Sweat Rate Calculation

Good article came across the wire today from Active.com. It deals with calculating your sweat rate. I think this looks like a good idea. I may try it out this weekend on my long ride. The only difficulty is in being able to get dry and undressed to weigh myself before and after exercise. The Silver Comet is 45 minutes from home and I like to eat/drink on the way to/from it. I'll figure something out.

Step 1: Weigh yourself before you walk, bike, jog, run, hike, Rollerblade, play basketball, soccer or work in the garden. For example, let's say you weigh 154 pounds before you start exercising.

Step 2: Exercise for one hour in the weather conditions and at the same workout intensity you expect to face for an upcoming run, game or special event.

Step 3: After your workout, remove your perspiration-filled workout clothes. Dry yourself thoroughly. Weigh yourself again. For example, let's say you weigh 150 pounds after your workout.

Step 4: To calculate your sweat rate per hour of exercise, subtract your ending exercise weight of 150 pounds from your beginning weight of 154 pounds. The difference of 4 pounds represents your fluid loss during exercise.

Since you should drink 16 ounces of fluid for every pound of fluid you sweat out during exercise, multiply the number of pounds lost by 16. In this example, you should drink 64 ounces of fluid to counteract the symptoms of dehydration and return your body weight to normal.

Step 5: If you drank any fluid during your 60 minutes of exercise, you'll need to add that number to the total amount of fluid lost during exercise that you calculated in Step 4.

Here's another way you can use the information. Once you know your personal sweat rate per hour, you can incorporate fluid breaks in your training so that every 15 or 20 minutes you consume 10 to 12 ounces of fluid.