When spending long hours out in the hot sun it is important to take water breaks. That means stopping what you’re doing and filling your belly with water. I mean water not gatorade. Don’t sip it as you go. Take a break and indulge. It helps to snack a little at the same time. Hydration isn’t about keeping your mouth wet it’s about supplying the body with enough water. The stomach is the best canteen there is. Neither water bottles or badder bags work better. Anyone who says different has been reading too many ad dependant magazines. An over statement, I know.
By taking a break you allow your body to cool. That will refresh you both physically and mentally. Pumping up the body with water flushes the it as well as providing perspiration for cooling. If you only sip water as you go you can fool yourself into thinking you’re staying hydrated when you’re not. That will slowly weaken you. I’m sure most people are aware of marathon runnners having weakened themselves so much that they collapse at the end of a race. That’s because they expend energy faster than their bodies can restore it. While that may be good for winning a race it isn’t good for your body. The sunken cheeks of a marathon runner aren’t a pretty sight. There’s a reason for that. By nature it doesn’t look healthy.
To enjoy the outdoors you need to take care of yourself. If you’re only interested in competitive outdoors sports then don’t lissen to me. That takes specialized training designed for short term results. My advise is for those who are looking to return from a trip refreshed and fealing invigorated about life.
I will let others comment…
…while I sit back and chuckle!
cheers,
JackL
Not clear
It’s not clear to me the reason you recommend to stop for drinking, I personally find harder to restart paddling after I stop for too long and cool down.
I prefer to slow down when I need to rest or drinking, not to stop.
I don’t need to stop in order to fill up my canteen, I put that tube in my mouth and drink.
Food breaks are of course another story.
I just carry a flask …
… that fits nicely into an extra pocket I had sewn into my pfd. The flask is one of those rounded kind that fit your body well. I am lucky that I prefer gin, which looks like water. So I can take a snort every so often and people think I am hydrating. 
Stopping
Of course the body will have to warm up again after cooling down. That’s not a bad thing. Slowly let it warm up again. What’s the hurry? It’s about enjoying life not always being in competition. By taking breaks you’ll be able to travel farther and in better condition than pushing yourself. It’s called pacing yourself. I’m not advocating taking a break while working out. I’m talking about pacing one’s self for the long run. If I paddle 20 miles in 5 hours I’ll be more worn out than if I take 10 hours to do the same even though I’ve expended the same amount of energy. For those that don’t know it. You burn the same amount of energy running a mile as you do walking one.
Dance On
Gin
Gin is the best flavor of water. I just found a new kind I like the other night. If you’re a true gin drinker you should try this http://www.brokersgin.com/home.htm Blows Tangueray away.
a word from the fitness guru?
i’m with jack … chuckle, chuckle.
I like it running smooth and rythmic
never stopping to drink, just stopping to stop, if I want to stop. The evidence is in that those who use a hydration system drink more. Stasndard issue for enduranse athletes, US military, and me. If I come out of my boat I'll have at least a pint with me. I love water so much that my biggest problem is not sucking all of it down befor my beach break to refill, have lunch and hang out.
Next silly argument against a hydration system please.
My motto
Pee often. (piss oft.)
I’ve
been mistaken all these years…I always thought that power boaters drank beer, sail boaters drank imported wine…and Kayakers drank either home made wine or RUM
sake…
also masquerades well as water ;-).
sail boater and wine
Psh sailors (thats the correct name if you please :p) and wine. Sailing Yacth Owners drink fine wines, real sailors and yacth crews drink rum, pussers navy rum any one?
Ah, that is good stuff !
In the two day Bogey and Bacall race every year at the end of day one (the 13 miler) they have a free beach party with all the “pain Killers” you can drink (or hold) and the they are made with Purssers.
A couple of years ago in the six miler on Sunday,(the day after)I couldn’t figure why all the South Florida contingent led by Scupper Frank were tacking until it dawned on me that they were “true sailors” but had forgotten that they were in yaks.
Cheers,
JackL
I hear ya,
after a wine break, the boats don’t track for beans… LJB
here in the
northeast, powerboaters drink mudslides, sailors drink boxed wine. I am an outcast because I drink reverse osmosis water. Oftentimes drinking and boat movement are simultaneous, a beautiful harmony of syncopation.
Invalid Proofs
Here is something you all might enjoy, how we all tend to use invalid proofs for the things we hold near and dear to our belief system and the phony ways we defend ourselves.
The following is a list of some common proof techniques that are often extremely useful. I received the original list longtime ago via e-mail. Recently Dan Echlin, Alex Papanicolao, Arnold G. Reinhold, Greg Rose, Lucas Scharenbroich,
Moritz Voss, David N. Werner and Thomas Zaslavsky suggested some additions. I also added my own experiences fromteaching techniques of proofs in a first year mathematics units for several years.
Unfortunately all these proof techniques are invalid and, hence, one should not use them in assignments, workshops,
exams, papers, etc.
- Original List
1.1 Proof by example
1.2 Proof by intimidation
1.3 Proof by vigorous handwaving
1.4 Proof by cumbersome notation
1.5 Proof by exhaustion
1.6 Proof by omission
1.7 Proof by obfuscation
1.8 Proof by wishful citation
1.9 Proof by funding
1.10 Proof by eminent authority
1.11 Proof by personal communication
1.12 Proof by reduction to the wrong problem
1.13 Proof by reference to inaccessible literature
1.14 Proof by importance
1.15 Proof by accumulated evidence
1.16 Proof by cosmology
1.17 Proof by mutual reference
1.18 Proof by metaproof
1.19 Proof by picture
1.20 Proof by vehement assertion
1.21 Proof by ghost reference
1.22 Proof by forward reference
1.23 Proof by semantic shift
1.24 Proof by appeal to intuition
- From my own experience
2.1 Proof by acceptance
- Entry suggested by Dan Echlin
3.1 Proof by Selective Hearing
- Entry suggested by Alex Papanicolaou
4.1 Proof by exercise
http://www.maths.uwa.edu.au/~berwin/humour/invalid.proofs.html#1.3Proofbyvigoroushandwaving Page 1 of 7
Invalid techniques of proof 11/12/2005 12:03 PM
- Entries suggested by Arnold G. Reinhold
5.1 Proof by ethical exclusion
5.2 Proof by legal intimidation
5.3 Proof by demonstrating equivalence to a problem thought to be hard
5.4 Proof by unclaimed reward
5.5 Proof by Never-Ending Revision
- Entry suggested by Greg Rose
6.1 Proof by Sketch or Outline
- Entries suggested by Lucas Scharenbroich
7.1 Proof by haste
7.2 Proof by mercy
- Entry suggested by Moritz Voss
8.1 Proof by Recess
- Entries suggested by David N Werner
9.1 Proof by lyricism
9.2 Interdisciplinary proof
9.3 Proof by word order
9.4 Proof by sneak preview
- Entries suggested by Thomas Zaslavsky
10.1 Proof by semantic shift
10.2 Proof by slippery definitions
10.3 Proof by countervailing errors
10.4 Proof by overwhelming errors
.
I think Pahsimeroi has been drinking too much funny water. You don’t have to stop to drink. You can drink gatorade with no problems. This statement
“If you only sip water as you go you can fool yourself into thinking you’re staying hydrated when you’re not. That will slowly weaken you.”
is silly with no scientific backing at all. The next statements are also silly.
“I’m sure most people are aware of marathon runnners having weakened themselves so much that they collapse at the end of a race. That’s because they expend energy faster than their bodies can restore it.”
Larry Dean Olson
Reading desert survival expert Larry Dean Olson is where I got my info on water consumption to start. That has been backed up by others.
Humans have been drinking water in spurts for thousands of years. Our bodies work better that way. Sipping isn’t the way to go. People who do that rarely urinate properly. That may be okay for racing but it isn’t good for the long haul. Drink heavely whenever possible. Stop for breaks to give muscles a break. Eat snacks rather than depend on Gatorade.
Went for a serious hike across the desert today. I tanked up before going and carried a liter of water with me. I knew I had properly hydrated before leaving because I was able to urinate properly several hours into the hike despite the warm temperature. Had no need for gatorade because I ate salted food before leaving.
The hike started at the bottom of a deep wash. I climbed 1,000’ out of a steep canyon through very rough terrain where one slip would mean a serious gash from any rock I hit. After reaching the canyon’s rim I hiked to the base of the towering cliffs the bordered one side of the bench I was hiking. This bench is cut by several deep canyons that have to be skirted when travelling parallel to the cliffs.
After hiking around one of the canyons I decided to try to find a different route to my truck that was parked near a spring in the canyon I started from. Along the way I detected a faint ancient trail that indicated I should be able to find a way down into the canyon avoiding the cliffs lining most of the bottom. Eventually I found a burro trail. Since I can go where burros can I followed their trail. Along the way I realized the burros were using a trail first established by humans, meaning Indians. Sure enough that trail was a safe route down. Far easier than the rocky climb I used at the start of the trip.
My suggestions come from years of hard earned experience and reading expert advice. For many many years desert travellers have known to drink hardily whenever possible. It’s better to carry water in your belly rather than a canteen. If you run out avoid taking a piss. Eventually the feeling will go away. That’s do to perspiration. People have died with water in their canteens because they sipped it trying to conserve.
Had a friend who used a badder bag claiming it was easier for him to stay hydrated. Truth is I would drink as much or more than he would. Only I consumed larger amounts when I drank. Starting in the morning. He only thought he was hydrating better than me because he was constantly sucking on his plastic hose. I would kill as much as a quart in one sitting at lunch and other breaks. He rarely drank on break. On average I’ll drink 1 1/2 gallons of water a day when out in the heat. I’ve yet to find anyone who is better than me at maintaining strength for long hours day after day. Taking breaks, drinking ample amounts of water at a time filling my belly, and snacking is how I do it.
My experiece
I think this is my first post here so I will give a brief intro. Just started kayaking, 7 hours on my own boat on glass smooth water, three kayaking classes, no vald opinions of life with kayaks…
Bicycles is another issue. I tried the bladders and found what, for me, is their big fault, no way of telling how much you are drinking. both myself and a reguar riding buddy have dehydrated while thinking we were drinking enough.
So now I rely on a bottle, even if I need to carry a bladder because of riding where new supply could ot be counted on. One large bottle per hour.
With kayaking, particuarly with a spray skirt, where do you keep a bottle? A bladder strapped to the deck seems to work well. just as I now do on the bike, I watch the clock and have a drink every 5- 10 minutes, so far so good, but I’ve yet to go out on a hot day.
thanks fr your input
Mike