Hi:
I am a newbie to open water swimming competition and have only ever done open swims as part of triathlons. I am doing the big shoulders race on Saturday in Chicago and am wondering what the deal is with hydrating or taking GU? What do folks do to refuel on longer swims?
Would appreciate any help you can offer. I sort of signed up on a whim and am now freaking out a bit :)
Consider how long you expect your swim to take.
In races that take less than an hour, I have never even considered eating or drinking during the swim. I try to avoid drinking the venue, too, although sometimes I fail. I drank a fair amount of Lake Berryessa earlier this summer, which I did not enjoy.
In races that take 1-1.5 hours, I have drunk water from aid stations when they were available. Usually they are not. But, for instance, when my team in Austin put on a 5K race in Lake Travis where the water was about 85F, we stationed someone on a paddleboard to hand out cold, clean water to the swimmers as they passed. Big Shoulders did not have any such thing when I did it.
I have never done a race that took more than 1.5 hours. If I were planning to do one, and if I did not expect any aid stations, I might experiment beforehand with tucking a gel packet or two inside my suit and eating it during the swim. I would consider this strategy especially if I expected the water to be cold. I would not do it for the first time at my race, though.
You probably do not need to eat or drink during your Big Shoulders swim. Afterward, they will have plenty of snacks.
I've recently changed my program for 5K swims. In the past I did nothing. But now I drink a fair amount of water before the event stopping 30 - 40 minutes before hand. I also take 2 GU packets 5 - 10 minutes before the race with a mouthful of water. In salt water try to avoid taking in too much water accidentally. I once did that on a 5K and had a very bad case of the runs later. If it is a fresh water race and the water is considered clean, I have no problem taking a little sip from time to time in hot conditions.
I did a 5 mile swim with an escort on a paddleboard. I drank 6 oz of pedialite ( spelling?) every hour and about 8 oz. of water every half hour. I wished I`d have had gel-packs,..I ran out of steam after 2 hours and finished in 2 hr. 55 minutes . The last hour, I felt like I was dragging a coke machine. :^(
Thanks all! I have no idea how long it will take me and am pretty used to hiding GU in awkward places and eating them on the go - so maybe I will just tuck one into my suit for good measure!
Appreciate the guidance.
G
