Salt Of The Earth

One thing I did on the 20th of March, which I have not done before, is use electrolytes in the place of glucose. That may not make much sense: where you replace almost all your fluid intake with a hypertonic solution. How did I know I needed to do this?
I was fortunate to step into a conversation at the GU tent of the Expo. The debate was about the best formula for nutrition and hydration on the Ironman.

Since then I read an article in Bicycling about bonking. There are three types of bonks (energy crashes). The electrolyte bonk can lead to permanent liver damage, and I think the one I suffered in August 2004 was severe. I know I was not healthy again, or at good energy levels for several weeks.

I have suffered a lot from this syndrome, and many times, and could not understand why I was having an energy crisis. This is probably because I believed Energade, Gatorade and Powerade all provide enough salts alongside the glucose. They don't. In fact, in ultra distance events, when glucose actually enters the body the body requires even more hydration to process concentrated glucose into the system. And the more water you drink, the less salty (hypertonic) the body becomes.

I have often found myself getting wobbly and unable to access energy. This did not make any sense because I was sure I was eating and hydrating enough. Now I know that I was forgetting about adding salt to the race day (or training day) forumla. I good electrolyte supplement is called GU20(Gu Two Oh).

The body requires water, glucose and electrolytes. That's like saying it needs something to drink, something to eat and something to fortify it. That something is minerals, the salt of the Earth. Life, intelligent life, is about body, mind and spirit. The salt is the spirit, and without it, the rest cannot run. Over the longer term, the body can get sick, and be permananetly damaged. This can only be known by being conscious and disciplined in our daily lives, with regard to what we eat, think and do as daily habits. We need to have a diet in terms of what we eat, but also in what we think, and what we do each day.

A Hypertonic solution : Defined as a solution that contains a higher concentration of electrolytes than that found in body cells. If such a solution is allowed to enter the blood stream, the osmotic pressure difference between the blood and the cells will cause water to flow out of the cells, which will then shrink. This may cause serious harm, or even be fatal. Consequently, it is essential when blood transfusions are given, or blood replacement products are used, that the electrolyte concentration in the material to be given to a patient matches that of the body.