How to keep hydrated when it’s hot hot hot

We’re in the midst of a heat wave over here in Europe. It’s supposed to reach 40°C/104°F this week. I do most of my running after 8PM but even then it’s still a struggle. I sweat a lot and need to make sure I keep hydrated.

A common misconception runners have about hydrating is that it only needs to be done in the time/space that they run. They’ll have a glass of water before they go, or try and make up for their sweat loss after a run. Hydrating, especially during the summer months, is an all day affair.

I always start my morning off with a huge glass of water. I’m sure I slug down half a litre right there ’cause that glass is huge. A few years ago I bought a Sodastream…

Water seems to go down easier for me if it has bubbles in it. With the Sodastream you can regulate the level of bubbliness.I keep four bottles in my fridge so the water is always ice cold. We also installed a water filter on our kitchen sink so that we can drink the tap water.

How much you should drink is very individual. I personally shoot for 1.5 litres during the winter and 2 litres during the summer. It may not sound like enough, but I also eat tonnes of fresh fruit and vegetables.

I like adding frozen fruit cubes to my water for a touch of flavour. Just take some unsweetened fruit juice and freeze it into ice cubes. The cubes in the photo are made from blueberry juice, which is great for circulation and water retention.

For a sugar-free frozen treat I put grapes into plastic bags and freeze them. Red and black grapes seem to be sweeter when frozen.

Then when it’s snack time, take your desired serving size out of the freezer. The first few will be harder, but as they acclimatise to the heat they get softer and turn into delicious mini slush balls.

When I return home from a long bike ride in the heat (over two hours) I’ll make myself a post workout protein smoothie. It becomes ice cream-like when you use frozen fruit as the base. This particular batch was coconut water, frozen berries and egg white protein powder. The other day I substituted the powder with Greek yogurt and it came out just as smooth with a tangy twist.

My summer lunches are usually a huge salad. Loads of fresh veggies for more hydration accompanied by a carbohydrate such as rice along with a protein. To save time I wash all the veggies at once, cut them up and keep them in a bowl in the fridge.

I also keep tabs on how much I’m urinating and its colour. This the best indication of whether I need to drink more (or less).

So this is my daily hydration strategy, in addition to usual water I drink during my workout. How about you?