How do you know if you are properly hydrated? In order to prepare for riding and training this summer, we contacted Dr. Herman Falsetti, the cycling coach of Tour de France, Ironman and endurance athletes, to find out his tips on staying hydrated.

Road Bike Action: Can you give us an overview on cyclists and hydration?
Dr. Falsetti: The most common problem with cyclists is that they under-hydrate during their training or racing. Per hour, you should be drinking three or four water bottles, but cyclists carry only one or two water bottles. If you look at one day in the Tour de France, they will have 30 to 40 water bottles per rider; the most important part is water, then you should get some type of nutrition after that.

RBA: For a three-hour training ride, how much water would an average rider need?
Dr. Falsetti: For a three-hour ride, your requirement is three to four bottles per hour, which adds up to nine or ten bottles. So, there’s no way you can do that. You should drink one or two bottles before and even then you are always going to end up deficient, unless you have a trainer or manager around handing you bottles. Most people, I would say, end up chronically dehydrated.

RBA: How can you tell if you are dehydrated?
Dr. Falsetti: A trained cyclist has a resting heart rate in the 40’s; if you do a hard ride and find the next day your resting heart rate is up a few beats, you are dehydrated. Another thing: weigh yourself on a daily basis, because your weight loss or gain day-to-day is water weight. You may notice you lose five pounds after a long ride. It’s all water weight. If you are down two pounds, you need two water bottles, as most water bottles represent about a pound.

RBA: What about being light-headed?
Dr. Falsetti: When you are dehydrated, if you get up quickly you will get head rushes. If you are chronically dehydrated, between yesterday’s ride and today’s ride that will stay with you. You will also find your heart rate is higher going up the same hill and during hot weather. 

RBA: If we are all dehydrated, how big of a factor is it then in performance?
Dr. Falsetti: It’s a huge factor for any kind of race. People bonk if they don’t get enough water in them, but with a little bit of hydration you can push through.

RBA: What are the danger signs of dehydration?
Dr. Falsetti: The danger signs are when you stop sweating. Once you start losing your sweating ability and get goose bumps, that’s a bad sign.

RBA: Do some people sweat more than others?
Dr. Falsetti: It’s a double-edged sword: riders who are better trained sweat more and have wider fluctuation in sweat and weight, because that is part of being fit. Sweating allows you to regulate your heat better. People who are just starting out don’t sweat as much.

RBA: We see professional riders putting water on their heads during a race.
Dr. Falsetti: Yes, when you put water on your head, it decreases the need to sweat as much. When you are riding and you burn up all this energy, some is useful work, but more than half goes out as heat. To decrease this, they pour water on their heads.  Of the 30 to 40 bottles per day for a guy at the Tour de France. Half of the bottles are ingested; the other half goes on their head and body to cool down.

RBA: And before your ride, how do you know if you are hydrated properly?
Dr. Falsetti: Watch your weight; if it is down, drink more. Put down at least a liter of water before a ride, but not 15 minutes before! Take an hour to drink it so you won’t have to get off your bike.

End note: For more information, Dr. Herman Falsetti can be reached at www.4zonetraining.com