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Post by Whitestar1 on May 31, 2013 22:52:04 GMT
Could be. Cramps can be caused by a lack of salt (sodium). Like I said I use an ISO additive and never had any problems with cramps. Well well little did I know! I was sweating salt so to speak so you could be right. Advise taken onboard!
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Post by spaceflightorange on May 31, 2013 23:05:58 GMT
Really scary. Turns out that she had consumed TOO much water over the course of the ride and the water had actually displaced the sodium in her body causing this incredible "shut down" reaction. Her brain swelled, etc. She hadn't replaced the sodium that was lost, not knowing that she had to. Drinking sports drinks would have done the trick, she says, coupled with water. I've heard of this. As I understand it, it comes from taking on too much water in one go, e.g. gulping down a 2-litre bottle in a matter of minutes. I dont think it happens when you take on a lot of water over a longer period of time. Me, I take 2 bottles with me, depending on the ride, i might put Zero tabs in both, or use an endurance powder in one and an endurance/recovery powder in the other. I'll take 4-6 High 5 gels, but i usually only end up having about 3, and a couple of flapjacks. I've been using the ProtoPure Endurance flapjacks from H&B lately, as i got a load near their date for 32p each. I sometimes use Trek flapjacks. I'll open one and take a bite every 20 mins or so. Make sure you drink when taking the gels as they can dehydrate you
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Post by spaceflightorange on May 31, 2013 23:07:03 GMT
Also, check out the High 5 race packs. got everything in them and for a sportive (where you'll expend less energy than a race) you can get a couple out of one pack
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Post by Whitestar1 on Jun 1, 2013 20:36:20 GMT
Also, check out the High 5 race packs. got everything in them and for a sportive (where you'll expend less energy than a race) you can get a couple out of one pack Will check it out thanks
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Post by Deleted on Jun 4, 2013 14:50:51 GMT
A nice little tip nicked from Twitter:
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Post by Deleted on Jun 4, 2013 17:45:05 GMT
Could be. Cramps can be caused by a lack of salt (sodium). Like I said I use an ISO additive and never had any problems with cramps. Well well little did I know! I was sweating salt so to speak so you could be right. Advise taken onboard! Based on no science but my experience as a comptetive swimmer, I found that salt does help to prevent cramp or get rid of it afterwards. I found a bag of salty crisps halfway through a day was enough to do the trick. On occasions that my teammates and I have had really bad cramp we even ended up mixing packets of table salt into water and drinking that, disgusting but it works. There are so many different sports drinks I found that you have to try a few and see what works, I now use the Sports in Science powders as you can buy a big tub and mix it to different strengths. I will probably try out their gels when I start hitting bigger distances on my bike as well. I also heard that cramp can be caused by a lack of potassium - a bananna will help this and a lack of quinnine which is found in tonic water. I tried drinking a glass of tonic water a day for around three weeks before a competition and I didn't get cramp but that isn't exactly proof of the idea. Also doesn't taste great without gin Just my pennies worth
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Post by psyclepath on Jun 4, 2013 19:25:04 GMT
I've heard the cramp caused by lack of salt theory but I'm not sure that's a scientific study or anything and I always put it in the same "advice" category as "sitting on a cold hard floor gives you piles". I'm lucky and have never ever suffered from cramp so don't really know what it is like. Short rides sub 40 miles I'd say you shouldn't really need any food other than a snack like a banana, flapjack or mars, providing you have had some breakfast before you go. Porridge is always great but cereal, Cheerios etc and milk I find fine too. Drinks wise it is mostly dependent on temperature, if it's mild then I wouldn't get through more than 500ml, 750ml in 20c plus on a 40 miler. Even then it's only apple and blackcurrant squash. I used to use the isotonic stuff for a while when doing sport but really think it is actually just a load of marketing hype and is just a "placebo" boost. It's very sweet too and not exactly great for your teeth! I did see a "scientific" study recently where they found milk to be the best drink of all for hydration and muscle repair. It didn't matter whether it was full, semi or skimmed either.
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Post by Whitestar1 on Jun 5, 2013 6:48:24 GMT
I've heard the cramp caused by lack of salt theory but I'm not sure that's a scientific study or anything and I always put it in the same "advice" category as "sitting on a cold hard floor gives you piles". I'm lucky and have never ever suffered from cramp so don't really know what it is like. Short rides sub 40 miles I'd say you shouldn't really need any food other than a snack like a banana, flapjack or mars, providing you have had some breakfast before you go. Porridge is always great but cereal, Cheerios etc and milk I find fine too. Drinks wise it is mostly dependent on temperature, if it's mild then I wouldn't get through more than 500ml, 750ml in 20c plus on a 40 miler. Even then it's only apple and blackcurrant squash. I used to use the isotonic stuff for a while when doing sport but really think it is actually just a load of marketing hype and is just a "placebo" boost. It's very sweet too and not exactly great for your teeth! I did see a "scientific" study recently where they found milk to be the best drink of all for hydration and muscle repair. It didn't matter whether it was full, semi or skimmed either. simple milk? That's hard to believe!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 5, 2013 7:06:23 GMT
Just found this on Wikipedia Too much or too little salt in the diet can lead to muscle cramps, dizziness, or electrolyte disturbance, which can cause neurological problems, or death. Drinking too much water, with insufficient salt intake, puts a person at risk of water intoxication (hyponatremia)
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Post by Deleted on Jun 5, 2013 7:57:49 GMT
Well well little did I know! I was sweating salt so to speak so you could be right. Advise taken onboard! Based on no science but my experience as a comptetive swimmer, I found that salt does help to prevent cramp or get rid of it afterwards. I found a bag of salty crisps halfway through a day was enough to do the trick. On occasions that my teammates and I have had really bad cramp we even ended up mixing packets of table salt into water and drinking that, disgusting but it works. There are so many different sports drinks I found that you have to try a few and see what works, I now use the Sports in Science powders as you can buy a big tub and mix it to different strengths. I will probably try out their gels when I start hitting bigger distances on my bike as well. I also heard that cramp can be caused by a lack of potassium - a bananna will help this and a lack of quinnine which is found in tonic water. I tried drinking a glass of tonic water a day for around three weeks before a competition and I didn't get cramp but that isn't exactly proof of the idea. Also doesn't taste great without gin Just my pennies worth bitter lemon does the same, that has quinnine in and taste much nicer, especially ice cold
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