science
salt! for sports performance
If your salt levels drop as little as 7% this can reduce your performance by as much as 10%
Any athlete worth their salt has at some time pushed themselves to a point of being dehydrated whether in training or in a race and knows how much this impacts their performance. From slower, more laboured muscle twitches, to getting cramps, and perhaps even worse symptoms like dizziness, back pain (from the kidneys) and being unable to continue a training session or competition. The best competitors know how to stop themselves from getting dehydrated.
Science
The optimal Formula
Salt! Is developed to optimise athletic performance. Each serving includes
- 750mg sodium
- 250mg potassium
- 50gm magnesium
- 50mg of calcium
Sodium
When you sweat, sodium is lost at the greatest level of all the electrolytes, replacing sodium allows your kidneys to maintain their hydrostatic balance. If the kidneys do not have enough sodium, they simply cannot pull the water molecules over the kidney barrier and into the bloodstream. If water continues to be consumed, this creates a build-up of liquid that cannot be processed and in extreme cases this can result in hyponatremia. Effectively the body drowns in water it cannot process.
Potassium
The role of potassium is equally important. Consuming sufficient potassium during training or an event maintains the PH balance of kidneys meaning they are more effective at processing lactic acid; a waste product formed when the body breaks down glucose (sugars) and forms ATP (cellular energy). This prevents Lactic acidosis (that feeling when your muscles start to cramp).
Potassium also has a role in preventing the blood from thickening or clotting, due to insufficient fluids. It also enables your body to shuttle more nutrients to the muscles and organs.
Magnesium
Magnesium supplementation can be a double-edged sword. Magnesium supplementation on one hand is essential for athletes. Magnesium is an indispensable mineral that plays a fundamental role in the physiology of athletes. As a cofactor in more than 300 enzymatic reactions, magnesium is crucial for energy production, muscle contraction, and protein synthesis. Additionally, it contributes to the regulation of electrolyte balance, immune function, and bone health.
Magnesium supplementation has been proven to enhance sports performance by reducing lactate accumulation (lactic acid) during intense exercise. If lactic acid builds up, it will cause muscles to contract slower, and require more energy to do so thus making you fatigue faster.
However, magnesium can also have a powerful effect on the bowels. This can make issues like runners' trots (the need to poop mid-run!) much worse. For that reason we limited the amount of magnesium in Salt! This allows athletes to use Salt! For preloading, during the event and for replenishment afterwards.
Usage
When and how to use Salt!
Optimising your performance and recovery requires you to have the right electrolytes at the right time. When deciding how much to take you will also want to consider:
- How much you sweat
- The salt content of your sweat
- How hot and humid it is
- How hard you are pushing yourself
- How long your event or session is
- Your hydration and recovery levels when you start
Less than 5 minutes
For power and sprint events
Very short events like sprinting, 40 yard dash to 800m, powerlifting, wreslting, judo or jujistu your performance requires everything to be working smoothly, your, muscles to be firing optimially and your brain to be sharp.
You won’t benefit from hydrating during the event, so making sure you are optimally hydrated coming into the event is key. Try taking 1-2 sachets in the 8 hours ahead of the event. Alongside hydrating, this will maximise your blood volume and ensure the nerves are firing effceiently.
events 5 mins to 1 hour
For short events
Short events like a 5-10km run, shorter cycling time trials, boxing, no time limit grappling, MMA or martial arts bouts, cross fit WODs, cross country skiing you will have enough time to replace lost electrolytes and water and it is important that you do. However as with the sprint events preparation is key.
We recommend 1-2 sachets in the 8 hours leading up to the event. You can then add 1 sachet to your water bottle. Typically people will be looking to consume 300ml to 800ml over a short event. This is dependent on body size, the amount you sweat, external temperature and humidity and the intensity that you are working at.
1 hour to 4 hours
For long events
For long events of 1 hour to 4 hours, both fueling and hydration play a huge part. Even small errors in hydration strategy will be magnified. Preloading with Salt! is vital, especially in very hot or humid conditions with high exertion. Your body will likely struggle to process enough salt and liquid during the event. We recommend starting the hydration the day before with one sachet before you sleep. You can then have 1-2 sachets pre-event.
The event will determine the opportunities to pick up fresh supplies of water, or if you are expected to carry them. The smoother the intake is spread during the event the better. A belly full of liquid can cause issues that will impact your performance.
With the longer events, it is vital you understand how much hydration you need. Weighing yourself in and out of training runs will give you a steer for how much water you need to replace. Your target is to lose no more than 2% of your overall body weight. You can then work out the volume of liquid you need to replace. We recommend matching one sachet of Salt! with every 500ml-750ml of water.
4 hours to multi-day
For ultra events
Ultra events are typically from 4 hours all the way up to multiple-day events. Ultra events are typically done at a much lower level of exertion as defined by VO2 max, than shorter events. This changes the requirements for hydration and fueling. We still recommend using a Salt! loading strategy, very similar to the ‘long’ events. Starting the day before and then in the 24 hours prior to the event consuming 1-2 sachets.
For the event, you still want to be replacing all the liquid you lose. Again, the 1 sachet per 500-750ml rule applies. As the event is much longer, you may well also be having more substantial food during the event. Most events provide quite salty snacks that allow you to recharge. Unless you consume a significant amount of salt via these, there should be no reason to change the hydration protocol.
With ultra events, you do get a chance to ‘feel’ the impact of low salt a lot more. See below for signs of problems.
know yourself
Understanding your body
Getting to know your body and understanding how it reacts over time to exertion, supplements, and conditions is a vital part of optimsing both your sports performance and your health. Part of this understanding comes from knowledge of the body's processes, and looking out for indicators and part of it comes from testing different formulas and protocols. Some professional athletes will have access to laboratories and rigorous scientific testing, others will have to rely more on observation. Here we have outlined some testing that can be done with little to no equipment. As ever, all suggestions assume no serious medical conditions and we would always recommend consulting a doctor before undertaking any significant changes to your protocols.
know yourself
The ‘Pee Test’
The most basic of all tests, but one of the best indicators you can use before, during or after a sports event. Very simply, if your pee is too dark, you are dehydrated. Your urine should be a very light yellow as shown on the chart below.
Anything darker than this, means you have not been hydrating sufficiently. You should increase your intake of liquid and electrolytes over the next hour. Adjusting these up by 10-15% if your pee was slightly too dark, slightly more if it was significantly too dark. As a learning for next time, you should explore hydrating more before and during the event.
know yourself
cramp
One of the earliest warning signs that you have not hydrated enough is getting a cramp. Cramps occur when muscles are fatigued and underhydrated. The cramp is caused by issues with the electrical impulses in the nerves causing the muscle to tense in the shortened position. It can also be very painful. Cold is also a significant risk factor. For anyone that has done ultra marathons in cold environments, you will know that keeping warm prevents the onset of cramping. By ensuring that you are fully hydrated and maintaining warmth in the muscle, you can recover from cramps or prevent the onset of cramps during events.
Post-event cramps are also a sign that you may not have hydrated optimally.
know yourself
The ‘No Pee Test’
The extension to the pee test is that if you have not peed for an extended period, longer than in previous events, and you have been taking on significant liquids, it may be that your body is struggling to process the water. This can occur when you have not been taking on sufficient electrolytes.
This issue can progress very fast, the next stage can be a dull backache around your kidneys. This could be evidence of your kidneys struggling to process the liquids and often caused by too few electrolytes for the volume of liquid you have been drinking. This is a bad sign and you may want to consider stopping the event and recovering. Whether you stop or continue, you will want to try increasing the electrolytes and take this learning into your next event.
know yourself
The ‘Post-event Pee Marathon’
Upon finishing a long event and doing your recovery protocol of eating, drinking and adding electrolytes you should be finished for the day. However, sometimes, you will find you need to urinate significantly more than you normally would over an extended period.
This can be especially noticeable if you are trying to sleep and are up 5 or 6 times during the night when all you want to do is sleep. This probably means you did not have sufficient electrolytes for your liquid intake. The added salts from your post-event meal and recovery protocol have given you the salts to allow your body to process the liquid. This is a good indicator that you want to review your hydration protocols.
Frequently asked questions
SALT! does not dehydrate you, but it can contribute to dehydration if they are not taken properly or if they are used inappropriately.
Electrolytes are typically used to help replenish lost electrolytes during intense physical activity, such as long-distance running or endurance sports. When you sweat, you lose both water and electrolytes, including sodium, potassium, and chloride. Taking SALT! can help restore these lost electrolytes, which can help you maintain proper fluid balance and prevent dehydration.
However, if you take too much or if you take them without drinking enough water, it can actually contribute to dehydration. This is because electrolytes can cause your body to retain water, which can lead to dehydration if you do not consume enough fluids to compensate for the increased water loss.
Yes, SALT! is an important component of fueling and hydrating for a marathon or other endurance event. During prolonged exercise, your body loses both water and electrolytes, including sodium, potassium, and chloride, through sweat. Replenishing these lost electrolytes is crucial for maintaining proper fluid balance and preventing dehydration, muscle cramps, and other negative effects of electrolyte imbalances.
In order to replenish lost electrolytes during a marathon, many athletes use sports drinks or electrolyte supplements that contain sodium, potassium, and other essential minerals.
However, it's important to use salt and other electrolyte supplements properly, as consuming too many electrolytes can have negative health effects. It's also important to drink plenty of fluids when using electrolyte supplements to help maintain proper hydration and prevent dehydration.
Salt loading, also known as sodium loading, is a technique that some athletes use to increase their electrolyte levels before an endurance event. This technique involves increasing salt intake in the days leading up to the event in order to enhance performance by maintaining optimal fluid balance and electrolyte levels.
While salt loading can be safe and effective for some athletes, it is not necessary or appropriate for everyone. Salt loading can be dangerous for individuals with certain medical conditions, such as high blood pressure or heart disease.
It's also important to use caution when salt loading, as consuming too much sodium can have negative health effects, such as dehydration and electrolyte imbalances, and the associated issues such as sports performance decrease.
If you are considering salt loading for a sports event, it's important to get individual advice to optimise your performance while also promoting overall health and well-being.
Further reading
How dehydration can rob you of a PB.
