Yikes--hydration

[Bike Goddess]

Ditto for me! Take this article in moderation as everything else we read, right?

[SadieKate]

Actually I know several mtb guides who have had to deal with clients with this problem (like rushing them to the ER from the outback). Naturally, when you are dealing with clients who may not be used to low humidity and high altitude (and of questionable fitness), you encourage them to drink lots. These guides are receiving better training on recognizing the problem. I still think dehydration is the more prevalent problem, but hyponatremia is cropping up here and there.

[alison_in_oh]

This article is all over the internets today! My sweetie used to suffer from some form of mild hyponatremia after long group rides, which we discovered when stoking him up with salty food (ramen noodles!) after such rides staved off his tendency to have low-blood-pressure dizziness and near-fainting.

But personally I don't think I'm at risk! According to http://cptips.com/fluids.htm we should take 4 to 8 oz every 15 minutes. On a hard ride I don't have time to drink, and I end up going through barely 18 oz in 2 hours! I don't guzzle when I get home either, it takes me something like an hour after I'm off the bike to realize I haven't peed and my mouth is like cotton and that when I sip water it tastes like the sweetest elixir.

That site also has great info about treading the line between hydration and hyponatremia, and discusses the relevance of electrolyte replacement and glucose-containing drinks.

[wabisabi]

I agree with most of you--I am more likely to not drink enough, and will pay at the end of the ride with leg and foot cramps if I don't.

It can also be a real problem for me because I have a lot of problem with food additives and allergies, and a lot of the stuff in various sports drinks.

Let this be a cautionary note for all--I have done a lot of sports activities (backcountry skiing, etc.) that caused me to get hurt, or sometimes get a headache, and I would pop a NSAISD or 3 (Ibu., Advil, etc.) The cumulative effect was to really trash my gut, so that the little villi thingies don't work too well, and I can't eat things like wheat, most grains, soy without a resultant, uh, very short transit time through the plumbing. According to the literature, this can show up, often in women, when we are 50 or so, exacerbated by the NSAIDs. Of course, this is an additional cause of dehydration, and the cramps are usually a sign of that. I may have to resort to drugs at some point, but do not want to compromise the ability to ride.