Hydration that never quite works — you too?

5byfive said:

sfkid said:

Grab a zero sugar electrolytes powder. Getting a gallon or more down across the day becomes far less of a chore.
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rixsternaz said:

sfkid said:

Grab a zero sugar electrolytes powder. Getting a gallon or more down across the day becomes far less of a chore.
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Same here... LMNT zero sugar electrolytes packets are what I use, and they make getting 120oz of water down each day easier. With my appetite and thirst both way down on reta, drinking enough has to be a conscious effort.

​#-
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Agreed, or thirded, though keep an eye on the sodium. Western diets run high in sodium already, and products like LMNT are loaded with it too. Some lower sodium alternatives might be worth a look.
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This. Gatorade Free or a Liquid IV bottle is all I bother with daily. Sodium sits at 250mg in the Gatorade, 500mg in the Liquid IV. The Liquid IV powder gets divided between two empty Gatorade bottles.
 
islandtime50 said:

There's a hydration thing going on with me that I've never fully cracked. Anyone else in the same boat?

I'm a recovering utility arborist (among other jobs), which meant wearing genuinely thick chainsaw and fireproof gear while climbing hazardous trees near power lines to take them down. Short version: it's hot, gruelling work, and sweating and cramping arrive as part of the package. Coffee and alcohol get treated with care, and I've worked through plenty of hydration tablets, powders and so on over the years. Never quite solved it.

The tree killing is behind me, but I still run and train, and any real amount of coffee (1 homemade espresso) or beer (1 or 2 at most) shows up instantly in my calves or hamstrings. There's a bag of Hydralyte or similar from Costco in the cupboard, which I've leaned on a fair bit lately, though I'm not always sure it's doing as much as it should.

This morning I felt dry and crampy-ish, drank a couple of litres with electrolyte and then peed ... and peed ... fairly clear

Is anyone here handling this better than I am? TRT has started and some tirz is on the way, and I can already feel it, so surely I'm not alone in thinking about this.
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Reading it, better electrolyte management (sodium and potassium) plus the possibility of more water seems to be what's missing.

What's your current daily water intake?

For me 1.5 gallons a day is the sweet spot, and 2 gallons sometimes goes in (I sweat heavily and have had cramping trouble). Small amounts of pink Himalayan salt in my water have helped

And @Mr. Blonde ’s taurine suggestion is a good one too. Tempted to start adding it to my water.
 
@Stace_wow & @miss-sanne

Fam I hear you!! One great hydration day happened when I set an alarm to remind me to drink every 30 minutes... and then the very next day I managed maybe 40oz. Bringing 2015 back:

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I reckon my sodium is already covered (covered ...haha given my sunflower seed habit it's probably excessive!) but dried figs and apricots are going into my diet regardless since I love both anyway-great tip Stace! And the water timer is on again today!
 
Mine gets mixed at home. Take your favorite Crystal-lite or another zero sugar flavoring, then add a little salt plus a little no-salt, which is potassium. Commercial hydration mixes are short on both. Measure it out to reach the mg you're after. Magnesium supplement, 400 mg, goes in at night.
 
Costco is where my Liquid IV came from. 200oz went in yesterday. Cutting coffee for a 2nd day has been a real ass dragger. Sleep was definitely better that first night.
 
HouseCat said:

Hydration is a struggle for me too. Water is something I genuinely like, I just forget to drink it, and some days I don't even reach the 64oz bare minimum.

Yesterday I put a recurring 30 minute timer on with a really soft chime and kept hitting “repeat” whenever it went off. Each chime meant a drink, and I managed to hit my 100oz goal (plenty of you are getting far more than that, I know, but for me it's a win).

The apple and Fitbit watches and trackers can apparently be set to buzz periodically reminding you to get up and move. Perhaps they also offer a vibrating timer for water reminders?
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Love this. Forgetting to drink is exactly my problem too, so I'll give it a go.

lilamae05111 said:


Are you so sure your issue is hydration, and not salt or potassium loss? My son races motorcycles, and all the pros take potassium and salt pills while they race because the exertion and heat rob them of those first; water is secondary.

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This is what came to mind, mostly from my fangirling over ultra running. (One day I want to do it, so I follow it without running them). Water alone can be fine while electrolytes aren't.

OP^^ this has my vote.

GLP-1s make my electrolytes especially wonky.
 
Most of my water arrives indirectly: plenty of UF protein shake plus 2 lb of greek yogurt daily works out to 1.7L once you subtract what the sugar, protein and fat account for. Then a few glasses of water on top.
 
Cramping problems kicked in for me roughly a year back. I tried all sorts of things, and a few seamed to help slightly. Then came this: first thing every morning, before anything else. A teaspoon of mineral salt into 32 oz of water. No cramp since. Water also goes in about once an hour.
 
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