{"id":7566,"date":"2017-04-27T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-04-27T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wpmigr.edinburghbicycle.com\/blog\/5-questions-about-dehydration"},"modified":"2026-02-24T14:05:21","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T14:05:21","slug":"5-questions-about-dehydration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.citrus-lime.com\/ebco\/blog\/5-questions-about-dehydration","title":{"rendered":"5 Questions you wanted to ask about hydration but didn\u2019t want to look stupid asking in front of your friends"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Like a sentient cucumber, the human body is made up of two-thirds of water ( actually <\/em> ,\u00a0 cucumbers are made of 96% water \u2013 Ed.)\u00a0 <\/em> Proper hydration allows all kinds of great things to happen in the human body, like lubricating your joints, fueling your muscles, and regulating your body temperature. But why should you care? Here\u2019s 5 questions you wanted to ask about hydration but didn\u2019t want to look stupid asking in front of your friends.<\/p>\n

1. APART FROM GETTING A BIT OF A HEADACHE, WHAT HAPPENS TO MY BODY WHEN I\u2019M DEHYDRATED?<\/h2>\n

Reducing the amount of normal water content in the body means your heart has to work harder to move blood cells around (less fluid in your blood stream = harder to move around), and your body will begin to overheat, which affects both your physical and mental performance.<\/p>\n

According to the American College of Sports and Medicine, being dehydrated by more than 2% of your bodyweight will significantly affect your performance on a bike. And since your muscles are made of 70-75% water, dehydration can lead to muscle cramping too.<\/p>\n

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2. WHY ARE SPORTS DRINKS ALWAYS BANGING ON ABOUT ELECTROLYTES?<\/h2>\n

Electrolytes are essentially minerals, such as sodium, chloride, and magnesium, that regulate bodily fluids. Small amounts of these minerals are in our sweat \u2013 salty sodium being the main one \u2013 and their lack can lead to dizziness, muscle cramps, lethargy, and so on. So it\u2019s not only important to put water back into our bodies, but we also need those electrolytes.<\/p>\n

Good old fashioned food is a good way to replenish your electrolytes, but another popular method is to drink your electrolytes with water. We recommend electrolyte drinks such as\u00a0Science in Sport\u00a0which our Ged describes as \u201cextremely quaffable\u201d.<\/p>\n

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A still from the film \u2018Idiocracy\u2019 about a dystopian future in which all the crops are dead because humans are watering them with what is essentially Gatorade. <\/span><\/h5>\n

3. WILL ENERGY GELS HYDRATE ME?<\/h2>\n

Some gels contribute to hydration levels, but even then the amount of hydration is usually very small. Their main function is to provide energy in the form of carbohydrates.<\/p>\n

According to Dr. James Morton in\u00a0 this Telegraph article , \u201cThe traditional approach was to feed carbs with fluids, but we now know now we can feed them in the form of gel and get the same results,\u201d he says. \u201cFrom a practical point of view, you don\u2019t have to carry round lots of fluid \u2013 carry the gel then use drinking stations when you need fluid.\u201d So you can put away that baked potato and\u00a0 grab yourself some gels <\/a> \u00a0instead.<\/p>\n

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Tigers appreciate the value of proper hydration. <\/span><\/h5>\n

4. HOW MUCH WATER SHOULD I BE DRINKING WHEN CYCLING?<\/h2>\n

If you want to take hydration really seriously,\u00a0 Cycling Weekly recommends \u00a0drinking 1.5-2 litres of water a day,\u00a0 as well as <\/strong> \u00a0weighing yourself before and after a heavy ride and replacing the lost weight with water.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile according to the excellent online Camelbak Hydration Calculator, the amount of water a 11.5 stone, 31 year old man should drink during a 45 minute medium-difficulty cycle in chilly (i.e. British) weather is\u2026 400ml.<\/p>\n

\"highfive-zero-electrolyte-hr.jpg\" You can\u00a0 visit the site \u00a0and pop in your age, height, gender, and other juicy details such as the colour of your urine, and the calculator will tell you what you should be drinking.<\/p>\n

5. BUT IT\u2019S ALSO POSSIBLE TO DRINK TOO MUCH WATER, RIGHT?<\/h2>\n

Pee experts say that a normally-hydrated body will produce \u201cstraw-coloured\u201d or \u201ctransparent yellow\u201d urine. We\u2019ve also heard \u201cchardonnay\u201d.<\/p>\n

Completely transparent urine means you\u2019re\u00a0 too\u00a0 <\/em> hydrated, which can be a risk in itself; Eventually it can cause an imbalance in your electrolyte levels which leads to something nasty called \u201chyponatremia\u201d or water intoxication. To provide a rough example, if you weigh 12 stone and drink 6 litres of water in a short period of time, you\u2019ll probably die. You\u2019ll know if you\u2019re getting there because some of the symptoms include nausea, vomiting, frequent urination and mental disorientation. So don\u2019t try it.<\/p>\n

BICYCLE CO-OPERATIVE TIPS:<\/h2>\n