big chainring 

Was coming off a section of the MUP today and a group of roadies was cruising by. I jumped on the tail end of the group. I wasn't feeling it. Long work week in hot weather. And today it was 90 and 90% humidity. Hard to breath. But they were smooth riders and I was soon caught up in the group. They were locals, similar in age, kids went to same schools etc. Stuck with them and ended up just over 40 miles. The last 5 miles were brutal. Sun was in full force and I was heading south. Made it home and thought... not smart. Hadn't ridden in a week, hot weather, feeling a bit nauseous. Showered, had a lot to eat and drink. Drank a lot of water. Not feeling too bad this evening. If I go out tomorrow, more heat and humidity, I'm thinking of drinking a lot of water as soon as I wake up. And just keep on drinking till I get on the bike. Any other hydration tips?

DeadGrandpa

Gatorade or electrolytes mixed at 50 per cent strength in a couple water bottles. I ride in an environment like you described and I consume 3-4 tall bottles of water on a 40+ mile ride. V-8 juice when I get home, augmented with pickle juice, watermelon, unconsumed bike water bottle over ice, anything liquid. My clothes are always drenched when I get home, and I do mean drenched. Ride early, hydrate early, rest and hydrate later. Don't overheat.

DeadGrandpa

So very funny. That feeling of red lining and then recovering is too compelling. We both know that we'll both be out there again tomorrow.

2manybikes

Drink a glass before leaving the house. If you get nauseous and cant eat or drink you have passed from heat exhaustion to heat stroke. Get into an air conditioned building. There's plenty about this on the interwebz. You might want to do some searching around. If I'm getting too hot I just reduce the effort or even coast for a bit.
I stopped one day when it was 114f in the shade, and had to get moving again to cool down

Iride01 

Drink while you are on the bike too. Every 10 to 15 minutes. Or sooner if thirsty.

For rides longer than 25 miles, I'm carrying a third bottle, occasionally a fourth bottle for long rides. Back jersey pockets get heavy, but when sucking down water that fast, you can lighten them quick. Most of the water fountains were turned off for covid and there aren't that many other places to stop for drinks or water on the routes I prefer to ride.

I try to ride the faster routes, the faster I ride the less I feel hot......until I have to stop. Hopefully that's when I get home.

dr_max

Gravel bike in the threes is mandatory when it’s getting too hot

Atlas Shrugged

big chainring you had a good trolling game going on but retreading the jumping in on a group thing is boarding on pathetic. Your Strava bait kind of failed as well but keep trying hopefully you will get your game back soon.

79pmooney

I'm a huge fan of the drink that has been out there nearly 50 years unchanged (exc ept the name - I think it is on #5 ) but is barely known. Vitalyte, aka Hydrolyte, aka E.R.G. aka Gookinaid. Comes as a powder. 2 scoops per waterbottle. It filled all my WBs in my racing and long mile days in the '70s in New England. Then in the '80s and '80s, it disappeared. Around 2000 I went to REI to research a good electrolyte drink, hoping to find one as good as ERG/Gookinaid (its original names). And there it was. I didn't recognize the packaging or name, but the ingredients matched my recall..

The stuff works. It isn't a huge energy source. It has glucose but because it speeds up the electrolyte absorption, It was formulated by a biochemist/marathon runner who was fast enough to qualify for the 1968 Olympics but got sick on Gator Aid and had to drop out of the qualifier. Decided there had to be better and he had the training to research it. Came up with a drink that really works; absorbs fast and stays down. (I drink it when I'm sick.)

The company has always been low budget and when the highly marketed drinks came out in the '80s and 90s'. they simply could not compete. But by then they had acquired a second market - third world relief workers who found it was just as good for hydrating victims of dysentery, cholera and the like. That market was never going to go away and they just quietly plugged along.

It has stayed my staple because - I can drink a lot of it in one drink. I do 1/2 a waterbottle at a time often. No repercussions other than relief. Doesn't hurt that it comes in a container large enough to fill 40 or 80 bottles (I forget which, probably 40), costs $19 and keeps a long time after the container is opened. I bring it when I go ot organized rides 1) to guarantee I have a drink that works and 2) many of the newer drinks taste bad and don't sit so well in my stomach.

You can find it at REI. (The local REI has wavered a few time on carrying it. I suspect they sell little enough that profit says - give that space to a seller. But it keeps coming back. Some of the employees insist on it because they want the stuff!)

Ben

79pmooney

And related to my post above - drinking large quantities of water without electrolytes is asking for trouble. At the least, you need sodium and potassium. (Salt and bananas.) Sounds like you sweated a lot of both. Drinking just water is a good way to drive those levels even lower and get really sick.

kosmo886

Has anyone used Nuun tablets? I just started trying them, but don't have a verdict yet. They have much less sugar than liquid IV for comparison. Nuun does also have an endurance version that matches the sugar/calorie content of liquid IV. For under 2 hour rides I am not sure if the sugar is as necessary?

WhyFi

I use Nuun. Certainly seems to be better than water, but I don't look to fluids for calories, 'specially not on a 2 hour ride.

big chainring 

And I gave another rider a shove as I was dropping back in line and a gap was opening in front of him. He was one of the older riders so felt like a little help would be appreciated. Didnt even think about it, just did it, because thats what good riding is about. Keeping the group together and aiding a rider when you can.

gevad 

Me, too! I’ve been using Vitalyte since the 1980s, when it was known as E.R.G. or Gookinaid (after Bill Gookin, the runner who formulated it). It has just a touch of glucose sweetness, because, as Ben says, the glucose aids absorption of the electrolytes. I used to use it for post-run recovery, but now for after riding and hiking in hot weather. It’s the best electrolyte drink I’ve ever found. Available online if you can’t find it in a store.

BTW, Ben, it was always available, but for a long while only by phone or mail order. I remember that Bill Gookin himself would often answer the phone. Neat guy from the 1960s and 1970s running world. Turned to orienteering after his marathon days were over.

Dave

eduskator

I drink twice as much, reduce my pace (effort) & put a 50/50 Gatorade G2 & water mix in my 2nd water bottle.

waters60

Using a Camelback will help. You will find you drink more because it is easier to access. On hotter days with uncertain water stops I use mine plus two bottles, one reserved for an electrolyte drink.

noisebeam

If you are not fully hydrated 12hr before the ride it is almost too late.

Also it is not often 90F/90%. Usually this means it is 90% RH in the morning when it is in the 70s, then the temp hits the 90's in the afternoon, but by then the RH is down to 60%.

Bah Humbug

Just drink the sweat and snot coming off the rider in front of you.

genejockey 

Out here, the humidity is never high when it's hot, so instead of sweat running off of you at 95 degrees, you just accumulate salt deposits.

Homebrew01

That was fine until Covid 19

Bah Humbug

That was my point, amid the surge in threads asking directly and indirectly what everyone thinks of hopping on strangers' wheels.

rower2cyclist

Always wanted to ask, is there any benefit of drinking a Nuun or SIS hydration tablet when you are off the bike? I try to drink water regularly and eat fruits and all but don't really do anything extra on the hydration front. I don't understand the idea behind drinking lots of water and it seems like I pee a lot when I do.

I don't ride when the heat index is above 95, it's not worth it. I just hop on the trainer and do an easy ride. It's scorching hot and humid in the US East Coast right now and will be above avg temps thru the summer according to NWS forecast.

Velo Vol 

Correct.

seypat

I use saltstick caps or a cheaper, similar product for electrolytes. Saltstick even makes a handy dandy dispenser for those athletes that are really serious about not losing any time.(I'm not one of those)

SaltStick Dispenser - SaltStick Electrolytes & Dispensers

I'm currently using this product. It's works as well as the saltstick, but is less expensive.

https://elitesportzequipment.com/rap...s-for-runners/

MoAlpha

Right. It's important to live and start your workouts in a hydrated state, but beyond satisfying thirst and eating a good diet, there isn't much you can do, off the bike, to super-hydrate or load electrolytes, since water and sodium are tightly regulated by the kidney and any excess of either is quickly elimiinated.* Potassium is repleted by diet, accumulates in cells, and stores are virtually always adequate in healthy people.

*In extreme cases people can actually drink water faster than they can make urine and a few unfortunate and misinformed athletes or military recruits die or end up in the ICU every year from water intoxication.

Seattle Forrest

If you get home dehydrated, yeah.