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New Hydration Guidelines for Long Distance Athletes
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On April 19, 2003 the United States Track and Field Federation
announced a majorchange in their guidelines for hydrating long
distance athletes.
The United States Track and Field Federation (USATF) announced
a major change in their guidelines for hydrating long distance
athletes on April 19, 2003. These new new guidelines are based on
recent research results and they reflect major changes
in scientific thinking
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Instead of recommending that athletes drink as much
as possible during exercise, they are now recommending that
athletes only consume the amount of fluid they have
lost due to perspiration. According to the USATF guidelines,
the best way to to this is to drink only when thirsty
during exercise, instead of following the conventional advice
to "stay ahead of your thirst".
Athletes who follow this advice can prevent dehydration
while at the same time lower their risk of suffering from
hyponatremia (low sodium). Athletes who follow the recommendation
to consume 150% of the fluid they lose during exercise
could cause a dangerous drop in an athlete's sodium level.
According to the new USATF
guidelines hyponatremia is a potentially fatal condition
that is seen more and more often as long-distance runners follow the
advice they have been given to over-hydrate themselves.
Hyponatremia most often occurs in
exercise lasting four hours or longer and results primarily from
consuming excessive fluids which is exacerbated by not replacing
sodium losses. Severe cases of may involve grand mal seizures,
increased intracranial pressure, pulmonary edema (fluid in the
lungs), respiratory arrest and even death.
Many scientists now view hyponatremia as just as much of a threat
to runners as heat illness and dehydration, and major papers
distributed by the International Association of Athletics
Federations (IAAF) and USATF have described these potential
problems and how to avoid them.
Other Medical Issues
Other Medical Conditions
As runners have learned the importance of hydration during long
distance events, dehydration has become a less prevalent condition.
Medical crews at marathon finish lines now are dealing more with
hyperthermia (heat illness), postural hypotension (pooling of
blood in the legs), hyponatremia, and the normal injuries that
are common among marathon runners such as blisters and muscle
injuries.
Hyperthermia
Hyperthermia can occur regardless of hydration levels
or the distance of a race. In fact, shorter races can pose more
of a threat due to the faster pace per mile, which causes greater
heat production. An adequately hydrated runner who is running too
fast or pushing herself too hard, especially in hot and humid
conditions, can fall victim to hyperthermia. It is therefore
important that athletes adjust their pace to take into
consideration race conditions, slowing their pace as heat and
humidity rises, regardless of how much they may be drinking.
Postural Hypotension
Postural hypotension is experienced when a runner suddenly
stops, most commonly at the finish line. With blood pooling in
the legs, there is inadequate blood supply to the rest of the
body and the runner feels faint and can fall down. This had
been thought of as demonstrating dehydration, so the response
from medical teams was to rehydrate these runners. Now, medical
personnel can identify this problem correctly and treat it
specifically. Treatment requires raising the runner’s feet above
the head for 3-4 minutes for full recovery. Runners can avoid
postural hypotension by keeping the legs moving, even with light
walking or moderate knee flexing when they otherwise would stand
still at or immediately after the finish or at other locations
along the race course.
More Information
In April of 2003 a paper called
"Proper Hydration for Distance Running - Identifying Individual
Fluid Needs", was published by Douglas Casa, Ph.D., ATC, FACSM,
of the University of Connecticut, is and was issued by
USA Track & Field.
April 2003 Paper in PDF Format
In March of 2003 the International Marathon Medical Directors
Association and the Association of International Marathons and
Road Races issued an "Advisory Statement on Guidelines for Fluid
Replacement During Marathon Running" written by Tim Noakes MBChB, MD,
FACSM of the University of Cape Town, South Africa; and David E.
Martin, Ph.D. FACSM, of Georgia State University. It was published
in the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) "New
Studies in Athletics", March 2002 on pages 15-24.
Paper in HTML Format
AIMS
Paper in PDF Format
USATF
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Related Links
USA Track and Field (USATF)
International Marathon Medical Directors Association (IMMDA)
Association of International Marathons and Road Races (AIMS)
International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF)
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Official Skating Federations
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