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Salty sweat (Read 177 times)


Not dead. Yet.

    Hello.  My name is Sean and I'm a salty sweater.   Kind of gross I know, but I'm not sure what I should be doing during long runs to make sure I stay healthy.  Did a 16 mile marathon pace run today, and my shirt has salt stains all over it.  Also, my legs and arms have a coating of salt on them.  So not only am I a salty sweater, but I just sweat a lot too. 

     

    I'm training up for a marathon, so these runs are going to get a little longer, and I need some advice on how to replenish the salt during my run to stay safe.   Today, I stashed a big Gatorade at mile 6 and drank that until about mile 10/11, but often times I will only drink water.  Is drinking Gatorade during the run enough?  Or should I be taking salt pills?  Anything specific I should do before and after the run?

    How can we know our limits if we don't test them?

    catwhoorg


    Labrat

      If your sweat is very salty, you probably need less salt in your diet, rather than more electrolytes when you run.

      5K  20:23  (Vdot 48.7)   9/9/17

      10K  44:06  (Vdot 46.3)  3/11/17

      HM 1:33:48 (Vdot 48.6) 11/11/17

      FM 4:13:43 (Vdot 35.4) 3/4/18

       


      Not dead. Yet.

        Ahhh....  I have had a very unhealthy diet the last few days.  Exactly why I asked here.  Thanks.

        How can we know our limits if we don't test them?

        Trent


        Good Bad & The Monkey

          If your sweat is very salty, you probably need less salt in your diet, rather than more electrolytes when you run.

           

          Wrong answer. Smile

           

          Sweat glands do not respond substantially to dietary sodium. That is what kidneys do. Sweat salt content is typically independent of diet, and those who sweat out relatively more salt than average are more likely to need salt replacement when running.

          JML


            Greetings Sean -

            I am also a salty sweater and found over time that failing to take replacement sodium during longer runs (particularly on hot days) would lead me to feel like crap in the later miles and after the run.  I take S-Caps in hot weather and find that I run much more comfortably as a result.

             

            Jon

            Rebuilding my aerobic base....racing next year.....nothing to see here....move along now.


            Not dead. Yet.

              Thanks Jon!

               

              I assume you take more in hot weather because you sweat more in the heat.  Today was in the 70's but we get into the 100's in summer.  I do notice that the salt stains are much worse when I've been misbehaving in regards to my diet.  Should I just experiment with how much to take?  What will happen if I take too many s-caps?  I guess I need to do some more research on the subject.

              How can we know our limits if we don't test them?

              bhearn


                 

                Wrong answer. Smile

                 

                Sweat glands do not respond substantially to dietary sodium. That is what kidneys do. Sweat salt content is typically independent of diet, and those who sweat out relatively more salt than average are more likely to need salt replacement when running.

                 

                Sure about that? That's not what Noakes claims in Waterlogged. But regardless of whether sweat salt content is independent of diet, surely even the saltiest sweaters are increasing their blood electrolyte concentration when they sweat?

                JML


                  bingo on the reason for more in the summer.  I actually don't take them at all when running in cooler temps but find that the combination of an s-cap before the run and then every 75 minutes during the run works well for me when the temp is over 75.  As to maximum safe dosage, I am no expert and would defer to others.

                   

                  I learned about this method from an ultra runner friend of mine who regularly logs 3+ hour runs in the summer and swears by this approach.  He eschews using Gatorade / gels as a source of sodium as he prefers to get his calories from food during the run an relies on s-caps as a reliable source of sodium/potassium without the unwanted sugar baggage.

                   

                  Thanks Jon!

                   

                  I assume you take more in hot weather because you sweat more in the heat.  Today was in the 70's but we get into the 100's in summer.  I do notice that the salt stains are much worse when I've been misbehaving in regards to my diet.  Should I just experiment with how much to take?  What will happen if I take too many s-caps?  I guess I need to do some more research on the subject.

                  Rebuilding my aerobic base....racing next year.....nothing to see here....move along now.

                  Trent


                  Good Bad & The Monkey

                    Sure about that? That's not what Noakes claims in Waterlogged. But regardless of whether sweat salt content is independent of diet, surely even the saltiest sweaters are increasing their blood electrolyte concentration when they sweat?

                     

                    Waterlogged is one data point. The kidneys are the major way the body handles dietary sodium variation. Sweat glads do vary, but the variation is due more to acclimatization and genetics than by dietary sodium.

                     

                    And yes, sweat is more water than salt relative to blood, so even salty sweat can cause you to lose more water than salt. You need to replete both

                    SillyC


                       

                      Sure about that? That's not what Noakes claims in Waterlogged. But regardless of whether sweat salt content is independent of diet, surely even the saltiest sweaters are increasing their blood electrolyte concentration when they sweat?

                       

                      So, I just got a copy of Waterlogged, and I'll be going through it critically.  Two things I'm worried about?  First, that the major conclusions are from studies that don't include women (I don't know if this is the case - I aim to find out).

                       

                      The other?  Even excellent studies seem to do a great job of capturing what's going on in the average person, but not the outliers.  If a treatment or intervention doesn't benefit 98 out of 100 people, the "answer" is that the treatment is not beneficial.  This would happen even if the two other people saw an extreme benefit to the treatment or intervention.  The real artistry in science and medicine comes in teasing out the outliers.  And this is how we end up with anecdotes about, "This ineffective treatment CHANGED MY LIFE!"

                       

                      I experienced drastic improvements in my running,  comfort, and general well being in the heat when I started using electrolytes as opposed to just plain water.  Previously, I just couldn't train and was uncomfortable all summer long.  I was painfully thirsty no matter how much water I drank.  I got headaches and often sick to my stomach while running.  Pretty obvious what was going on, right?

                       

                      I started using Nuun about four years ago.  Not much, maybe one tab of it during a long run?  And a half a tab after coming back from a particularly sweaty shorter run.  And I started getting crusted with salt when I ran.  BUT I feel so much better now!

                       

                       

                      Anyhow, Sean.... I use drinks rather than capsules, and I go by taste.  If I've had a lot of salt on a certain day, they'll taste awful.  But if I haven't had a lot of salt recently, they are the most delicious thing ever.  Mmmmm!   Mmmmm!  (Okay, I admit, the summer I started using Nuun?  I started using it because it was so super delicious to me.)


                      Ostrich runner

                        I sweat both profusely and with lots of salt. In the summer, I'll often have decent sized crystals on my arms when I run hard. I've had pretty good luck both with S Caps and with using pedialyte in water bottles. I make my decision based upon the availability of water. 

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