Outdoor Fitness – London Marathon Fluid Tips

Fluids can be the make or break of marathon performance but it is not just about what you do on the day. Developing your optimal hydration strategy, what to drink and when to drink, starts in training and finishes with perfect execution on race day. Here are some tips for training and race day that will help you develop your perfect hydration strategy:

In Training

Train the gut: We now know that in order to optimise fluid uptake the gut needs to adapt to increased fluid availability during exercise; in other words, we can train the gut to improve fluid uptake. To that end, make sure your long training runs include fluids; not taking on fluid during training does not make you tough, it simply reduces your adaptation. This approach will also help you develop the optimal timing of fluid intake on race day.

Experiment:

In training you need to identify two key factors: (1) what drink composition works for you; and (2) what drinking strategy works for you. During your long runs experiment with different compositions and strategies to ensure you have the perfect approach for the day. Importantly, do not experiment on race day.

On Race Day

Don’t glug on the start line: For the London Marathon you will arrive at the start much earlier than you normally would for a race. Because of the early arrival the temptation is to continually drink which leads to the ever present endless line of runners at mile one stopping for a wee. Remember, you can not hyper-hydrate (i.e. increase the fluid content of your body), your target is to be euhydrated (normally hydrated).

Early, little and often: Don’t wait until you are thirsty to take on fluid. The best approach is to head off dehydration early so start taking on fluids early in the race. But, you don’t want to drink too much as it will simply sit in your gut and cause GI distress. Accordingly, you only need to take on a little fluid on each occasion. Because you are only taking on small amounts you should aim to hydrate often. Remember, you should have practiced and honed your strategy in training.