At what mileage to take electrolytes?

[Tessie66]

I'm following the NRC training app, and if possible, I just want to know when to start taking electrolytes and if you have taken anything else instead? I'm moving up to 11k this week my furthest distance

[Sandraj39 Half Marathon]

When it’s warm, I take Tailwind to sip on a 10k and always on anything longer. I use it instead of water as it has carbs and electrolytes in it.

Link below🙂

tailwindnutrition.co.uk

Good luck on your 11k too!🙂

[Tessie66 in reply to Sandraj39]

Thank you will be having a look

[MissUnderstanding Half Marathon]

There’s no one right answer to this. I’ve been all the way up to half marathon without. So much of running is finding what works for you-especially with fuelling! Unless it was especially hot, I wouldn’t routinely take water with me up to about 15k, although I usually start to eat when the distance gets to about 10k onwards.

[Tessie66 in reply to MissUnderstanding]

Thank you love to see 👀 everyone's opinions on this.

[Beachcomber66 Administrator Half Marathon]

I am the same as MissU. My stomach doesn’t welcome electrolyte drinks on runs; so I just take water. I do top up on electrolytes when I return home post run. I don’t take any drinks on runs under 10 miles, although I would change that in particularly hot weather. Just try things out and see what works for you. Hydration is best started well before the day of long run.

[Tessie66 in reply to Beachcomber66]

Thank you all new to me just trying to not get caught out and taking in all the help I can

[Beachcomber66 Administrator Half Marathon in reply to Tessie66]

We have all been there Tessie. You will find what works for you 👍

[Tessie66 in reply to Beachcomber66]

DEFINITELY and this is we're I'm learning so much so thank you to everyone

[misswobble Marathon in reply to Tessie66]

You’ll decide all sorts of wrinkles to suit the day, route and distance 😀👍💦

I really hate carting stuff unless absolutely essential so I might take my drink in a bottle I can chuck in a bin. and buy another one if near a handy shop. I have two cemeteries that have taps with clean running, water which is handy when parched. Pity we don’t have water fountains any more! ☹️

The floppy water flasks are very good as they fold to almost nothing once empty look for shorts with lots of pockets 😀

Have fun out there 😀👍

[Tessie66 in reply to misswobble]

Thank you

[Beachcomber66 Administrator Half Marathon]

One tip about “dissolve in water” electrolytes. I would mix them the night before you run.

If there is any fizz left in your drinks bottle; the fizz can lift the cap on bottles with a mouth piece, so you can end up with a very wet derrière….and fizz in your stomach as you run is very bad news too (hyper - inflation). 🙂

[Irishprincess Administrator Half Marathon]

Good advice already and as MissUnderstanding says, we’re all different and what works for one runner won’t necessarily work for another.

For me, it depends on the temperature and the distance. If it’s hot then I’ll always take water even if I’m running a short distance. I don’t like the thought of being without water. Generally, for anything over 12K then I’ll always take Tailwind but sometimes I just mix my own; a bit of squash and a pinch of salt in still water and that seems to work for me too.

Good luck with your experimentation and for the 11K 🤞Let us know how it goes.

[Tessie66 in reply to Irishprincess]

Thank you Irishprincess I'm hoping to get the 11k done Tuesday its all work dependent with me but on NRC I also have a 6k to fit in at some point.

[nowster Metric Marathon]

Water is the most important ingredient.

A pinch of salt per pint will probably be enough. Add a bit of fruit squash (eg. Robinson's) to make it palatable.

In winter I don't need anything for a run that's under 90 minutes. In the heat of summer, however, I would probably need fluids for anything over an hour.

I have done a half marathon distance with no fluids or fuel in cooler weather. I did drink plenty afterwards.

I have some fizzy pills from SiS that I got from the supermarket. They work too. You just have to make sure they've stopped fizzing.

[Tessie66 in reply to nowster]

Thank you and water I drink a lot

[Oldfloss Administrator]

I've with MissUnderstanding I've run HM distance and not used anything...only carrying water for my wrists and pulse spots if it is really really hot..10K onwards. Races tend to have water stops..

Healthy eating regime, great hydration ... we are all different and find what works for us,,, x

[Tessie66 in reply to Oldfloss]

Thank you still fairly new into this journey

[cheekychipmunks Half Marathon]

I echo everyone’s sentiments Tessie. I don’t take anything along for runs under 10k. For longer runs, I wear my belt which holds two small bottles, one with plain water, the other with Tailwind. There are loads of flavours and you can buy a selection of samples before committing to a large quantity of one flavour. Some have added caffeine, some don’t.

Some people swear by hydration vests too. I own one, and have used it, but it irritated me towards the end of a HM race as it was extra ballast on my shoulders - and it wasn’t even heavy! I haven’t used it since. 🙄

[Tessie66 in reply to cheekychipmunks]

Thank you lovely to here from you experienced runners will be a great help for me

[Cmoi Marathon]

The one and only time I used electrolytes was during my trail marathon. And only because I thought I was supposed to. Give me water (and real snacks, not puke-inducing gels) any day.

[RunWillie Metric Marathon]

I’m in Australia so I use electrolytes in the Summer for anything over an hour as it can get super hot.

I also use salt tabs with gels to fuel any runs that will be 90+ mins. . I take a gel every 30mins & a salt tab every hour.

[Curlygurly2 Half Marathon]

It depends where you are too. For years I ran in the south of France, often in temps of over 32C, never took water, never used sun screen. When I came back to UK I was surprised how thirsty I got on runs, and the first "warm" day saw me sunburned....what's that about then? I can only think it's the humidity.

These days I carry electrolytes in a camel back for runs of over one hour.

[linda9389 Administrator Marathon]

As everyone has said, it's personal. I dont take a drink for runs of 10k or under, but will have an electrolyte drink when I get home if I got hot and sweaty or feel particularly thirsty (just a standard SIS tablet in water - I like the fizz!). On longer runs, I'll take the same electolyte tablet in water with me; even so (unless it's very hot) I tend to just sip during the run and complete the drink when done. I either use a flipbelt and bottle or, for longer runs during HM training, I take my standard aonijie vest and bladder which is easier for larger quantities of drink (amazon). I used to use Tailwind for the added carbs, but it began to disagree with me so now I prefer the SIS for electrolyte/salts and Veloforte chews for carbs/energy. Just keep experimenting and keep an eye on the temps you are running in.

[GTFC Marathon]

I think it also depends if it is a training run or a race. On a race day there'll be water stations for you to sip (and pour on you if it's a hot day). One gel should do up to 10 miles if it's a steady training run, or two if it's a race or hard effort. For a HM race I'd take two gels (at 4.5m and 9m) with clif blocks in between and sips of water from the aid stations. It's important to practise this on longer runs before the race so everything feels comfy. Also, wear exactly the same kit as you would on race day so that you're confident in it.

You'll find what works for you though. I did three Marathons with Tailwind but it made me feel heavy and then two more Marathons like I described above which personally suits me better. Definitely experiment and then go with what feels comfy. Good luck, we're all right behind you 😊

[Tessie66 in reply to GTFC]

Thank you and thank you to everyone for their help with this