Tips from my weekly half-marathon clinic. This week is all about hydration.
- Do not wait until you feel thirsty to start drinking water. If you wait til you feel thirsty, you’re already 2 percent dehydrated and it’ll affect your run.
- As a general rule you only need a sports drink if you’re exercising intensely for more than an hour. Less than an hour and H2O is sufficient.
- Drink approximately half a cup of water every 15-20 minutes during your workout.
- When choosing a sports drink, look for one with 0.3-0.7 grams of sodium per litre, contains 4 to 8 percent carb concentration, and a variety of carb sources.
February 25, 2011
When the aesthetician’s eyes practically popped out of her head, I knew my skin was in really, really bad shape. “Your skin is not dry, it’s dehydrated,” she said. I could tell that my skin was unlike any dehydrated skin she’d ever witnessed–I’m surprised she didn’t whip me straight into the company’s laboratory to use me as a case study.
Yes, Health & Swellness readers, along with my running, my water consumption’s gone off the rails, too. But, I’m determined to get back on track. For running, stylish gear and freshly downloaded iTunes (namely Ladyhawke and Lady Gaga) are inspiring me. Now onto Operation Hydration:
I used to think people who swore by their Britas were crazy–and then I became one of them. It so does taste different then plain ol’ tap. Alas, my Brita pitcher had seen better days so I ditched it months ago, along with my commitment to proper hydration it seems. Thankfully, I’ve got a new Mavea pitcher–which is very slick in terms of design plus it’s got a special screen to cut down on those floating bits of black carbon (I used to think I was the only one scared of the floating crud but then I read Save Karyn and was relieved to learn I wasn’t alone). A neat bonus is Mavea’s computer meter, which measures the length of time the filter has been in use and the volume of water filtered.
Something else I fear even more than the “crud” (aka black carbon particles) floating in my water pitcher? How unclean my reusable bottles are. Thing is I’m way too cheap to invest in a special brush and cleansing tablets to clean my bottles and so I never feel like I’m getting the bottle squeaky clean. And when I spotted an editor on a press trip chugging from a Alex Bottle, it’s funky shape intrigued me–what was that thick band across the middle, I thought? She gave me a quick demo and I immediately added it to my must-have list. This new line of bottles twists apart in the centre, so you can properly clean the insides (which also means you can drink juice, powder sports drinks or smoothies in it, too, or toss in ice cubes with ease).
Now that’s something I’ll drink to.
August 19, 2010
