take? Do you take salt tablets on your shorter rides as well , or just on your long ride?

Also, should I be taking salt tablets for my run training?

Thanks!

2

It’s an individual thing, but I need them. On long rides on hot days, I take at least 700mg of sodium per hour (SaltStick). I’ll take 2-3 SaltStick pills per hour. It depends on what else I’m taking that has electrolytes. You’ll get different opinions on this, but I think it’s something worth playing around with to see what happens. Check out Jordan Rapp’s IMTX nutrition thread. You may not need as much sodium as he takes, but there’s some good info in that thread. He ranks things by importance…

  1. Electrolytes
  2. Calories
  3. Fluid

For what it’s worth, my experience backs that up. When I screw things up it’s typically because I drank too much and didn’t get enough electrolytes.

I don’t typically take pills on shorter rides, but on hot days I’ll typically have Perform or Nuun with me so I am getting some electrolytes. Think of electrolyte replacement in relation to the amount of fluid you’re going to take in more than the length or duration of the ride. It’s all about balance. Drinking a lot of water without taking in electrolytes screws up that balance. I did a long trainer ride a year or two ago and was working on nailing my hydration. I took in too much water and I got fatigued, my legs hurt and I was losing focus. I felt a little foggy. I decided to see what might happen if I started popping salt pills. I took two, then one more 10 minutes later then another one 10 minutes later. I was amazed at how I bounced back. My legs didn’t hurt anymore, I was focused and my power came back. It was a great illustration, for me, on how important electrolytes are.

Hope this helps.

EDITED TO ADD: This has potential to turn into a debate (as does everything on ST). If it does, people will talk about only drinking to thirst, hyponatremia and Tim Noakes, etc. In the end, you’ll be more confused than you are now because everyone will make good points. I say, read the debate if it happens, do your own research and then do some experimenting. Try drinking only to thirst. Do a sweat test and use that to guide your hydration. Try different amounts of electrolytes. Record everything and then decide what works for you. Just my .02.

3

EFS or infinit should do the trick but i still have a bottle of of the saltsticks which i have yet to try.

Asked efs as i wanted one drink to cover everything in training/racing…

The EFS drink is 96 calories per serving. The EFS Liquid Shot is 400 calories per flask. Our recommendation is to make sure your primary fuel come from the EFS drink for any long distance training or racing in the heat. This is because the EFS drink has all the electrolytes you need for this type of demanding schedule. If you are targeting 300-400 calories per hour, then consume the EFS Liquid Shot to get you up to the additional calories per hour. Mixing it all into one bottle is fine, however you must realize that for optimal absorption you should be near an 8% solution. An 8% solution is 100 calories for every 12oz fluid. So if you mix a big concentrated bottle you will still need to consume additional water to assure proper absorption.

http://www.firstendurance.com/2012/03/8-solution-for-maximum-absorption/

4

No! You get enough salt in your reg diet. Nobody should ever have to supplement their salt intake.

5

I’ve been finding it more and more difficult to do longer rides in the heat lately.

I did a 60-miler on Saturday and it was over 100 degrees F throughout the ride. I found myself taking in LOTS of fluid and I noticed fatigue sooner than usual.

Should I be taking salt tablets on rides like these? If so, when do I take them, how often, and how many should I take? Do you take salt tablets on your shorter rides as well , or just on your long ride?

Also, should I be taking salt tablets for my run training?

Thanks!

You do not need them and you are more likely to mess up your stomach. If you are drinking gatorade or some other sports drink, you have it more than covered. Anything on top of that is a waste of money and is risky. Do a google search for Dr. Tim Noakes’ research in this area.

6

No! You get enough salt in your reg diet. Nobody should ever have to supplement their salt intake.

Seriously?

7

No! You get enough salt in your reg diet. Nobody should ever have to supplement their salt intake.

I think maybe you do not understand that he is talking about DURING a race or training session, not supplementing his regular diet.

While I usually carry a chicken-fried steak with cream gravy in my back pocket on the bike providing me with all the sodium I need, others seem to dislike this method. Most people pick and choose specific carbohydrate and electrolyte sources to consume from bottles, gels and tablets while on the bike or run.

8

Err… You could die from that…!

Racing long distance in heat means you sweat a whole lot. If you only drink water you dilute your self. The body needs salt (and electrolytes) to work and thus it can be fatal to only drink water if you sweat a lot.

9

No! You get enough salt in your reg diet. Nobody should ever have to supplement their salt intake.

I think maybe you do not understand that he is talking about DURING a race or training session, not supplementing his regular diet.

While I usually carry a chicken-fried steak with cream gravy in my back pocket on the bike providing me with all the sodium I need, others seem to dislike this method. Most people pick and choose specific carbohydrate and electrolyte sources to consume from bottles, gels and tablets while on the bike or run.

+1 on the fried steak with southern white gravy, but i keep mine taped to my top rail. It gets too messy trying to pull it from my jersey.

10

I’m on my IPhone and don’t feel like making this a huge post but honestly the lackluster quality in some of these answers amazes me. I wouldn’t worry about dying if you don’t take a salt tab. Also depending on the following questions your salt intake might not be enough to sustain you for longer workouts or races.

Let’s start with what are you taking nutrition wise on the bike/run now? How much do you sweat? You say you’ve been having trouble lately with fatigue, what’s your training volume look like coming into these long workouts?

11

I’ve been finding it more and more difficult to do longer rides in the heat lately.

I did a 60-miler on Saturday and it was over 100 degrees F throughout the ride. I found myself taking in LOTS of fluid and I noticed fatigue sooner than usual.

Should I be taking salt tablets on rides like these? If so, when do I take them, how often, and how many should I take? Do you take salt tablets on your shorter rides as well , or just on your long ride?

Also, should I be taking salt tablets for my run training?

Thanks!

Probably not.

Clin J Sport Med. 2002 Sep;12(5):279-84.
Oral salt supplementation during ultradistance exercise.
Speedy DB, Thompson JM, Rodgers I, Collins M, Sharwood K, Noakes TD.
SourceDepartment of General Practice and Primary Care, University of Auckland, New Zealand. dalespeedy@e3.net.nz
Erratum in
Clin J Sport Med. 2003 Jan;13(1):67…
AbstractOBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to determine whether sodium supplementation 1) influences changes in body weight, serum sodium , and plasma volume (PV), and 2) prevents hyponatremia in Ironman triathletes.
SETTING: The study was carried out at the South African Ironman triathlon.
PARTICIPANTS: Thirty-eight athletes competing in the triathlon were given salt tablets to ingest during the race. Data collected from these athletes were compared with data from athletes not given salt .
INTERVENTIONS: Salt tablets were given to the SI group to provide approximately 700 mg/h of sodium.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS: Serum sodium, hemoglobin, and hematocrit were measured at race registration and after the race. Weights were measured before and after the race. Members of SI were retrospectively matched to subjects in NS for 1) weight change and 2) pre-race .
RESULTS: The SI group developed a 3.3-kg weight loss (p < 0.0001) and significantly increased their (delta 1.52 mmol/L; p = 0.005). When matched for weight change during the race, SI increased their compared with NS (mean 1.52 versus 0.04 mmol/L), but this did not reach statistical significance (p = 0.08). When matched for pre-race , SI had a significantly smaller percent body weight loss than NS (-4.3% versus -5.1%; p = 0.04). There was no significant difference in the increase of in both groups (1.57 versus 0.84 mmol/L). PV increased equally in both groups. None of the subjects finished the race with < 135 mmol/L.
CONCLUSIONS: Sodium ingestion was associated with a decrease in the extent of weight loss during the race. There was no evidence that sodium ingestion significantly influenced changes in or PV more than fluid replacement alone in the Ironman triathletes in this study. Sodium supplementation was not necessary to prevent the development of hyponatremia in these athletes who lost weight, indicating that they had only partially replaced their fluid and other losses during the Ironman triathlon

Br J Sports Med. 2006 Mar;40(3):255-9.
Sodium supplementation is not required to maintain serum sodium concentrations during an Ironman triathlon.
Hew-Butler TD, Sharwood K, Collins M, Speedy D, Noakes T.
SourceUniversity of Cape Town, Newlands, Cape Town, South Africa. thew@sports.uct.ac.za
AbstractCONTEXT: Critical assessment of recommendations that athletes consume additional sodium during athletic events.
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate if sodium supplementation is necessary to maintain serum sodium concentrations during prolonged endurance activity and prevent the development of hyponatraemia.
DESIGN: Prospective randomised trial of athletes receiving sodium (620 mg table salt), placebo (596 mg starch), or no supplementation during a triathlon. The sodium and placebo tablets were taken ad libitum, with the suggested range of 1-4 per hour.
SETTING: The 2001 Cape Town Ironman triathlon (3.8 km swim, 180 km cycle, 42.2 km run).
SUBJECTS: A total of 413 triathletes completing the Ironman race.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Sodium supplementation was not necessary to maintain serum sodium concentrations in athletes completing an Ironman triathlon nor required to prevent hyponatraemia from occurring in athletes who did not ingest supplemental sodium during the race.
RESULTS: Subjects in the sodium supplementation group ingested an additional 3.6 (2.0) g (156 (88) mmol) sodium during the race (all values are mean (SD)). There were no significant differences between the sodium, placebo, and no supplementation groups with regard to age, finishing time, serum sodium concentration before and after the race, weight before the race, weight change during the race, and rectal temperature, systolic and diastolic blood pressure after the race. The sodium supplementation group consumed 14.7 (8.3) tablets, and the placebo group took 15.8 (10.1) tablets (p = 0.55; NS).
CONCLUSIONS: Ad libitum sodium supplementation was not necessary to preserve serum sodium concentrations in athletes competing for about 12 hours in an Ironman triathlon. The Institute of Medicine’s recommended daily adequate intake of sodium (1.5 g/65 mmol) seems sufficient for a healthy person without further need to supplement during athletic activity.

12

Err… You could die from that…!

Racing long distance in heat means you sweat a whole lot. If you only drink water you dilute your self. The body needs salt (and electrolytes) to work and thus it can be fatal to only drink water if you sweat a lot.

So, how much water is too much? How much salt loss is too much? What are the effects in the body if you oversupplement with salt?

John

13

Some people experience nausea and serious gastric upset with too much salt supplementation during a race.

14

Err… You could die from that…!

Racing long distance in heat means you sweat a whole lot. If you only drink water you dilute your self. The body needs salt (and electrolytes) to work and thus it can be fatal to only drink water if you sweat a lot.

So, how much water is too much? How much salt loss is too much? What are the effects in the body if you oversupplement with salt?

John

Lots of great references in Tim Noakes’ latest book, Waterlogged. Over supplement = sweat it out and if too much, eventually your gut will revolt and you will be racing with mudd-butt!

15

Not sure if anyone else participated but I was in a study by texas A&M students in Kona in 2004, pretty much indicated that sweat loss correlated to about 1000mg per 1 litre, in other words if your sodium protocol is above that then you are either among the outliers in this study or taking too much in.

You have about 8-10000 mg of stored sodium in the body,

For me my sweat rates were about 1.5 litres per hour but I could only handle about 600mg per hour of sodium, the rest was made up through storage.

600mg for me (per hour is fine)

Every one is different though.

16

No! You get enough salt in your reg diet. Nobody should ever have to supplement their salt intake.

Seriously?

Seriously.

17

I’ve read a lot of thoughtless, baseless, fantastic comments on ST throughout the years, but yours is right up there with the most ridiculous ever posted.

Regardless of whether I think salt supplementation during training and racing is worthwhile, your comment is one of the finest examples of what is wrong with Internet forums.

I suspect you’ll take this the wrong way, but please don’t.

18

Right back at you…

19

Err… You could die from that…!

Racing long distance in heat means you sweat a whole lot. If you only drink water you dilute your self. The body needs salt (and electrolytes) to work and thus it can be fatal to only drink water if you sweat a lot.

So, how much water is too much? How much salt loss is too much? What are the effects in the body if you oversupplement with salt?

John

Lots of great references in Tim Noakes’ latest book, Waterlogged. Over supplement = sweat it out and if too much, eventually your gut will revolt and you will be racing with mudd-butt!

And Mudd Butt ain’t no joke!

20

Enough of the bickering already, here are several race reports from a top pro about salt and nutrition. And most pros do something very similar to what jordan does, and i can guarantee you that no one is making big money from salt companies to promote their products. They use them because they need them and they work.

They are of course not for everyone and many folks even in sweltering conditions do well without. You do not sound like one of these people, so get some salt stix and give them a try. You can see in the reports that large amounts can be taken on really hot days, as long as you figure out how much and how long your absorption rate is…

http://forum.slowtwitch.com/gforum.cgi?post=4113764;search_string=jordan%20rapp%20nutrition%20report;#4113764