Hello. I'm hoping that some of you can weigh in about the logistics of proper hydration during the bike. Depending on the heat and humidity of race day, I seek to consume between 24 and 32 oz per hour. But, frankly, I find that I'm inconsistent in my consumption -- often resulting in inadequate supplies to last until the next aid station.
So my question is: how many oz do you tend to carry on the bike? Starting with 32oz in your aerodrink, do you carry more than one spare/full bottle? Does anybody have any suggestions on pacing (beyond "drink when you're thirsty") or tips on logistics? Thanks.
Heavily depends on
Heavily depends on conditions, personal tolerance, and availability of aid. I look to drink something like 20-30 oz/hr during a hard ride as if I try to take in more than that it kills me and less than that I kill myself. I carry 2 bottles (some of the time 3) when I race longer than an Oly. Spring one, Oly 1-2 depending. The long and short of it is if you are getting dehydrated you need to drink more water, if you are just water logging yourself you should drink less. You can actually figure out how much water you use by doing a simple experiment if you have a good scale.
Get fully dressed to ride, fill up water bottles (if you are going to drink water during your ride) and weigh you, and your bottles. Go ride, weight yourself (before you use the toilet) after the ride with bottles (any remaining water) and the difference in weight is how much you sweat off (1 g/ml, kg/L or 3lbs/gal you pick your units). You can race with a small water deficit but as you lose water you lose blood volume and therefore decrease tissue perfusion, muscular performance bla bla bla.... There is not perfect answer but there are good ways to start to understand how much water your body needs for your level of fitness, conditions and effort. (see above)
Hey Kenney.... It is a hard
Hey Kenney.... It is a hard question to answer like jnrice said, so I'll do my best. I'll assume that 24-32oz of water is the correct hydration rate for you for X race and Y temps. Your pretty much getting in 1 large bottle of fluids an hour then. Most races have hands up stations every 10 miles (30 min on avg.), so grabbing a bottle at each aid station would be more than enough and even have some left over to cool down your head every so often.
For me I tend to take in as much water as I can. I carry 1 28oz bottle (torpedo style) of water and 1 bottle for nutrition mix. What I do is chunk the bottle right before I grab anew one. 2nd (if its possible) I grab another bottle and get throw it down my throat, head, face, arms coolers etc and chunk to side of ride as I'm exiting. I'll consume the 1st bottle I grabbed sparingly to last me till the next aid station. For me if the aid station is 10 miles then I don't use too much caution about how much I consume. IF the next station is an hour out then I make every attempt to only consume 25% of the bottle every 15 min. When I'm within eye sight of the aid station I consume whatever is left.
Hope this helps.
Jarhead -- thanks for that
Jarhead -- thanks for that input. Your commentary better got to the crux of my question: i.e. how much fluids to carry, how to plan for aid stations, how to discipline yourself to mete fluids throughout the ride, etc. Those are the *logistics* that I struggle with. (I know *how much* to take in, it's just the how to acquire and manage it that I was seeking input on.) So thanks again.