Although Alan’s words, to keep ourselves hydrated, are still ringing in my ears, the water in my bottles are so warm I could make myself a cup of tea. Not at all inviting. Still I force myself to take a sip of the disgusting liquid as it is imperative to keep hydrated. In reality I have used up more water attempting to cool myself down by throwing water down my neck than actually drinking it.
Another drawback that I have is that I still haven’t fully mastered the technique of drinking and cycling at the same time, at the same speed, without hugging some pavement or plant or whatever happens to be in my vicinity at the time. Yes Grace is not my second name. So I try to play it safe and limit the damage to those around me.
The warm breeze that brushes against my face is not welcome. I suddenly think about the times, early in the morning, when I complained about the cold and humid breeze that would hit us especially in valley areas. I longed for a whiff of cold air to hit me, but I knew that that wasn’t going to happen this morning.
It is ten o’clock and nearing the end of this week’s group ride which saw us loop around the Airport – Birzebbugia road a couple of times. The heat is on with a vengeance. What a change from the previous week. Although it is still May the temperature is around 7 degrees higher than average. It is a shock to my system. I am hoping that it will cool down a bit but really and truly I have a feeling that the worst is yet to come, especially when we get to Turkey and Syria in the sweltering August heat.
A little after ten o’clock we are directed to go towards Birzebbugia centre, where we stop at the local Band Club. The barman immediately asks us if we want ice cold water. No points for trying to guess that answer. I down two small bottles so quickly that I realise how dehydrated I am. I have to make sure that this does not happen and I need to start thinking about this from now!
Alan once again stresses the importance of hydration. Adequate fluid intake is essential before, during, and after exercise. I've read somewhere that each day we need to replace about two litres of fluid to balance off water loss - this does not take into consideration the amounts of fluid lost when we sweat during a workout. When the body heats up, production of sweat helps to reduce body temperature. A good comparison is that of our body to a car's radiator. If the radiator is not kept full, then the car overheats and will either break down or start giving problems. The same will happen to our bodies if we don't drink enough fluids. The impact of this will lead to a gradual reduction in physical and psychological performance.
Filling up my bottles with cold water we set off home. It is almost 11am by the time we leave Birzebbugia. As soon as I pour some water over my neck it dries up instantly so much is the extent of the heat. Every so often I force myself to have a sip, even though fifteen minutes into the ride the water is warm again. By the time I get home I realise that my water intake has increased from this morning.
A good step in the right direction I think to myself.
Prosit Maria...as usual...keep it up.
ReplyDeleteHow many bottles are you carrying with you? 4 is possible with 2 in jersey pockets & the others in their cages. Also, if you freeze 2 bottles from the night before, they'll have thawed to a cool fluid by the time you empty the others.
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