CBRWorld.net

Aside from 3 hr sleep, what do y'all eat/drink at the track when you're strarting to lose energy? I've done days like these before w/o any issues (not enough sleep, insomnia, wrenching, etc.), but I've been a couch potato for the first 4-4.5 months this year and only on my 2nd trackday. Granted it was 110F in the sun after lunch, I was sapped of energy after the morning sessions. I really felt it on the 1st session after lunch.


I need to find something as I feel the May AFM race is going to be a scorcher. i typically drink somewhere between 3-5 liters per day due to some health issues, so I know I'm hydrated (but was still somewhat dehydrated as the headache set in as I was leaving).  I could barely make 4 laps yesterday I think, though the only good thing was I hit race pace in one session and I felt I was still going slow (and I really am slow anyway).

so even losing 3 session (i quit on the last one b4 lunch since I was trying to save myself for afternoon), it was not a bad day. i'm satisfied with meeting 1 goal, though I really couldn't build stamina with more seat time. a mistake ridden last session is not something I wanted (missing marks, choppy throttle), i said quits cuz I'd rather have my bike in 1 piece for the race. and i was kinda like going back to basics fixing some fundamental issues yesterday and tried not to get caught with lap times (didn't have lap timer at all, but sneak peaked at my friends timer when he towed me and showed me my mistakes).

p.s. i still need advil today. i'm hurting everywhere, even on my right buttock!

---

"Leaders are like tea; put them in hot water to find out how strong they are." Anonymous

the trick is really to hydrate and eat BEFORE u start to burn out.  even if u dont feel hungry, eat anyway.  the delay between eating and finally getting energy, even for my ridiculously fast metabolism, takes atleast an hour.  so if im losing energy one session n then eat, the next session wont be much better.  but also, make sure u eat breakfast atleast a few hrs before u r on the track.  even if its jus a bowl of RaisinBran, itll really help your metabolism to kick in so u dont burn out. 

my trackdays usually start and go like this....
- drink atleast 1gal of water the day b4, usually more.  make sure to eat a lot that day as well, esp a large dinner w/ lots n lots of carbs.  pasta and/or potatoes
- get up around 4am (gotta leave by 4:30 to make it to Willowsprings by 7:30), eat atleast a bowl of cereal (all my stomach can take that early) and drink a bottle of water.  the calcium in the milk is good for nerve function as well. 
- during the drive, ill usually eat a more than a few snackbars and a banana or two, while drinking atleast another water bottle
- drink atleast one water bottle/Gatorade in between every session.  if was only mid 70s last time out so i wasnt sweating... but in Thill heat, u should prob be drinking almost 1L/hour. 
- for food, i usually eat a sandwich atleast once ever 3 sessions.  i think i had 2 sandwiches after my 3rd session last time out n then one more 2hrs later.  salami, ham, turkey, mustard... or maybe even PB&J.  snacks such as granola bars and trail mix in between every session for sure.  always a good idea to get another banana in there too.  id stay away from geasy foods cuz u wont be able to eat as much and it wont metabolize as quickly. 

last bit of advice.. relax and pick your battles when it comes to expending energy.  for example, if u kno your going to be stuck behind a few ppl for a turn or 2, save your knees, dont hang off soo much, and pass them smoothly.  hell, i was passing ppl left and right at my last trackday w/ my a** still perfectly centered on the seat.  but the second i had clear track, i was all over that tank.  def helped to go the full distance for each session n the entire day. 

hope my rambling helps

---

Naked 93' F2...... RIP -- 04/12/07
04' 600RR Black - currently stuck between track and street usage
- Brembo Master, Sato's, & Ohlins out back

it gives me a little idea. i'm good a hydrating actually, even more so days before the event (have to anyway, health related). i try to avoid eating since i get food coma pretty easily. i've been able to get away not eating mostly during the day. but with that kind of heat, i guess i better get a few granola bars, apples and bananas. i'm not going to friday trackday and will stick to sat practice this weekend for sunday's races, so i need to plan that a little since my body will need some time to replenish energy so i can't be doing no-eating all day saturday for sunday's races. good thing all 3 of my races are spreadout. hopefully, i can at least make the cut-off times as i've been mostly off the bike for since october.

i guess 5-6 liters from 7:30am - 1pm wasn't quite enough too.

---

"Leaders are like tea; put them in hot water to find out how strong they are." Anonymous

ahhh the dreaded food coma.  this can def be a big problem, esp if your sat practices are schedules in a trackday kinda fashion.   best way to avoid it is to stay away from fatty foods and complex sugars, meaning that greasy burger and bun that u could probably buy during the day is a big no-no.  also, u want to avoid large meals... hell even avoid filling meals.  best thing u can do for your metabolism during the day is eat small portions very often, instead of big meals once or twice. 

u gotta look at it this way... if u arent eating atleast as many calories as u r burning on the track on saturday, ull def feel like *** on sunday.  a few estimates online told me that for my minimal weight (140lbs), 20min of cycling at 15mph burns about 225 calories.  now i kno one session on the track burns more than that, so call it 300.  so i gotta eat atleast 1 granola bar, 1 apple, and 1 banana to replenish all that (they are all about 100cal avg).  so 7 sessions per day... thats 3 apples, 2 bananas, and 16 granola bars.  crazy i tell u, crazy .  hell, im sure my deli sandwiches arent more than 300cal.  and if u r heavier than me, eat more. 

ok enough rambling.  hope the races go well for u high_revs.  nice that ure getting back out there after some time off. 

---

Naked 93' F2...... RIP -- 04/12/07
04' 600RR Black - currently stuck between track and street usage
- Brembo Master, Sato's, & Ohlins out back

I agree on eating non greasy and eating often, and drinking enough water to drown yourself.  not cokes, or sugar waters,(some sport drinks are nothing but sugar) .   

Bananna's are also good for the potassium.  When you start getting arm cramps and stuff, its usually from lost potassium(sweated out IIRC) and dehydration.  

When I did Keith Code last year in August it was 100* at the track, so to combat it, Keiths wife made us drink like 2 glasses of water every session and take salt tablets and potassium tablets. I was kind of skeptical, but they worked very well.   I had started getting a mild headache from the heat, but could tell it was going to turn into a full on migrane, so she asked my body weight, then said take 3 of these and 2 of these and drink 3 glasses of water. (or some combination I cant remember) and If you dont feel better in a half hour, come back.    within a half hour I felt just fine.

I remember that on superbike school Krash as I also did Level 1 and my ever first trackay with Keith Code. I just can't find salt tablets w/o a prescription though (been searching) and I really don't want to resort to potato chips for salt. I managed to find potassium tablets at your local GNC store, but not sure if those are "true" potassium tablets.

Thoughts? Recommendations for salt tablets?

---

"Leaders are like tea; put them in hot water to find out how strong they are." Anonymous

Ahem... salt tablets?  Potata chips? How about just eating the salt.  If you cant handle the taste then dissolve it in water.  Dude, a lot of the stuff that is sold in nutrition stores is readily available at home at a tiny fraction of the cost, just without the super fancy packaging.
Do you know how locals in Afghanistan and other hot mountaneous areas deal with dihydration?  You suck on rock salt on the march.  Salt makes your body retain water in addition to replacing the salt lost through sweating. 
As a Russian I can tell you that one of the best ways to avoid hang overs is to chaice vodka shots with pickles and then drink the left over pickle juice before and after you go to sleep drunk.   Its just the pickles you buy in a store here have to much other crap like preservatives and  taste enhancers. 
Dont want food comma?  Again do what the mountain people do.  They eat chocolate, honey, walnut, and raisin mix on the march.

funny fulcrum. i was just trying to avoid the salty taste. i've had enough cold, sore throat and flu over the winter i gag over the taste of gargling over salt water again. LOL i'll admit though, i have no clue how much salt there is in a salt tablet. is that a pinch? 1/2 a pinch?

i've not heard of the the stuff re: food coma. but might give it a whirl.

---

"Leaders are like tea; put them in hot water to find out how strong they are." Anonymous

mmmm pickles.

if u want salt rehydration thingies... go to a camping supply store like REI.  label of these ones says 3.5g of salt per packet to be mixed w/ 1L of water.  salt is 6-7g per teaspoon.

sodium is actually required for proper nerve and mucle function, so a lack can cause cramps and headaches.  however, overdosing on those salt tablets will actually make u dehydrated.  your kidneys will need to rid the body of the excess salt and use available water to do so... i find it highly unlikely that roadracers lose as much salt as say someone running the Ironman in Hawaii.  sweating (the main loss of sweat in a healthy person) isnt too effective in a leather suit. 

---

Naked 93' F2...... RIP -- 04/12/07
04' 600RR Black - currently stuck between track and street usage
- Brembo Master, Sato's, & Ohlins out back

You are absolutely right.  However I do think that racers loose quiet a bit of minerals.  I bought my bike in Phoenix and rode it all the way to San Diego in scorching heat.  I had a mesh jacket on and leterally poured a gallon of water all over myself every refueling stop.  When I arrived home my whole helmet and parts of clothing that werent rinsed with water were crusted with white salt crystals.  But may be my body is weird.

Gargling salt water? hehe sounds like another traditional remedy

I had basically the same thing happen last year.  I bought a new suit to Deals Gap last year and broke it on over the weekend. It was extremely hot, I remember seeing bank signs that side like 97*, plus the humidity was like 80-90%.

by the end of the second day, the black leather on the arms of my suit were a crusty white from all the salt. 

wow, crazy ***.

i swear, the more i wear my leather jacket or suit, the more accustomed my body is to those conditions.... meaning i sweat less.  all those people that ask me if im hot wearing my black leather jacket in 90deg weather are shocked when im honestly tell em no. 

since weve expanded this discussion to optimum health concerns.... u guys may have too much salt in your diet.  ive read a few articles that conditioning ones body to less salt intake takes time.  but eventually, ull retain optimum salt levels in the blood and kidneys, while eventually sweating much much less salt.

---

Naked 93' F2...... RIP -- 04/12/07
04' 600RR Black - currently stuck between track and street usage
- Brembo Master, Sato's, & Ohlins out back

i'm bringing apples and bananas for this weekend. not sure if i want to bring a watter bottle with salt water though. (gaaghhh, the taste. yuck). probably something i'd just sip now and then just to be safe, though it's much, much cooler today it seems (so hopefully only in the 70's this weekend).

a ltitle nervous though. not sure why. probably cuz i'm one of the fat guys that can't go fast on two wheels. LOL

---

"Leaders are like tea; put them in hot water to find out how strong they are." Anonymous

no dont drink salt water, it will mess you up, give you the runs, shut down your kidneys and other stuff.  thats how poeple stuck out on boats in the ocean end up dieing.  they get so thirsty they drink the saltwater, and thats it, your dead within a day.

salt tablets are nice, but not neccessary.  just drink lots and lots, and lots of water before and during the track day.  appples and bannanas are good too.

Hahah, man, salt water is fine, you just have to get the right amount of salt.  Marine water contains A LOT of salt and people drink a lot of it too, thats why they die.    Salt water does not give you the runs unless you poison yourself to the point when there's too much of it.  Salt (in proper amounts) makes your body retain water not loose it.  If your salt water tastes unbearable then you have too much salt.  Just figure out how much salt your body will need that day and add only that much.
For that matter you can easily die from drinking too much plain water too, its called overhydration.  Overhydration occurs when the body takes in more water than it loses. The result is too much water and not enough sodium. Thus, overhydration generally results in low sodium levels in the blood.  When overhydration occurs quickly, confusion, seizures, or coma may develop. 
M_O_D_E_R_A_T_I_O_N my friend