Completely Unscientific

[Red Light]

I stick to plain water unless its a very long ride. The trouble with taking energy drinks for things like commutes and short rides is you become addicted to the extra performance it gives you and you feel crap when you don't drink it. I use cycling on water as my benchmark and then on very long rides I can use it for a bit of a boost at the end when energy levels are flagging.

 

[BSRU]

If anything i drink too little, usually no more than a water bottle in about 3 hours or above and been told i should really drink more

I did not drink very much less than half a bottle, even then some was consumed as I walked to lock my bike up thinking about all the drink that remained going to waste.

 

[Andrew_Culture]

Are you sure it wasn't Colombian Marching Powder?

-----------------------------------
Sent mobile phone stylee

High5 extreme is marginally cheaper, but only by a small margin.

 

[TwickenhamCyclist]

I hope the local classA smuggling ring haven't got the wrong address... but seriously, I always understood you should drink before you become thirsty - once you are thirsty you're already dehydrated - having said that, I always feel i can cycle forever after several beers as well...

 

[Col5632]

I hope the local classA smuggling ring haven't got the wrong address... but seriously, I always understood you should drink before you become thirsty - once you are thirsty you're already dehydrated - having said that, I always feel i can cycle forever after several beers as well...

Thats also what i thought

 

[BSRU]

I hope the local classA smuggling ring haven't got the wrong address... but seriously, I always understood you should drink before you become thirsty - once you are thirsty you're already dehydrated - having said that, I always feel i can cycle forever after several beers as well...

They had "experts" talking about it on the BBC programme last night, being thirsty is your body's way of telling you it's time to drink. The previous perceived wisdom of drinking before your thirsty appears to be a ploy from drinks companies to get you to consume(buy) more of their products.

 

[I like Skol]

I must admit, I used some of the chain reaction free samples during my 130+ mile day recently. I rode to blackpool (70 miles) using just water and felt a bit weak as I arrived, possibly having pushed too hard. After some food and beers?!?! I left blackpool to do the final 70'ish miles and about 10-15 miles out started drinking from my bottle with the additives and have to admit that within minutes I felt 'fresher' and my ave speed even picked up a touch (placebo effect?). I then began to wonder when the crash would come but it didn't and even when I got home I still felt physically pretty good considering I had just done my biggest ever ride by over 30 miles.

I think the one I used was a soluble isotonic tab with caffeine so not any glucose/carbs to any significant degree.

Maybe all the psuedo-science isn't complete tosh? I was a sceptic before but my non-scientiofic test also seems to show that there may be some truth to it after all

 

[gambatte]

Wonder if there's any significant difference, apart from flavouring, between these and the mineral salts you can get from Boots etc for rehydration of the ill?
Perosnally I haven't bought anything for a long time. I seem to get enough from Wiggle/CRC and the freebies at races.

 

[Gary E]

Tbeing thirsty is your body's way of telling you it's time to drink. The previous perceived wisdom of drinking before your thirsty appears to be a ploy from drinks companies to get you to consume(buy) more of their products.

Whilst this might hold true for someone going about their normal daily business it just doesn't work if you're pushing yourself hard or if it's very hot. After 5 tours in Iraq where I watched guys go down because 'they weren't thirsty' I learned that you need to get ahead of the game. Like I said, I'm no expert but it just seems like common sense.
If your fuel light comes on in your car (telling you it's thirsty) you know you've got X amount of miles left before you run out. Fine if you're just ambling along but if you're driving like Michael Schumacher you're not going to make it to the pump!

 

[BSRU]

Whilst this might hold true for someone going about their normal daily business it just doesn't work if you're pushing yourself hard or if it's very hot. After 5 tours in Iraq where I watched guys go down because 'they weren't thirsty' I learned that you need to get ahead of the game. Like I said, I'm no expert but it just seems like common sense.
If your fuel light comes on in your car (telling you it's thirsty) you know you've got X amount of miles left before you run out. Fine if you're just ambling along but if you're driving like Michael Schumacher you're not going to make it to the pump!

The BBC actually visited the South African special forces who have studied water consumption by their soldiers over many years, they discovered best practice is "just drink when your thirsty".

 

[BSRU]

Well, first ever 80km+(50 miles) commute day for me today, 12km better than my previous best from two weeks ago .
A total of 363km(225 miles) over the past 6 days, which included lots of climbing the local hills.

Too many variables to really identify a single thing that helped, probably lots of little things made the difference.

 

[Gary E]

The BBC actually visited the South African special forces who have studied water consumption by their soldiers over many years, they discovered best practice is "just drink when your thirsty".

Well there you go, what do I know?
I guess the guys going down around me must just have been wimps then

 

[Aiden_23]

Got some stuff free from CRC..........tastes like flat, 3 day old red bull. Not for me I will just stick to drinking my own urine on rides!!!! Dont care what the BBC say when someone is carrying a rifle,webbing and day sack and running about daft all day (even in our cooler climate) you drink when you can and not when you feel thirsty or you go down. FACT!!! cant find the Hanging out Smiley????

 

[TwickenhamCyclist]

They had "experts" talking about it on the BBC programme last night, being thirsty is your body's way of telling you it's time to drink. The previous perceived wisdom of drinking before your thirsty appears to be a ploy from drinks companies to get you to consume(buy) more of their products.

Fair enough, but judging by the general sloppiness of BBC reporting I’d take that with a pinch of salt (or isotonic lucazade). As for marketing by drink’s companies, again, the conceived wisdom is to drink tap water. Personally I’d listen to the NHS on this over the BBC:
Quote from http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/dehydration/Pages/Introduction.aspx :

Some of the early warning signs that you're dehydrated include:

• feeling thirsty and lightheaded
• having dark coloured, strong-smelling urine
• passing urine less often than usual

· How much should we drink?
· Many studies have tried to establish a recommended daily intake of fluid, but it can vary depending on the individual and on factors such as age, climate and physical activity.

Some studies in the UK suggest that adults should drink 1.2 litres (6-8 glasses of water) per day to replace lost fluids and prevent dehydration.
· A good general recommendation is to drink enough fluid so that you're not thirsty for long periods of time, and to steadily increase your intake during exercise or hot weather.
· You should also drink fluid if you're having symptoms of dehydration, such as feeling thirsty and lightheaded, passing dark-coloured urine or not passing urine within six hours. It's also important to replace fluid lost after an episode of diarrhoea in order to prevent dehydration.

 

[BSRU]

Rode the same route as Friday but with no liquids, as usual, managed to ride it 1kph faster and still arrived in great shape wanting to go further.
Checked the ride against Strava and the only hard section was completed 10 seconds faster today, only 3:19 instead of Fridays 3:29, and most important not giving 100% in that segment so should be a little faster when I do not hold back .