Hydration for Long Course Triathletes

At Saturday, we are fervently committed to the promotion of athletic performance through tailored sports nutrition. In today's conversation, we will be exploring the vital aspects of hydration during intense training, touching on elements such as fluid intake, the significance of sodium, and the subsequent effects on athletic performance. As long course triathletes, it is paramount to establish and preserve optimal hydration levels to guarantee maximum performance.

Understanding Dehydration and its Performance Implications

Even slight declines in hydration, approximately 2%, can lead to a reduction in cardiac output, defined as the amount of blood the heart pumps each minute. This decrease implies the heart must exert extra effort to circulate blood, which results in a performance drop.

As dehydration escalates, muscular power output can also deteriorate. This decrease can be attributed to a drop in blood volume, which negatively affects the efficiency of nutrient and oxygen delivery to muscles. Additionally, as the body's fluid levels continue to dwindle, its ability to cool itself through sweat diminishes, leading to an elevated core body temperature, which further hinders performance.

Maintaining the Balance: Hydration and Sodium Levels

Ensuring a balance between fluid levels and sodium concentration is critical during exercise. Dehydration poses a major concern, but consuming copious amounts of water without sufficient salts can cause hyponatremia, a condition marked by low sodium levels in blood plasma. It's important to recognize that symptoms of hyponatremia—headache, confusion, fatigue, muscle weakness—closely resemble those of dehydration.

To uphold suitable sodium levels in the blood, it is recommended to ingest a hypotonic solution while training. Nevertheless, many athletes fail to consume adequate amounts, necessitating a hypertonic solution to replace sodium lost through sweating.

Fluid Intake Rates and Optimal Concentrations

Athletes can typically consume around 0.8-1.5L of fluid for each exercise hour without encountering gastrointestinal issues, provided the water's sugar and electrolyte concentration is not significantly higher than that of bodily fluids (a range of 10-14% concentration is generally preferable). During shorter periods of intense exercise, less than three hours, the consumption of hyper-concentrated carbohydrate solutions can be advantageous, as the demand for carbohydrate fuel surpasses the need for ideal water replacement.

Customized Electrolyte Intake

Electrolyte intake during rigorous training must be individualized. Sodium requirements generally lie between 500-1500mg/L, contingent upon factors such as sweat rate and composition, temperature, and humidity. If you are sweating excessively, you'll probably need to increase your sodium intake per liter to offset sweat-induced losses.

Sodium Replenishment Choices

Numerous options exist for sodium replenishment, from specialized sports beverages to gels and tablets. However, a more economical alternative is plain table salt. Another effective choice is sodium citrate, as it delivers a higher quantity of sodium ions relative to table salt. Sodium citrate separates into three sodium ions and one citrate ion, whereas table salt divides into one sodium ion and one chloride ion. This makes sodium citrate a more dense source of sodium and induces less gastrointestinal stress.

Conclusion

For those participating in long course triathlons, proficient management of hydration is instrumental for exceptional performance. Remain attentive to maintaining the balance between fluid intake and sodium levels to evade both dehydration and hyponatremia. Adjust your fluid and electrolyte intake to match individual needs and the specific conditions of the race.