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More hydration wars

Interesting read. Drink only when you're thirsty, bag the electrolytes.

Summary:
  • Fluid (and weight) loss during endurance exercise is normal, if not optimal.
  • There is no relationship between fluid intake and hydration, and the incidence of heat exhaustion or heatstroke. The only correlate to core temperature is level of exertion.
  • The body self-regulates blood sodium concentration via several mechanisms, including sodium sparing in sweat and urine. When one “drinks to thirst,” blood sodium concentration invariably rises during prolonged exercise; it never falls.
  • The self-regulation of sodium concentration results in sodium excesses being secreted; salty secretions will cease when sodium balance is achieved.
  • There is no scientific evidence that shows sodium (or other electrolyte) deficits in those with muscle cramping.

http://www.irunfar.com/2012/07/waterlogged-a-dogma-shattering-book.html
 

bean

Turbo Monkey
Feb 16, 2004
1,335
0
Boulder
Makes sense to me. I've always been skeptical about the idea that our bodies, despite millions of years of evolution and ability to handle myriad functions, cannot tell us when we need to drink.
 

Silver

find me a tampon
Jul 20, 2002
10,840
1
Orange County, CA
Giving the article a quick scan, it's basically about the people who think you need to drink straight out the firehose to hydrate, no?

Probably not something applicable to 99.9% of us, I'd imagine.

I've basically been doing for years what the article recommends on 3-6 hour mountain bike rides at a strenuous pace. Getting food in the form of sugars that don't upset my stomach is key. Water as needed, not on a schedule.

Apparently the ultra-distance people were getting different advice over the years...
 

Westy

the teste
Nov 22, 2002
54,232
20,016
Sleazattle
When you are as old as JBP you do not need to drink as much as the sweat glands only secrete the smell of moth balls and not a water based substance.
 
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