Proper hydration while cycling is essential for effective training and to avoid physical problems. Especially when the heat is intense. As you know, between 50% and 80% of our body is water, depending on age and each person’s constitution. Maintaining these levels is critical. Genetics, physical condition, ambient temperature and humidity, and heat acclimatization are factors that determine how quickly your body can show symptoms of dehydration.
But the truth is, if you don't pay attention to this matter, it will catch up with you sooner or later. Bad habits like not carrying enough water or not drinking frequently during a ride will diminish your performance. With dehydration, your strength will leave you, you could suffer a faint, dizziness, or even heat stroke. Don’t panic or take extreme measures either. Drinking excessive amounts of liquid can lead to overhydration, and its consequences are also harmful to your body. 2021/09/photo-blog-tuvalum-25.jpg"> As the saying goes, virtue lies in the middle ground. This also applies to cyclist hydration. Planning the amount of water to carry and organizing your intake will ensure your performance is not affected. How many water bottles should you take on the bike for a summer ride? How often should you drink? How much each time? Is it better to bring water or an isotonic drink?
Here we explain the guidelines you should follow to hydrate properly before, during, and after your bike ride, whether it's on road, mountain, or gravel.
The muscles responsible for any movement, such as pedaling, need large amounts of water to move properly.
The role of water in the body
To find answers, it’s important to highlight the importance of water in the body, especially for a cyclist. It is the element the human body needs to perform basic functions, such as cellular reactions, substance transport, or thermoregulation. Thermoregulation allows the body to maintain a stable internal temperature that enables all organs to function normally. It also ensures that muscles work properly. The muscles responsible for any movement, including pedaling, need large amounts of water to function correctly. The problem is that the body lacks a great capacity for provision and storage. That’s why it’s necessary to replenish water frequently. According to the British Cycling Federation , a session of moderate or intense exercise such as cycling eliminates 2% of the body's water reserves. For example, an 80 kg man would lose about 1.6 kg. Not replenishing those fluid reserves in time can double that loss in a short period of time, reducing the working capacity of the muscles, thus causing fatigue and tiredness. Most sports nutritionists agree that the time to drink the most is during the 30 or 45 minutes after finishing the workout.
How to hydrate before going out cycling
2021/01/Ciclista-bebiendo-agua-2.jpg"> But you don't just have to replenish those water reserves while you are training. Off the bike you also need to follow hydration guidelines that prepare your body for the effort of a workout or carrera. It is advisable that, days and hours before training or carrera, you drink water regularly, even without waiting to feel thirsty. In addition, water intake should be accompanied by a supply of essential minerals that will protect your muscles from discomfort and improve blood circulation. These essential minerals are:
- Calcium: abundant in dairy, fruits, vegetables, and cereals, it improves the flow of nerve impulses and muscle contractions.
- Iron: foods rich in iron are legumes, vegetables, and meats. They should be part of a cyclist's diet because they are the engine of red blood cells, which are responsible for carrying oxygen to muscle cells.
- Magnesium: counterbalances calcium and phosphorus, which provide energy. It absorbs both and contributes to recovery and improved intestinal transit.
- Sodium: one of the essential minerals that should be part of efficient hydration. It is found in any salty food and in isotonic drinks. It delays water loss and participates in muscle contractions.
Scheduling fluid intake every 10 or 15 minutes when you go cycling is ideal for maintaining correct hydration.
In addition to combining regular water intake with a varied diet rich in these minerals, most sports nutrition experts recommend checking the color of your urine as the best indicator of efficient hydration. If its color is transparent or very light yellow, it means you are doing a good job.
How to hydrate during the ride
Although each person has a different physiology and will need to drink more or less during exercise, the general rule is to drink without waiting to feel thirsty. Scheduling fluid intake every 10 or 15 minutes is ideal for maintaining proper hydration. This time interval will also vary depending on our level, duration of the ride, difficulty, and outside temperature.
It is just as important to drink during exercise as it is afterwards, especially for proper muscle recovery.
In summer, water or isotonic drink intake (a mix of water and mineral salts) should be more frequent; at least, every 15 minutes. In winter, however, the interval can be increased to 20 minutes. Many experts recommend drinking 500 ml of water (a small bottle) per hour, splitting it into different servings and accompanying it, before training, with a hot drink like coffee or green tea.
These drinks serve as stimulants to activate the muscles and delay the onset of fatigue. For short rides, water may be enough. For efforts over 60 minutes, things change. When you sweat, you lose minerals (also called electrolytes) that your body needs to keep functioning. In that case, make sure your hydration drink contains electrolytes; mainly, sodium. Have you ever noticed those white stains on your clothes and helmet straps after a scorching ride? That's the salt we lose, and we need to replace it immediately. Low sodium levels are often associated with the appearance of cramps.
Isotonic drinks have a sugar concentration that matches the sugar concentration in the blood (between 6% and 8%). This means they are absorbed quickly. They are an excellent option for hydration on the bike when you also need a little boost of calories. Be careful with other types of drinks, such as energy drinks and carbonated beverages. They contain a lot of caffeine and sugar. Their pleasant taste leads us to consume them with too much enthusiasm.
But excessive consumption does more harm than good. Caffeine makes you sweat faster and urinate more often. It also stimulates bowel movement, which makes you lose water and easily puts you at risk of dehydration. Health experts do not recommend them during your bike rides, much less on hot days. On the other hand, keep in mind that in summer, water heats up quickly.
There is nothing more unpleasant than a good sip of hot broth at over 30 degrees. That's why buying a thermal insulated bottle like a Camelbak is always a good idea. They are not infallible, but they keep the temperature for longer. As an alternative, there are some homemade tricks. The one that works best for us: fill three-quarters of the bottles with water, put them in the freezer the night before the ride, and top up with water just before heading out on the bike. Easy and effective.
How to hydrate after each bike ride or outing
After finishing your training or carrera on the bike, the hydration process should continue. It is just as important to drink during exercise as it is afterwards, especially when it comes to muscle recovery As a general rule, you should drink enough water to recover your body weight from before your cycling route. Don’t worry if you are in the middle of a weight loss phase, as this will not interfere with your goals. Almost all the weight you lose while cycling is water. In contrast, almost all body fat loss occurs during the 24 hours after exercise, during the recovery process.
Most sports nutritionists agree that the 30 to 45 minutes after finishing your workout is when you should drink the most.
If you want to fine-tune your recovery even more, we recommend that you drink frequently during the period immediately after exercise, which refers to the famous metabolic window. Sports nutritionists recommend drinking and eating, especially during the 30 to 45 minutes after finishing your workout. This is the best time to replenish fluid stores and speed up the recovery of muscle fibers. In this post-exercise hydration phase, you should combine water with isotonic drinks, or have a protein and carbohydrate-rich shake ready. You can buy it or make it yourself with natural ingredients (fruit, cereal, etc.). It is not advisable, however, to drink carbonated soft drinks (as we have already mentioned) or alcoholic beverages such as beer, which will delay your body’s rehydration and are harmful to organs such as the liver or kidneys.
How much water do you need to drink?
In addition to drinking frequently before your ride, or scheduling your intake during and after training, you should also pay attention to the amount of liquid you consume. It’s better to drink small amounts more often than to drink a lot at once. This will keep your fluid stores more balanced during exercise. Likewise, it’s better to have a good water reserve than to carry just enough. Unexpected events, breakdowns, falls, etc. can always happen on any ride. Also, you should keep in mind that temperatures in certain areas can be especially stifling. If you go out with your mountain bike, you should know that in mountain valleys a lot of heat and humidity usually accumulates in summer, which requires you to consume more liquid than expected. In this sense, a good solution is to install an extra bottle cage on your bike to carry an additional bottle, or to use a hydration backpack, which is highly recommended for mountain bike routes. This backpack will also allow you to carry spare parts and food comfortably, as well as increase your liquid reserves. As we mentioned above, many experts recommend consuming 500 ml of water per hour of cycling activity, as a guideline. Bringing more water or isotonic drink for a longer or more intense workout does not mean you have to force yourself to drink more. It is very important to control the amount of liquid ingested, as drinking excessively can cause physical problems due to a drop in blood sodium levels, leading to hyponatremia. It is rare for this to occur (it usually happens in very intense events such as marathons or triathlons), but when it does, it results in a serious condition very similar to heat stroke, which, if left untreated, can have very severe consequences.