Running a marathon is a physically grueling challenge that requires you to be fit and healthy. To protect yourself and ensure optimal performance, you need adequate hydration. Failing to replace fluids lost to sweat can be dangerous, but drinking excessively can also be dangerous and leads to hyponatremia. To ensure proper fluid intake, marathon runners should drink before and during a marathon. To fine tune the amount of fluid they consume, athletes can monitor fluid loss.
Before the Marathon
Proper hydration starts before the marathon starts. The University of California San Francisco Medical Center recommends marathon runner start hydrating at least 48 hours before the start of a marathon. They also suggest you drink two 8-oz. glasses of water or sports drink two hours before the race starts. This ensures the fluids are absorbed into your system.
During the Marathon
Without fluid replacement, an athlete may experience elevated heart rate and body temperature. To avoid this, the American College of Sports Medicine says water losses from sweat should be replaced by drinking at a rate equal to sweat rate during a marathon. To fine tune this process, you should monitor you sweat loss.
Proper Fluids
For maximal effect, fluids should be cooler than ambient temperature. Fluid replacement also replaces important electrolytes that are lost in sweat. Fluids that contain 4 to 8 percent carbohydrates can sufficiently replace electrolytes for marathon runners. Carbohydrates can be sugars or starches. Inclusion of sodium in fluids used for hydration is not necessary but can help make fluids more palatable.
Check Fluid Loss
To determine your personal fluid needs, you should monitor your fluid loss and sweat rate. Weigh yourself before taking a run. Then run at your usually marathon pace for an hour and record how much you drink during this time. After the run, wipe yourself down with a towel and weigh yourself. Figure out how much weight you lost during that hour and convert pounds into ounces. Then add that number to however many ounces of fluid you drank. This will tell you how much fluid you need to drink in an hour of marathon running.
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