Hydration
I've been testing lots of runners over the past two weeks and one common problem is low Hydration...not a good thing for runners or anyone playing sport..especially at this time of the year when humidity is high and we are sweating buckets..that fluid needs to be replaced!!

I would like all Lazy Runners to put a Double Up day into their week.You can load up on fluids. All fluid doesn't excrete out as urine and sweat, some can be absorbed and stored in the muscle tissues, and used when stores become low. This fact is especially useful to know when you are planning to do a lot of running or high intensity sport. If your muscles are well hydrated, you will be able to go longer and harder.

Low stores of fluid in your muscles is a bad thing for runners, because once those stores get too low, no amount of drinking fluids on a run will be able to replace them, it could take a couple of days to get the stores back up. If you run with low stores of fluid, you will tire easily, feel weak and exhausted and very thirsty.
One way you can ensure that you are fully hydrated is to try the Double Up Saturday system (or Double Up Friday if you are running on Saturdays). On the day before you do your big run with me, you double every drink you have..with water!!

So after your morning coffee you down a cup of water the same size, after your juice you down a glass of water the same size, after a glass of water you down another glass the same size..see the pattern?

After a glass of wine, double it..no not with another glass of wine, water ( I will not be responsible for any hangovers on our Ho Hum Run!), after a beer, down the same size glass of water..straight after, not five minutes later, immediately, drink a glass of water after every other drink you have on that day.

This system ensures you drink a lot over the day..it also means that you should be fully hydrated before your run and after your run you can just replace the fluids you lost on the run and not be drawing from your vital reserves.

On the morning of your run, just have a normal drink before you start. Drinking a lot before you run, usually means you need a toilet stop along the way, however, drinking a lot the day before shouldn't cause the same problem.

This is why Double up Saturday is a great tip for runners. Saturday is chosen, because we have our Ho Hum Runs on Saturdays and Sundays, so the more we drink on those days the better and because most running events are held on Sundays.

More Hydration

Over the past couple of weeks I'm finding that I'm sweating a lot more when I run and it's the first time for months that I have felt the humidity strong in the air again. So it's a good time to talk about hydration.


Everyones fluid needs and quantities are different, as it depends on your sweat rate,the climate you train in, the amount of activity you do, your size, male or female and the list goes on. A simple test is to note the colour of your urine, if it's clear or straw like in colour that's good, if it's dark or an amber colour it usually indicates you need more fluid. 8 glasses of fluid or 2 litres is the recommended fluid intake, but once again it can vary from person to person and of course the climate you live in affects the amount required.


That 2 litres doesn't have to be water, though of course water is the best, but it can include all other fluids. I drink a lot of green tea so I include it in that amount. However, drinks like coffee and alcohol have a dehydration affect so they shouldn't be included. If you a lot of fruit and eat things like jelly, or drink soft drinks or smoothies, they also have a fluid content, and can be included in the total.


I still feel though that you should monitor that water intake, it's a good habit to get into to drink 8 glasses of water a day. Runners burn lots of energy, the energy is produced as heat and the body loses that heat as sweat, and that sweat really needs to be replaced. The body is 70% water and most of that is carried in the muscles and blood and plasma. Muscles are pumped full of fluid and that what's make then strong, and have the endurance capabilites, so they need to be hydrated. Dehydration saps the fluid from the muscle and its what cause the fatigue, dizziness, nausea, feelings of exhaustion and muscle cramps..all of this comes from not having enough fluid in your muscles. Once dehydrated it take more than a couple of glasses to replace all that lost fluid, it can take days and weeks to get those muscle topped up to peak performance again..so the trick is don't let them get depleted of fluid, always keep them topped up.


If you are finding the water isn't enough and you run more than an hour each time you go out you may like to take in sports drinks as well. They are designed to balance the electrolytes in your body..as you probably know sweat isn't made up of just water, lick your skin when you are sweating or let the sweat run into your eyes and you soon realise that there is salt in there as well. We lose salt and sugar when we sweat and it also needs to be replaced, the sports drinks contain sodium and carbohydrates to replace the salts and sugars, and they also give you the thirst to want to drink more. The sports drinks all vary in the makeup of their replacement nutrients so you may need to try out a few to decide what's right for you. I find them a bit too sweet so I like to water them down, I make one bottle into two and that way I get more fluid into me as well. If you don't like wasting money and throwing out all those empty bottles, you can buy it in a bulk, powder form and mix it up yourself, it's economical and you can regulate it to your taste. One before you run and one after is a good thing to do in the warmer months, or in he colder months just one before.