How much fluid is enough?

i take 2 24 oz bottles of acclerade, or gator for rides of
3-4 hours. for rides 60 - 90 min i take water. is what i
found is important is to drink lots of water off the bike.
i always have my water bottle with me and drink thru
out the day, this way dehydration takes longer. im
148 lbs.

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by Aztec
I have been thinking about hydration and am wondering what others do. I typically end up using one 20 ounce bottle of water/carb mix per 60-90 mins, depending on temperature. Unless it's really hot, I rarely seem to get truly thirsty, more likely hungry (which the mix seems to satisfy). For all I know, I'm dehydrated but I don't think so since my performance doesn't really fade over the ride (160 lbs, by the way).

Others?

I thought your coach would have told you this...
if you collect some data from a few rides you can work out your fluid requirements

sweat rates/fluid loss = ((pre ride nude body mass - post ride nude body mass) + fluid drunk) / divided by training time

for example
fluid loss (L) = ((70kg - 69kg) + 2.5 L) / 2.25 hrs
= 1.56 L/hr fluid loss

I'd do these calculations for a week to get an average figure. then aim for that amount.

however, if you get home and find your post ride nude mass is down from your pre ride, then the difference should be made up at 150 % (e.g. in the above example 70 - 69 = 1 x 150% = 1.5 L fluid). A carbohydrate - electrolyte drink should be used -- it's imperative that the drink has electrolytes in, which prevents you from excreting the fluid you've just drunk!

Ric

Thanks, Ric! Actually, no, we didn't cover that at all (CTS coach). I've just kinda been winging it. Today I used just 22 oz over 2.5 hours of low/mid instensity work in 55 degree air. That's the least I can recall taking in over that time. Never really felt thirsty or drained, though. But now (6 hours later) I feel like I have the flu! I might, but it's an odd coincidence.

Time to buy a scale.

just to add, it's unlikely you'll be able to match your fluid needs whilst training. the volume may well be too high, and you'd (possibly) feel much too uncomfortable.

also, make sure you use an electrolyte-carb drink as well

ric

Electrolytes bring an additional challenge. I've been moving away from the sugar-loaded drinks (Accelerade, etc) and fake sweeteners (Cytomax). The Hammer Nutrition stuff is without either, but also lacks electrolytes. Doh!