Electrolytes, Drinks & Hydration

guys, what's your view on a proper hydration while cycling? and i don't mean a pint of bitter in your local on the way back. i'm interested in your serious opinions, as i don't really commute by bike and i'm more interested in the long weekends rides to keep fit.

i used to ride a mountain bike a lot a while back in the 90s and sometimes it could be an issue when i found myself dehydrated (once suffered from hypothermia and experienced some unpleasant shit which was probably a mini stroke and i had to walk back home without a feel in my left hand. or maybe it was because of the rave the day before?)

ok, what's your view - favourite electrolite drinks, how often etc.? i hope someone has more experience in that matter. i search the forum, but haven't found anything in the above topic.

500ml-1L per hour depending on heat and how much you sweat. I can get away with a lot less. It depends on what you're used to and how your body deals with heat, etc.

Weigh yourself before you leave on a long ride. Note what you drink. Subtract what you drink from your weight when you get in and then you know how much you sweat out for the duration of the ride. That's your starting point. Adjust up for hotter weather.

I commute and TT with nothing, use plain water for shorter, easier rides and use SIS GO for anything else.

Some possibly useful threads.
http://www.londonfgss.com/thread7742.html
http://www.londonfgss.com/thread22542.html
http://www.londonfgss.com/thread710.html

ta very much. i don't think i tried the sis go gel yet - just a dilluted juice or lucozade (the still one).

500ml-1L per hour depending on heat and how much you sweat. I can get away with a lot less. It depends on what you're used to and how your body deals with heat, etc.

Weigh yourself before you leave on a long ride. Note what you drink. Subtract what you drink from your weight when you get in and then you know how much you sweat out for the duration of the ride. That's your starting point. Adjust up for hotter weather.

I commute and TT with nothing, use plain water for shorter, easier rides and use SIS GO for anything else.

Good advice. Cheers hip

nuun tablets.

i love nuun tablets. yummy.

great! another thing worth to check out.

ps. hippy, what google thinks about your blog :Warning: Visiting this site may harm your computer!
The website at thehippy.net contains elements from the site 94.247.2.195, which appears to host malware

ta very much. i don't think i tried the sis go gel yet - just a dilluted juice or lucozade (the still one).

"GO" is not a gel. It's a powder you mix into a drink. I don't like SIS gels.

I have been trying NUUN tablets and they are cool because of their convenience. I used them in France because it's easier than carrying jug of powder around.

I think I still prefer the energy+electrolyte combination of GO powder though, since I tend to do sub-4hr rides without solid food, relying on energy drinks.

I guess if I used them more i would adjust and be more likely to remember to eat. In a harder situation like a sportive where you're actually aiming for a fast time, it's easier not to have to think about it.

I don't like SIS gels.

+1 the Blackcurrant one tastes like burn hair.

i'm a fan of torq gels. 'forest fruits' is tasty. torq gel the one gel that i can eat without wanting to throw up.

I rate the nuuns for hydration, can't be doing with some of the other powders or gels as loads of them contain caffeine which is great in a pre ride espresso but not in my ride drinks

the only thing i've got in hand, because of the baby, is dioralite in sachets. does it cut the deal?

They sound like they might work but ignore the 200ml suggestion and use 500ml+. The quantities of minerals in those sachets is double what SIS GO would mix down to, for example.

Sachet: *Sodium chloride 350mg, Potassium chloride 300mg, Sodium citrate 580mg, Pre-cooked rice powder 6g. * Quite high in sodium

vs.

80g: Energy 1300kj/287kcal, Carbohydrate 76g (of which sugars 13g), Protein trace, Fat 0g, sodium 400mg, chloride 650mg, calcium 45mg, magnesium 10mg, potassium 120mg.

I buy in bulk here:
www.fuelsport.co.uk/

after testing smaller quantities bought from bike shops or outdoors shops. £7.50 for 500g I think

Nuun ftw. Really helps prevent cramp during and after riding. Also seems to make water easier to stomach and therefore easier to ensure proper hydration.

Orange and ginger is best.

I've use Nuuns, but have reverted to a generous pinch of sea-salt, which contains a lot of the same trace elements.

My costs-fuck-all DIY energy formula at the minute is: maltodextrin, fructose, sea salt, optional caffeine (for longer rides & fat burning, or evening rides where I don't have coffee first), elderflower cordial. I may switch to ginger cordial in the winter - depends what the sports scientists have to say about it over the coming months ;)

Another good budget rehydrater is just water with a splash of cyder vinegar and a pinch of sea salt. Loads of goodness, and you're not paying for little plastic tubes.

Orange and ginger is best.

oooh i have to try those. i like lemon lime.

you guys are great - no flamming so far :-) thanks very much for the advice

Hydration is one of our favourite topics ;o)

you guys are great - no flamming so far :-) thanks very much for the advice

It's flaming with one 'm', twunt face.

shut it, i'm foreign!

So what? I'm an alien.

http://tbn3.google.com/images?q=tbn:zAdbwUC8HnnIAM:http://l.yimg.com/l/tv/us/img/site/57/38/0000035738_20061114171419.jpg

see what you mad me do? i steered my own thread straight into the gutter :-)

Watch it.. BMMF's got shares in a cyder vinegar factory..