7 key points to prevent dehydration and cramps in Medium and Long Distance Triathlon

The great effort you make in a triathlon must be compensated with a good hydration by the athlete

1 Why do we sweat while exercising?

The practice of exercise involves an increase in body temperature, which varies in proportion to the intensity and duration of the same, as well as to the individual characteristics and temperature / humidity

 The body has a thermoregulation system to compensate for this effect, which consists of evaporating water in the form of sweat

 In this process, in addition to water, substances called electrolytes (mineral salts) are lost, which are responsible for retaining water in a balanced way in the body

 2 Does the loss of water and electrolytes affect performance?

Affects directly and very noticeably in terms of fatigue and fatigue, in addition to other health-related effects, such as cramps, contractures, digestive disorders, etc., including more severe ones such as the risk of kidney stone formation (nephrolithiasis) for the high concentration of urine during intense or prolonged stress

 

 

 3 Is there an immediate solution when cramps appear?

 The reality is that at the same time no, unless this happens very close to the end of the test, it is advisable to leave to avoid greater problems and begin rehydration with water and mineral salts, since once the first symptoms appear of dehydration, easily identifiable: performance drop, extremely intense thirst that does not subside and difficulty for the stomach to empty of water, drinks, gels, bars, etc. the process continues advancing without the possibility of stopping it, since the rehydration speed is much slower than the dehydration speed

 4 Strategy to avoid dehydration

 It is essential to understand that exposure to dehydration always occurs with the practice of exercise. This clearly indicates that this aspect must be taken care of not only on the day of the test, also in the training period, first to favor the recovery of the session contributing to the improvement of the physical form, second to accustom the digestive system to drink and eat during the effort, so that on the day of the competition this aspect will be trained and tested and third, not to arrive with water and electrolyte deficit to the competition

 5 Daily Guidelines

The strategy to prevent dehydration and its effects, is always preventive and that requires taking care of the day to day, with simple control measures:

Weigh yourself before and after exercise, the difference is basically water, in the following hours, make sure to replace the 150% of the weight lost in water.

Monitor the color of urine, it should be almost transparent, no more concentrated of the color of the cider. A darker tone indicates lack of water, lack of electrolytes or both.

Use salt moderately in foods, except for medical advice that prevents it, do not eliminate the salt. It is the most important electrolyte in water retention

 Drink enough water a day, preferably between 20 to 30 minutes before meals. Facilitates its absorption and digestion of solid food

 Although the need for water varies individually and depends on the variables derived from the frequency with which exercise is practiced, its intensity and climatic conditions, a minimum reference amount can be from the 2-3 liters / day

 6 To keep in mind

 It is very important to emphasize that without the sufficient presence of electrolytes (mineral salts), water alone is not retained in the body. The presence of these substances is necessary to retain water with the correct balance

 In training and competitions of medium and long distance, there is a significant loss of both; water and electrolytes, which is enhanced when the ambient temperature is 25º or more, this makes it necessary that in addition to the daily guidelines, compensation is made in the exercise environment with technical products designed for this purpose

 Drinking water alone, does not achieve the full effect of rehydration, even drinking a high amount of water without providing electrolytes has the opposite effect, promotes dehydration by dragging electrolytes (hyponatremia)

7 Technical product usage recommendations

In Infisport we have two options to use individually or combined Vitaldrink powder to replenish in water. Once recomposed, it is a slightly hypotonic drink of rapid assimilation that, in addition to the technical formula of electrolytes, contains an energetic formula of immediate and sustained contribution. The standard preparation is 2 measures in 500ml of water, which provide 37gr of Carbohydrates and 340mg of Sodium

 Vitaldrink Salts Technical formula of mineral salts in capsules, containing citric acid to combat the metabolic acidity produced by intense and / or long-lasting exercise. It does not provide Carbohydrates and each capsule contains 220mg of Sodium

How to use

The loss of water and electrolytes begins to be significant after the first 45-60 'since the beginning of the exercise. From that time and no more, it is advisable to start taking the technical product. Since Sodium is the most important ion in water retention, we recommend paying special attention to the content of each preparation, clearly specified in the nutrition information label, in order to compose the calculation of needs and work with controlled data.

 The following recommendations are especially oriented to exercise sessions under temperature conditions of 25º or more. The recommended amounts are based on data published in a recent study, on the approximate minimum sodium concentration, necessary to compensate their loss above the 50% in real effort situation.

 Link to the study http://www.jano.es/noticia-la-sal-aumenta-el-rendimiento-23854 o Exercises up to 2 hours

 At the beginning of the 2th hour, start taking small drinks distributed until the end of 1 canister with 2 measures of Vitaldrink dissolved in 500ml of water or 2 capsules separately (30'en between one and another) of Vitaldrink Salts accompanied by 250ml of water each. If more than 1 daily training is done, repeat any of the 2 options at the end of the exercise, especially after the session of higher intensity / time / temperature

 Exercises + 2 hours

 At the beginning of the 2 hour, in the workouts of up to 3 hours, * from 460mg sodium / hour (Example: 3 measurements of Vitaldrink powder in 750 ml of water / hour or 2 capsules Vitaldrink Salts / hour accompanied by 250ml of water each a)

In training sessions of + 3 hours, * from 680mg of sodium / hour In order to facilitate logistics, both Vitaldrink presentations can be combined to achieve the minimum sodium / hour. It is important to make sure to ingest between 600 and 900ml of total water / hour of exercise in small sips

* Approximate amounts to replace the Sodium lost in the sweat above the 50% At ambient temperature lower than the 20º, the needs are lower