Dehyration problem

slowondefy2

It's impossible to advise further. The OP hasn't responded to any follow up queries (i.e. what is the liquid and what is the state of the urine?).

All we know is that he/she seems to be drinking quite a lot of liquid already. If the OP is drinking water and the urine is already maximally diluted, then advising to drink more water may be dangerous. If the OP is diluting some fruit juice and adding some random amount of salt to it, then advising to drink more is also probably dangerous (a normal diet should see you through any potential salt loss over just two hours). If the OP is drinking a properly made up commercial isotonic liquid, then drinking more is unlikely to be dangerous, but personally I can't see how it's going to help.

If the OP is drinking plain water and is now sweating a lot in the warmer weather, then there is an increased risk of low blood salt (i.e. water intoxication), which perhaps wasn't there in the winter when sweat production was much lower.

Who knows, it's all guessing. All we can really say with confidence is, OP is already drinking a shit ton.

rothers_bikeo

Pseudonym wrote:

2 litres in 2 hours..? jesus...

If you're getting headaches, they are probably due to excess fluids, as opposed to not enough..

Exactly, it's only just over 30 miles. Eat & drink normally before you set off and you shouldn't need anything whist out riding.

team47b

Woah! hold on there, I never told him to drink more.

In fact the averages I suggested he drink would have meant he drank less water in total than he does normally, just spread out more, which is better than drinking too much, too fast, as we all know this is bad for you, hyponatremia can result when an already dehydrated person drinks too much water without the accompanying electrolytes which was why I suggested drinking before setting off.

My post was actually putting forward an alternative to dehydration as a possible cause for a headache ie low blood sugar as we do know what he drank but don't know what he ate. (I also realise it was only 50k and I don't know about the wind strength, hill gradients or effort used, that would be for him to decide whether he had enough fuel in the tank)

I appologise for the confusion I have obviously caused and in future will endeavour to make my comments more precise/concise/clear. Can we move on now?

Wonder if 1964johnr's head ache is better.

obi wan dandobi

If you drink too much water with no added salts you are effectively flushing your bloody of sodium and electrolytes, causing low sodium levels. As sodium helps the body retain water, the more water you drink, the more work you're giving your kidney to do, the more you pee, the less sodium you retain, the less water you retain in a never ending cycle. Drink some water mixed with dioralyte (or teaspoon of sugar and pinch of salt) when you get home to replace them. It doesn't taste great but does the job (hint: works blinding for a hangover also!). Tabs like Nuun and High 5 are good when on your ride as they also have carbs in, unlike dioralyte.

Hope this helps!

slowondefy2

If you're cycling far enough to need isotonic fluids, just buy it and don't follow vague 'Delia Smith' style instructions from the interent.

1964johnr

Thanks to all those who replied to my original post. I usually drink squash, so will switch to water and will also try drinking before my ride. I'll see what effect this has before trying additives or isotonic drinks. Not sure about salt, there seem to be conflicting ideas about this.I was a little surprised to see that some think two litres of liquid in two hours is a lot in warm weather. Maybe my weight of 16 stones and 6'3" means I have more of me to hydrate than your average 11 stone cyclist. Incidently, those who were interested in my pee patterns. After the ride it's dark orange and very rich and then gets clearer as the day and evening go on and I continue to hydrate. I do spend a lot of time in and out of the bathroom on a saturday. I am currently trying to shed a couple of stones, so that may help as well.

joshr96

ShutUpLegs wrote:

anto164 wrote:

Are you using pure water, or are you adding anything in??

Where can you buy pure water?

Closest thing you can get is mineral water I think.

joshr96

I would recommend the new range of Powerade drinks called iON 4. From what they said on the advert they hydrate something like 4 times better than water. They have helped me and I have had a number of dehydration problems.