Since we have so many fitness experts, I thought I’d posit a question:
In my old (current) job, my boss has always let me go work out at luncthime, even if it takes more than an hour. (Actual workout doesn’t take an hour, but when you factor in the 1.5m drive, changing into workout gear, showering, changing back into work clothes, and driving back, it talkes over an hour.) However, the new job is more strict about having a one-hour lunch, so I’m gonna have to go back to the 5:00 a.m. workouts.
Problem is–I used to drink a lot of water before lunch, so I knew I was plenty hydrated by the time my noon workout rolled around. Now I’m drinking water before bedtime–and waking up three times a night to pee.
Anybody know the science behind hydration? Any way to stay hydrated overnight without having to wake up three times to empty the tank?
you don’t need to ‘load up’ on water before a workout. If you don’t feel dehydrated in normal non-workout hours you’re fine. keeping hydrated during a workout is important. if you’re sweating a ton you might consider cutting a water bottle with a couple ounces of gatorade to keep your electrolytes up. same with post-workout - hydrate and replenish electrolytes, but don’t go overboard. your body should be guiding you on what it needs.
I think the focus on ultra hydration is over blown. just drink when you feel thursty.
^Don’t normally pee three times a night. Normally zero or one.
But between 7:00 and 10:00 p.m. last night, I drank about a half-gallon of water (two litres, for our metric friends). Hence why I ran to the bathroom all night.
@Turd - thanks for the info. I sweat more than most people, but I don’t think that’s because I’m out of shape or that there’s anything wrong. When I was in excellent shape in the Marines, I still sweated a lot.
I don’t normally drink a lot of Gatorade, because of the sugar in it. (I prefer Coca-Cola instead for my healthy drinking.) Is it really better for you than just water? Or does Pepsi just have a really good marketing team? (FYI–Gatorade is owned by Pepsi. And it’s the only Pepsi beverage that I prefer over the Coke equivalent.)
When I play hockey or ride bike I drink 1/3 Gatorade mixed with 2/3 water. About one litre per hour of activity. Seems to work. The salts do make a difference I find. Not sure if science backs that or not.
i sweat a lot too, i’m a salty sweater - genetics - so i tend to cramp a lot if i don’t do something to maintain electrolytes during a workout. if you cramp or ‘bonk’ during workouts you should add a SMALL amount of gatorade to your hydration during a workout. after a workout, you can replenish electrolytes just by eating good food, but sometimes i have some extra gatorade if i’m feeling extra depleted.
Science for sure backs it! However for regular working out and lifestyle just water is ok. When you get into extreme jobs in the heat or endurance activity over 2 hours and you sweat out your electrolyes with out replacing them you can get really sick and the most and at the least get muscle crampls. Its called hypotranemia. But for everyday workouts, the electrolyes can help with the water absorbtion so it is not sloshing around giving your cramps.
Remember–I’m not trying out for the Cowboys, training for the Olympics, or trying to look like The Rock. I just want to lose some of the weight and get in mediocre-to-good shape.
(Please do not insert comments about calories-in/calories-out or quality-of-calories or any of that crap. We have a whole thread based on that.)
I have to have gatorade or some sort of liquid like that when I go on long outdoor bike rides. For indoor workouts I usually just use water as I drink so much of it sometimes (2-3 liters), but salt my food a bit and occasionally do sweat workouts to flush out the system wearing full sweats at the gym or something. Peeing 2-3 times per night is a lot. I hope it is clear piss at least.
Pee before bed? I’m assuming you don’t drink 2 L just before you sleep. I’m not even sure if that’s possible.
Get the gatorade powder and dilute to your liking. It helps, especially if you sweat a lot.
Ideally, you would have a bottle similar to SamCryBaby’s with a tube that goes to your mouth and from your urethra. The full cycle ensures efficient use of a scarce resource and preserves water for generations to come.
^Yes, it is possible to drink 2L of water at one time. In Marine boot camp, we did it regularly. Our drill instructors would force us to fill up our canteens (one liter), drink the entire thing, then immediately fill them up again and drink them again.
I’m a cyclist, so I regularly ride 2,3, or more hours at a time in the summer heat (it’s only New England, but 90+ days aren’t uncommon). And I sweat like a mofo - after a ride, I can wring my socks out and get at least a quatrer/half cup of sweat out of them on a hot day.
SOP is two bottles of water on the bike (one filled with ice and water, and one frozen solid overnight, so it’ll be ready to drink when the first one is empty).
I don’t like mixing stuff in the bottle (I sometimes pour it over my head or my shades, so anything other than water won’t do). So for electrolytes (and a bit of glucose), I usually have a package or two of Blocks (basically gatorade gummy bears). If I didn’t carry some nutrition, I’d bonk (no muscle glycogen) or get cramps after 2 1/2 hours or so.
You really don’t need water or anything else for a workoput under an hour (I once dropped 8 lbs of water weight in a 75 minute race, but that’s probably an extreme upper limit - it was 94 out, and we were running on tar so hot we left footprints). But on longer ones, you do.
And I seldom “load up” before the ride - if I do, it’d just mean I’d have to pull over during it. Joey DeVivre once claimed he could drain the vein without getting off the bike or even stopping, but I’m not even going to try that.
It’s not that difficult really. Unless you’re in a race though, there’s really no benefit to it. It’s pretty obvious what you’re doing and you can’t peddle unless you want urine all over your lower leg and bike, so might as well just stop and find a bush.