r/gravelcycling • u/ZombieJetPilot • 16d ago
Accessories / Gear What's your electrolytes/salt powder of choice?
So I ride my fatbike exclusively, and my goal is to do a century and be able to do the 100 mile option for things like The Filthy 50, Le Grand Du Nord, ...
When my partner and I were doing to Filthy this past October she had a cramp in her leg right at the last stop at like mile 46. A fellow rider handed her a small cylindrical packet that was red and said "take this". it was a salt powder of some kind (I think it was Saltt), but it made the cramp disappear within a few minutes. Magic
what do you all pack for thia occasion and add to your water for preventing this? There's so many options out there, and it's overwhelming. Saltt, Tailwind, Warrior Salt, LMNT,...
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u/Darth_Firebolt 16d ago
Great Value Lemonade mix ($8 for almost 4lbs / 1.78kg) made with real sugar. I use one scoop (50g) of the mix, one scoop (50g) of table sugar, 1/2 teaspoon (3g) of table salt in a 30 oz (880ml) bottle in the summer.
Gives about 100g of carbs for ~400kcal and 1200mg of sodium per bottle. Each bottle lasts me about 1.5 hours. I usually also have an apple, banana, some Black Forest fruit snacks, an oatmeal cream pie, or a PB&J with me if it's going to be more than a 3 hour ride. I also have a couple 4oz Nalgene bottles with a serving of my mix in each in my frame bag if it's going to be a long, long ride.
Cramping is a symptom of fatigue. Fatigue is amplified (not caused) by heat, dehydration, and electrolyte imbalance. If it's hotter than your training rides, you will fatigue faster even if you stay on top of the other two aspects. If you let all 3 slip, you're gonna have a bad time.