This morning’s 5 mile run was exhausting. It may have been our general energy levels or the unanticipated heat or the hydration pack I tried to wear with the 2 liter hydration reservoir. Two liters feels surprisingly heavy while running.
Now that we’re running 7+ miles regularly in Florida, we’re trying to play around with hydration and fueling options. I get thirsty at the drop of a hat no matter where I am or what I’m doing so I drink tons of water daily, but I hate carrying water bottles during runs. It seems to help if I drink Gatorade rather than water before a run, but I would prefer to have hydration with me at all times. So, I bought the hydration pack hoping it would be light enough to run with. It looked small and seemed light. However, it proved to be exhausting. Maybe it will just take some getting used to…
Now that we’re running longer distances to train for the half marathon, we’ve been advised to fuel during our runs. So, we bought some GU – both the energy gel and the chomps. I’m still apprehensive about trying the energy gel mid-run, but Eric brought the chomps during last week’s 8 mile run. About 5 miles into our run, he offered me a chomp, which I was more willing to try than the gel. Here’s what I learned: I have a difficult time chewing and breathing at the same time. It completely threw me off. It didn’t taste horrible, but it was larger than I expected. By the time I finished chewing, I had to regain my breathing. I didn’t feel rejuvenated. I actually felt extremely thirsty.
I will eventually give the gel a try and I’ll probably give the hydration pack one more chance on a shorter run, but so far I have not found a decent hydration/fueling process. Between the Nike plus sport kit and the hydration pack, I look like I’m about to launch myself to the moon.
What do you do to stay hydrated and appropriately fueled?
