By Antonio Gonzalez, Tri Town Bicycles

Last updated: 12/12/19

FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES:

• Avg athlete typically needs about 32-48oz of H2O per hour. May be up to 96oz/hr for large athletes on hot days at altitude.
• Goal: replace as much as possible based on gastrointestinal absorption and logistics.
• Drink often and start early. Approx 4-8oz each 15min (a standard cycling water bottle is 24oz)
• Develop taste for multiple products.
• Sodium: ~250-500mg/hr, but up to 1800mg/hr for hot days/big athletes. Mix of electrolytes best (skratch, nuun, Base salt, Gatorade endurance, osmo, etc)
• Use a Sweat Rate Calculator in training to determine your personal sweat rate. By keeping good notes and a bit of experimentation you can accurately determine hydration requirements for a variety of conditions.

• Especially important on ‘race simulation’ workouts.
• We cannot trust sports drink to have the correct amount of electrolytes to match our sweat rate and loss of electrolytes during a race or big workout. Experimentation is key to determine your personal needs and sweat rate.

• Heavy sweaters or hot races may require 2x the normal electrolyte concentration found in normal sports drinks.

• Final thought: electrolyte imbalance is only one cause of cramping… If your training has not prepared you for the exertion you are demanding of your body, then cramping is likely to happen regardless of electrolyte balance.

2-4 Days Before Race:

• Begin small increases in CHO. Gently limit fats and fiber.
• Continue consuming lean protein in most every meal.
• Slightly increase hydration.

• Very slightly increase sodium (don’t go crazy- just a dash of extra salt).

Race Day (or big training day)

(FOR HEAVY SWEATERS OR REGULAR CRAMPERS or HOT DAY)

• Avg person sweats 900mg of sodium per 32oz (liter. A standard H20 bottle is 24oz). Most sports drinks have less than this (closer to 500mg), so only drinking a sports drink can actually dilute your sodium levels. Heavy sweaters often sweat 1k-1500mg or more of sodium per hour. May benefit from sodium pills or concentrated sports drinks.
• Heavy sweaters or crampers take extra sodium in the hours immediately before and during activity that normally result in cramping. During training you should practice to find the ideal ratio that works best for you (keeps stomach happy). Excessive sodium/salt can cause nausea.

• 1k-1.5k mg of sodium per hour during long races is not uncommon (maybe more depending upon athlete).

Sample hydration plan for Olympic (from precisionhydration.com):

Before Race:

• Preloading is about getting to the start line ready to perform at your best.

• Especially useful before Olympic distance triathlons because starting fully hydrated reduces the amount you’ll need to drink during the race, when you want to be focussed on pushing hard and not reaching for a bottle too often.

What to do

• Drink 1x 1500mg of sodium with 500ml (16oz) of water a few hours before the swim start.
• Finish your drink at least 45 minutes before you start to give your body time to fully absorb what it needs and pee out any excess.
• Drink the sodium in water you’d have drunk anyway to ensure you don’t overdo it.
• DON’T just drink lots of water in the build-up to a race. You can end up diluting your body’s sodium levels before you start, increasing the risk of hyponatremia.

Why

• Boosting your blood plasma volume before intense exercise is a proven way to enhance your performance, especially in hot conditions.
• Having more blood makes it easier for your cardiovascular system to meet the competing demands of cooling you down and delivering oxygen to your muscles.
• Preloading at this rate is very effective at increasing your plasma volume as it contains 3x more sodium than a typical sports drink. That extra sodium helps to pull water into your bloodstream and keep it there.
• You can’t preload anywhere near as effectively with weaker sports drinks as you’ll lose a large proportion of the fluid as urine. Or it’ll slosh around in your stomach without being properly absorbed.

DURING THE RACE:

Swim

• If the swim is in salt water, you might want a bottle of water by your bike so you can quickly swill your mouth out before jumping onto the saddle, but that's all really.

On the bike

• The bike section is the best time to get fluids on board because you can carry them easily and drinking is easier when riding than when running.
• If your fluid and electrolyte requirements during a race are higher than average, recommend using ~1,000 mg of sodium in your bike bottle(s) during the ride. That’s 2x the electrolytes of a standard sports drink.

How much should you drink?

Every athlete is different, but here are some guidelines to help you hone in on what works for you…

• Few athletes can get away with not drinking during an Olympic distance race. The risk of performance-limiting dehydration is just too great.
• Few people can process more than about 1 litre (32 oz) during the bike section, so that’s probably the upper limit of how much you’d need to carry.
• Most athletes can comfortably drink 500-750ml (16-24oz) during the ride. This is typically enough to offset against sweat losses in the swim and bike and to set you up for a good run.
• If you’re not drinking enough on the bike, you'll probably feel thirsty, or have a dry mouth. Listen to your body and drink to the dictates of thirst.
• If you're feeling bloated, can sense fluid sloshing around in your stomach, or you need to pee during the race, then you may be drinking too much.

Experimenting within these guidelines whilst learning to listen to your body is the best way to find out how much you need to drink during a race.

During the Run

• Consuming enough water/sodium to stop yourself getting thirsty on the bike will minimise the fluids you need to take on during the run in an Olympic tri.
• Drink to thirst at aid stations on the run course. There shouldn’t be any real need to carry your own fluids, as these will just weigh you down.
• Most races provide drinks at the finish line, so you can begin rehydrating as soon as you cross the line.

After the Race

• Most athletes finish a triathlon dehydrated to some extent. Research and experience suggests that, in many cases, there’s nothing wrong with this. It’s better to finish a little bit dehydrated rather than with hyponatremia. A loss of 1-4% body weight is pretty typical for most people in normal scenarios.
• Restoring hydration levels is a crucial part of the recovery process. Research shows that drinks containing sodium enable better rehydration as it allows the body to hold onto more of the fluid.
• Recommend mixing up a 500ml (16oz) bottle or two of 1500mg sodium solution to sip in the first few hours after you finish. Just drink as much as you feel you need to. The extra sodium will help your recovery much more effectively than drinking water alone.