You also need water, which is probably your first thought when you look at the two cyclists (tiny specks) in the unforgiving landscape in the photo. Water is necessary, but not sufficient, when you're stressing your body on a hot day.
Leg cramps afflicted one of those cyclists before we were eight miles into our 49-mile ride. I rooted through my saddlebag for some capsules I thought I carried for just this situation; I had none. She was able to score some electrolyte-fortified drinks and snacks from other riders along the way [but it wasn't enough].
In the heat, she kept drinking water to stay hydrated. But there is more to hydration than H2O. Water is a transport mechanism for some of the waste your body sheds, and it is key for the evaporative process that cools you when your body sweats. In both cases, you are losing more than plain water—you're losing minerals, as well. Primarily sodium, but also potassium, calcium, magnesium, and zinc.
Ever wonder why cyclists are so enamored of bananas? Potassium. In thousands of miles of cycling, I was afflicted with muscle cramps just once—on a poorly-managed charity ride, where the organizers provided only bananas at a rest stop. [Personally, I find bananas revolting.] No oranges, cantaloupe, or any other type of fruit. No potassium. A few miles down the road, my leg muscles seized up and taught me always to bring my own stash of electrolyte-laden snacks. Always. Don't count on anyone else to take care of your needs.
The biggest mineral loss in sweat is sodium, which explains that other favorite of cyclists: salty snacks. Pretzels, salted nuts, roasted salted potatoes. After a ride on a hot day, I can feel the gritty salt deposited on my skin. I have a friend who loses so much salt during a ride on a hot day that he looks like he's been dusted with white powder from head to toe.
Back to our cyclist with the leg cramps, who kept riding. Under the circumstances—in which she was ill-prepared for a strenuous ride in the heat—she should have turned back. Let me say that again: she should have turned back. We did not appreciate this, and had we insisted on it, I doubt she would have heeded our advice.
Instead she kept riding, and evidently drinking more water, further diluting the level of electrolytes in her system. When we made the final turn into the park where we began our ride, she waved us off and continued riding straight ahead. Maybe she wanted to ride around the block, or to the park's restroom, we thought. As more time passed without her return, it was clear that something had gone terribly wrong.
What we didn't know was that she had become hyponatremic. Her brain was swelling from the excess water in her system, leading to confusion. She rode another 15 miles south, where somehow she crossed paths with a kind soul who recognized that she was in trouble. He found our ride leader's phone number on her route sheet and called.
At that point, she needed emergency care; she was admitted into the local hospital. She might have died. [Yes, it was that serious.]
Electrolytes. You need them. Know your body. Find something that works for you: supplements, sports drinks, foods with salt and potassium.
And if a fellow athlete seems confused, get help.
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Hyponatremia: same thing that happened to me on the horribly managed Sea Otter Century, which apparently has a history of failing to provide enough water. The most dangerous part of such conditions is that the affected rider's rationality is the first casualty. It is, after all, your brain that first fails.
ReplyDeleteRiders fail to recognize that carrying some kind of salt is a necessity for safety. Table salt will do in an emergency. Some of the strongest riders you and I know carry only packets from fast food restaurants.