All season I used NUUN for both training and racing, using 1/2 tablet per 20 ounce water bottle fill up. I firmly believe in training as you race, so I used NUUN (and Gu) for all my workouts. Sometime soon, I want to write a post comparing the fuel cost of riding my bike 50 miles versus driving 50 miles – LOL! All the fuel for my body adds up.
Now that the season is over, I went back to just plain water and no Gu to save money. I’ve done two workouts this week with plain water. Here’s the thing, tho. I can’t stand not having NUUN in my water. NUUN gives me the ideal balance of electrolytes for my body, which helps me stay perfectly hydrated for my workout. Plus, I end up drinking the perfect amount of water without thinking about it. It really helped me in races. With plain water, I tend to over-drink. Using NUUN also keeps me from craving salt all day long after a workout. The past three days, without the NUUN, I have craved salt. And, when I crave salt I pig out on crackers and pretzels. I work hard counting calories to get and stay lean, so pigging out on crackers is very bad. So, I will keep on using my NUUN. I’d rather spend a few dollars a month on NUUN than gain a few pounds from all those crackers!
If the good folks at NUUN are monitoring the blogosphere, I still want a NUUN tri suit for next season. Please, please, please send me one (women’s size medium). Then, my competitors will say “that NUUN chick flew past me in the bike and I couldn’t keep up with her”. 🙂 And next year ‘Aquaphor chick’ will be hunting down ‘NUUN chick’!
Steve – If you don’t like carrying water, then I guess you’d have to drop it into the cups they hand out. You’d have to pre-split the tablets into the right
size for how much you like to use. Do they dissolve fast enough for a race situation like that?
I always carry a palm holder water bottle with me in races. I prefer to continuosly sip as I run, rather than down whole cups. If a race is 10k or less, I have the NUUN premixed, and don’t need to carry any extra. I
been carrying the tube anyway, because having something in my left hand controls a little flick I have there.
I did a half iron this season where it was 95 degrees. On the bike, it was no problem dropping a NUUN into my aerobottle with fillups. On the run, it was a big pain dropping NUUN into my palm holder at each fillup. I
hadn’t practiced that little task. Because of the heat, I had to fill up every mile and soon ran out of NUUN. After that, I just used the e-caps offered at the aid stations. But, then I had to wait in line to get those. I wasted soooo much time that day at aid stations. I think what I will do next year is carry a salt stick with e-caps in them. I think the pop out like Pez candy, so that will be quicker. I do like the NUUN better so will use that on the bike, and during the run in shorter races. Maybe prefill my first bottle with NUUN, then rely on the e-caps as the run wears on.
Carol
First, I love your site! It’s very helpful. I just had a question about using Nuun during a race… You’ve talked about taking nuun with you on the runs. Do you just drop a tablet in the little cups of water given during the race? I haven’t figured out how to get my nuun in while running without carrying a water bottle with me and I hate to do that! It messes up my form (which isn’t too good to start with!).
NUUN is the best! However, I got Zym recently, same concept–tab mixed in water–and I like the taste of it better. Funny you mention your sodium cravings, if I don’t get enough sod. during workouts, I’ll down a bag of chips later on, too! I’ve also been looking into buying sports drink powders that have a little protein in them for long workouts…check it out at tritawn.blogspot.com.
I must have something more than water and KOLA NUUN really hits the spot.
i’ll talk to the powers that be and see if we can get you a nuun suit!
It’s possible it’s in my mind. The craving sure seems real, tho. I know that before I starting using NUUN, I was putting a small pinch of salt in my water bottles, and I was craving salt on a daily basis. In May, I did a 3 hour race that was hot, and I totally petered out in the run. After the run was over I craved salt so badly, and there were no salty snacks at the foot tent. So, I went back to my car and ate a spoonful of salt out of the jar I had brought for pinching into my water bottles. So, it sure seemed like my body NEEDED salt that day. I have never craved salt again, and never petered out so badly in the run again after starting using NUUN. That is my experience. And, well, that means more to me than Joe Friel’s theories, even if he did write the bible on Triathlon Training. Sorry!
i recommend this four-part-article about hydration.
http://www2.trainingbible.com/joesblog/blog.html
i think it is very interesting for you.
maybe its just in your mind, that you need the nuun and the gu.
How are you doing?! The first tube I bought was Tri Berry. It added a slight fruity flavor to my water. I liked it alot. Then I bought a 8 pack box of Kona Cola. It tastes just like Regular Coke, very sweet. I didn’t like it at first, because I am more of a Diet Coke person and it was too sweet. But, that stuff is not cheap, so I used the Kona flavor all season. Now I like it alot. The Kona flavor also has a little caffeine in it, which supposedly can give you a bit of energy burst in a race (tho , that is controversial). I haven’t decided which flavor to buy when I run out of the Kona. I have three tubes left out of my box. They sell the tubes at Inside Out Sports in Cary. Not sure if you ever get out that way. Otherwise, you have to buy it online.
what flavor do you like, im thinking of trying this for the same reason, i crave salt(as Im siting here eating goldfish for the salt fix)