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Signs of low electrolytes

Old 10-10-21, 06:59 AM
  #1  
Awesomeguy
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Signs of low electrolytes

What are signs of low electrolytes?

whenever I go for biking , I have trouble going past 35-40 minutes , yesterday I rode 7 miles and then try to continue on my indoor air bike, but I was feeling kind of off, light headed, extreme tiredness. So I stopped and drank Gatorade and felt better , mind you this is the 50 calories per bottle Gatorade not per serving. So it’s not much carbs in it.
im not in best shape but much better than many that can ride much longer , but seem to have trouble doing longer cardio that span more than 35 minutes on the bike or 20 min of running.
on my hybrid bike I can easily average 15mph
miles per hour when low winds, for 30 min, to give you an idea of what kind of shape I’m in.
I am a heavy sweater but still not sure if this can be cause.
normally I don’t care for long duration cardio, but on the bike I do , Bc I want to be able to go further as it’s very relaxing and meditating so to speak , but at a reasonable intensity (I hate slow riding )
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Old 10-10-21, 07:11 AM
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I had this same problem at around age 55 and it persisted for four years. I tried everything from more carbs to more protein and less carbs. Nothing worked. Doctor simply told me that it is part of the aging process. Testing showed I was healthy, not diabetic or anything like that. O2 uptake was normal for my age (not sure if that is good or neutral). Once I accepted what the doc had to say, I forgot about it and then when I hit age 60 it all went back to normal. Totally weird.
2 years later I can ride as normal, not fatigue until mile 60, and am enjoying myself tremendously.

Suggestion, as always, go see a doctor.
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Old 10-10-21, 07:15 AM
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I sorta had what you described, then I actually started passing out on my bike after doing a pretty good spurt. I had a pacemaker put in and now no more signs of even light headedness.
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Old 10-10-21, 07:30 AM
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Eat more calories.
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Old 10-10-21, 07:59 AM
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If its just electrolytes then just get that. Every rider has an entry point to get into this activity. That, I think is the real starting point.

The electrolytes that I use is actually from the physician who did my colonoscopy. Before the procedure, we empty ourselves but at the same time, maintain the electrolytes. The product he recommends is what I now use on my water bottle for rides.

The product: Ultima Replenisher. I buy that in the powder jar, 3.2 ounce. The power doesn't mix easily with cold water. I heat up water in the microwave, but not a lot of water, just enough to dissolve most of the powder. Maybe 2 ounces of hot water. Even then, there is still some residual powder. Then I put all that in another glass filled with ice and then add the cold water.

Flavor: I like the orange flavor, grape flavor, and less the lemon.

By the way: Sometimes I use the powder in my smoothie mixed with fresh oranges and vanilla ice cream with ice. Now, that's a creamsicle and a half!

https://www.ultimareplenisher.com/
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Old 10-10-21, 08:56 AM
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This is at least your third nutrition/energy-related thread. I think it's time you consult a licensed medical/health professional re: your issues.
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Old 10-10-21, 09:25 AM
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1. Purchase Trace Minerals (Concentrace or something similar) and add to water
2. Drink when feeling light headed.
3. If problem goes away within 5 minutes, electrolyte deficiency was the problem. If not, possibly caloric. When in doubt, see a physician.
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Old 10-10-21, 02:35 PM
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Originally Posted by Awesomeguy
What are signs of low electrolytes?

whenever I go for biking , I have trouble going past 35-40 minutes , yesterday I rode 7 miles and then try to continue on my indoor air bike, but I was feeling kind of off, light headed, extreme tiredness. So I stopped and drank Gatorade and felt better , mind you this is the 50 calories per bottle Gatorade not per serving. So it’s not much carbs in it.
im not in best shape but much better than many that can ride much longer , but seem to have trouble doing longer cardio that span more than 35 minutes on the bike or 20 min of running.
on my hybrid bike I can easily average 15mph
miles per hour when low winds, for 30 min, to give you an idea of what kind of shape I’m in.
I am a heavy sweater but still not sure if this can be cause.
normally I don’t care for long duration cardio, but on the bike I do , Bc I want to be able to go further as it’s very relaxing and meditating so to speak , but at a reasonable intensity (I hate slow riding )
From this and your other thread on extreme fatigue, I think you really do need to seek medical advice. The symptoms you are describing after 35-40 mins of biking don't sound normal. I went out this afternoon for a ride with a friend who is overweight and has hardly ridden this year due to various medical issues and yet he still managed to ride for 2 hours with only mild fatigue. He was out of breath on a couple of steep hills, but soon recovered at the top. Also you can forget about electrolytes being an issue on a 40 minute ride!
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Old 10-10-21, 02:55 PM
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On a side note outside of seeing a doctor and get a full physical to make sure there is nothing going on, my wife has one of the pickle pops before each ride to boost her electrolytes. She is diabetic and that is something we have to always be aware of outside of the low blood sugars.

https://bobspicklepops.com/

I personally am not a fan of dill pickles, but she likes flavor, but what do I know.
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Old 10-10-21, 03:49 PM
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Originally Posted by PeteHski
Also you can forget about electrolytes being an issue on a 40 minute ride!
Minor quibble: Agree a single 40 minute ride electrolytes aren't going to cause the problems OP described. However, if he's riding 40-60 minutes every day in hot weather, and especially on a low salt diet, problems might start to surface after a few weeks.

For quick diagnoses, BF or a TV show is a great place to go. If you want an accurate diagnosis, a medical professional is a better bet.
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Old 10-10-21, 05:42 PM
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Originally Posted by pdlamb
Minor quibble: Agree a single 40 minute ride electrolytes aren't going to cause the problems OP described. However, if he's riding 40-60 minutes every day in hot weather, and especially on a low salt diet, problems might start to surface after a few weeks.

For quick diagnoses, BF or a TV show is a great place to go. If you want an accurate diagnosis, a medical professional is a better bet.
This is not the first time the OP has posted about "extreme fatigue" after short rides and Gatorade always seems to be his solution. For me it would be time to see the doc rather than grasp at straws as to what may be causing this unusual fatigue. Hopefully it will be nothing serious, but he's not going to get a satisfactory answer here.
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Old 10-12-21, 07:31 AM
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Electrolyte replacement is very important, on long and hot rides. 7 miles in 35 minutes is not a long ride. Water is fine at that distance and time.

Are you fasting before exercise? Push yourself too hard?

If you have ruled out the obvious stuff, make an appointment with your doc. Not a trainer or sports nutritionist.....a real primary doctor. If that checks out, then go for the other stuff.
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Old 10-12-21, 08:03 AM
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Originally Posted by pdlamb
Minor quibble: Agree a single 40 minute ride electrolytes aren't going to cause the problems OP described. However, if he's riding 40-60 minutes every day in hot weather, and especially on a low salt diet, problems might start to surface after a few weeks.

For quick diagnoses, BF or a TV show is a great place to go. If you want an accurate diagnosis, a medical professional is a better bet.

Electrolyte imbalance is a marketer's diagnosis because they can sell you things like Gatorade. It almost certainly has nothing to do with this, and this is really not something that should be run by the forum for advice. This could be something very real and very serious, and OP needs to talk to a doctor.

Last year, I had tiredness like OP is describing despite being in the best shape of my life. It turned out I had two blood clots growing in my lungs that came fairly close to killing me while working out. I'm not suggesting that OP has that, but this may be a lot more involved than merely drinking or eating something magical.
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Old 10-12-21, 08:05 AM
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Originally Posted by bblair
Electrolyte replacement is very important, on long and hot rides. 7 miles in 35 minutes is not a long ride. Water is fine at that distance and time.

Are you fasting before exercise? Push yourself too hard?

If you have ruled out the obvious stuff, make an appointment with your doc. Not a trainer or sports nutritionist.....a real primary doctor. If that checks out, then go for the other stuff.

Seriously, at this point, people should not be offering OP any opinions on this other than to see a doctor.
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Old 10-12-21, 08:09 AM
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A friend was doing an annual organized tour in our area. She was fit and ready for the back-to-back ~200km days. Day 1 - drank lots of water and ate lots of fruit and sugary snacks all day.
She realized when they got to the overnight stop that she had drank litres of water but not peed yet. Her riding companions started noticing something was off, she seemed a bit lost. They offered to take her to the first aid tent and she refused. They thought better and just took her for a walk that 'by luck', just so happened to go past the first aid tent, and said, "let's just stop for a second and have a chat with this nice man here!"
You can probably guess that her electrolytes were seriously depleted and her body was not able to perform the necessary chemical functions to keep her going. The first aid person said it is very common on this type of event.

She doesn't remember any of this happening. She was in the hospital for two days, and since made a full recovery, but our riding group uses this incident as motivation to be constantly snacking and to never skip meals, and to keep an eye on eachother during long rides and hard efforts.
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Old 10-12-21, 09:10 AM
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Originally Posted by ClydeClydeson
A friend was doing an annual organized tour in our area. She was fit and ready for the back-to-back ~200km days. Day 1 - drank lots of water and ate lots of fruit and sugary snacks all day.
She realized when they got to the overnight stop that she had drank litres of water but not peed yet. Her riding companions started noticing something was off, she seemed a bit lost. They offered to take her to the first aid tent and she refused. They thought better and just took her for a walk that 'by luck', just so happened to go past the first aid tent, and said, "let's just stop for a second and have a chat with this nice man here!"
You can probably guess that her electrolytes were seriously depleted and her body was not able to perform the necessary chemical functions to keep her going. The first aid person said it is very common on this type of event.

She doesn't remember any of this happening. She was in the hospital for two days, and since made a full recovery, but our riding group uses this incident as motivation to be constantly snacking and to never skip meals, and to keep an eye on eachother during long rides and hard efforts.

Of course, that is a situation that doesn't at all resemble the OP's.
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Old 10-12-21, 09:21 AM
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Originally Posted by livedarklions
Of course, that is a situation that doesn't at all resemble the OP's.
No,. it seems different, as is everyone's reaction to such things as an 'electrolyte depletion'.

Just a related story that I think of when considering riding fuel
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Old 10-12-21, 09:36 AM
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Originally Posted by ClydeClydeson
No,. it seems different, as is everyone's reaction to such things as an 'electrolyte depletion'.

Just a related story that I think of when considering riding fuel
It doesn't just "seem" different, you're likening two very different types of rides.

OP's is a repeated occurrence happening 35 minutes into a ride. You're talking about a person one time getting depleted over a very, very long ride. If a person is losing their electrolytes as fast as OP would have to be, something is seriously wrong generally and they need to be seen medically.
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Old 10-12-21, 10:09 AM
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Originally Posted by livedarklions
It doesn't just "seem" different, you're likening two very different types of rides.

OP's is a repeated occurrence happening 35 minutes into a ride. You're talking about a person one time getting depleted over a very, very long ride. If a person is losing their electrolytes as fast as OP would have to be, something is seriously wrong generally and they need to be seen medically.
The example I gave was what happens with confirmed electrolyte depletion and its effects, intended as information for OP.

Being seen medically was also a part of my story, as it should be for OP. Anyone who relies solely on medical advice from Bikeforums.net deserves whatever outcome they get.
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Old 10-12-21, 12:36 PM
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Originally Posted by ClydeClydeson
The example I gave was what happens with confirmed electrolyte depletion and its effects, intended as information for OP.

Being seen medically was also a part of my story, as it should be for OP. Anyone who relies solely on medical advice from Bikeforums.net deserves whatever outcome they get.

I may be being a bit snippy with you, but I think the worst thing we can do for the OP is to give their self-diagnosis anything that indicates it has any legitimacy. OP can google, and probably has googled, the symptoms of electrolyte depletion, Let's stop humoring them in their attempts to rationalize not getting checked out.
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Old 10-12-21, 12:59 PM
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Originally Posted by livedarklions
Last year, I had tiredness like OP is describing despite being in the best shape of my life. It turned out I had two blood clots growing in my lungs that came fairly close to killing me while working out.
Yup, I was feeling sluggish riding in the Spring 2 years ago, and just thought it was loss of fitness over the winter, and maybe a touch of chest cold or possibly bronchitis. I tried to push through it for the next several months to try to get my fitness up, but no matter how much I rode I just kept getting worse and more sluggish. Turns out it was Stage 4 Lung Cancer, with several clots in both lungs, and a tumor so large it collapsed the upper lobe of my left lung.

If you're feeling weak when you'd expect to be much fitter, get yourself checked out by a member of a medical board, not a member of BF.
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Old 10-12-21, 01:08 PM
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When the leaves on your plants start to droop, that's a good sign that it's time to give them some Brawndo™ - it's got what plants crave.
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Old 10-12-21, 02:18 PM
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Friend of mine had similar issues after mild exertion. Ended up he needed a triple bypass.

Time to see a cardiologist for a work up.
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Old 10-12-21, 02:27 PM
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Originally Posted by WhyFi
When the leaves on your plants start to droop, that's a good sign that it's time to give them some Brawndo™ - it's got what plants crave.
Quality.
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