Do you take water on a two hour (18-20mi) run?

It depends on if there is water fountains or not on my run and how hot it is.

When I was in IL, most of my runs had water along my route, so it wasn't necessary. Here in Denver, very few trails have water, or a single fountain, so I'll carry my 10oz bottle with me. In addition, it's so much more dry here that if I don't drink water, after 10-12 miles, I start getting lightheaded.

logan,, wrote:

I didn't doubt it for a second, you're so tough.

HRE wrote:

Never. I almost never drink during a run.

Thanks. I don't usually think I'm especially tough and am not sure what drinking or not drinking on a run has to do with being tough. If anything, I think if my stomach was tougher I might be able to do it. But thanks anyway.

But don't you think racing a marathon without fueling/hydration puts you in a disadvantage?

George213 wrote:

So you didn't take in any energy gel as well?

You're one tough cookie!

I can't find any posts from an "HR" so I'm guessing your reply is to me, apologies if it's not. When I started running marathons the energy gel would not exist for decades. I heard stories of guys who'd carry jelly beans in long races but I never tried anything like that. Honestly, I don't know where this "tough" business figures in. I don't know how people eat and drink when they're running. It usually upsets my stomach. I never got how people ate at races where there's food afterward. Just looking at food after a race usually makes me queasy and even the advice about eating something after a run is no good for me because there's no way I can stomach doing that.

George213 wrote:

But don't you think racing a marathon without fueling/hydration puts you in a disadvantage?

These days I think that having my lower back be such a mess that I can't do anything more than shuffle puts me at a disadvantage. I was brought up in the area where you did not eat or drink when playing or practicing a sport and that worked for me. As I said in a previous post, putting anything into my stomach while I'm running often makes me queasy or gives me diarrhea so I'm inclined to think eating or drinking would put me at more of a disadvantage. Maybe I'd have been faster if I could have tolerated doing those things but I have no reason to think so.

Nothing says a**hole like someone who uses the term 'hobbyjogger'

Yes. But it was about five+ years in to my running life before I realized I needed to carry water. For runs over 10km in workouts I began to hydrate well before and a bit during. It took a while before my purist running-Spartanly mindset allowed the luxury, but I found I recovered and felt better the rest of that day (partly out of the knowledge that I was treating my old bod with more respect.)

Haven't done a lot of 20 mile runs probably 5 or 6 getting ready for two marathons about 30 years ago. It never occurred to me to drink during them.

In my 50s I lived in Mississippi and would do a few 1 hour 45 minute runs each cycle. Didn't drink on these, and felt Ok, but would lose about 4 lbs. per run.

Amusingly, most joggers I see carry water with them on a 15min jog!

sdfasdfasdfasfsadfdf wrote:

Depends on the temperature outside.

^^^ Usually no

Back when I was running that long, I never carried water. I would hydrate before & after. I was also aware of every public drinking fountain in that distance. I would design routes with them in mind.

If you run near the beaches in Sydney you'll find they all have bubblers and decent bathrooms so for me, no. So 2 hour road - no. Trail 2 hour - depends on temp. Warmer I'll take a naked belt and a 250ml flask. Hot and I'll take a salomon s/lab sense 2 vest with a 500ml flask. May not need it but better to have it.