What to Drink During Long Training Sessions: Water, Electrolytes, or Sports Drink?

Written by Tomasz Antczak · Published May 18, 2026 · Updated September 26, 2026

A practical guide to choosing water, electrolyte drinks or carbohydrate sports drinks during long training sessions, including sodium, carbohydrate, sweat rate and overhydration.

Long training sessions create more than one problem.

You may need to replace:

fluid

You may need to replace:

some sodium

And if the session is long or demanding enough, you may also need:

carbohydrate fuel

Those are three different needs.

That is why the question:

“Water or electrolytes?”

is sometimes too simple.

A plain electrolyte drink may help replace sodium but provide almost no energy.

A carbohydrate sports drink can provide:

• fluid
• sodium
• carbohydrate

at the same time.

Plain water may still be completely adequate if the session is long but:

• easy
• cool
• only mildly sweaty
• well fuelled beforehand

And for some short or low-intensity sessions, you may not need to drink much during training at all.

The correct drink therefore depends on:

• duration
• intensity
• temperature
• humidity
• sweat rate
• sodium loss
• carbohydrate needs
• access to food
• whether another session follows soon

The goal is not to make every workout complicated.

It is to match the drink to the actual problem.

For the basic hydration framework first, read Hydration Basics: What Actually Matters.

The simple answer

A useful starting point is:

Short or easy session

Water — or sometimes nothing during the session — may be enough.

Longer and sweatier session

Water plus sodium may become more useful.

Long, demanding session where fuel matters

A carbohydrate-electrolyte drink can provide fluid, sodium and carbohydrate together.

Very long endurance session

You may need a combination of:

• drinks
• gels
• food
• carbohydrate
• sodium

rather than expecting one bottle to do everything.

That is the basic framework.

Now we can make it more precise.

First: what counts as a long training session?

There is no single minute at which a workout suddenly becomes:

long.

A:

90-minute easy walk

is not metabolically equivalent to:

90 minutes of hard Muay Thai

or:

90 minutes of race-pace running.

Duration matters.

But so do:

• intensity
• heat
• sweat rate
• starting hydration
• food intake
• training goal

For hydration and fuelling, a session becomes increasingly important to plan as it extends beyond roughly:

60–90 minutes

particularly when it is:

• moderate to high intensity
• hot
• very sweaty
• continuous
• competition-focused

But do not use:

60 minutes

or:

90 minutes

as a magic threshold.

The body does not know what your stopwatch says.

The three things a drink can provide

When choosing what to drink, separate the components.

1. Fluid

This replaces some of the water being lost through sweat.

Sources include:

• plain water
• electrolyte drinks
• sports drinks
• diluted juice
• other suitable beverages

2. Sodium

Sodium is the major electrolyte lost in sweat.

It can come from:

• electrolyte tablets
• electrolyte powders
• sports drinks
• food

3. Carbohydrate

Carbohydrate helps provide fuel during prolonged or demanding exercise.

It can come from:

• sports drinks
• gels
• chews
• bars
• bananas
• other food

A drink does not have to provide all three.

That is why:

water + gel

can sometimes accomplish a similar nutritional job to:

carbohydrate sports drink

depending on the situation.

Option 1: plain water

Plain water is simple, inexpensive and often completely adequate.

It works particularly well when:

• the session is relatively short
• intensity is low to moderate
• conditions are cool
• sweat loss is modest
• you ate normally beforehand
• you can eat soon afterwards

You do not need electrolytes just because exercise lasts:

61 minutes.

You also do not need carbohydrate during every long session.

Context matters.

When water alone makes sense

Examples include:

• a 60-minute gym workout
• a 75-minute easy technical session
• a low-intensity recovery ride
• an easy walk
• moderate lifting in an air-conditioned gym
• a longer session where sweat loss is modest and food is readily available afterwards

If you start well hydrated and the workout does not create a large deficit, plain water may be all you need.

When water starts becoming less complete

Plain water may become less useful as the only strategy when:

• sweat volume becomes large
• the session lasts several hours
• sodium losses accumulate
• carbohydrate availability begins limiting performance
• you have another demanding session later
• you need rapid recovery

The issue is not that water suddenly becomes bad.

The issue is that water provides:

water

and nothing else.

Sometimes that is enough.

Sometimes you need more.

Option 2: electrolyte drink without much carbohydrate

An electrolyte drink usually provides minerals such as:

• sodium
• potassium
• sometimes magnesium

with little or no carbohydrate.

For exercise hydration, sodium is usually the most important of these.

This option can make sense when:

• you are sweating heavily
• training is hot
• total sweat loss is substantial
• carbohydrate is coming from food or gels
• you deliberately do not need carbohydrate in the drink
• another session follows soon

Electrolytes are not automatically fuel

This is one of the most common misunderstandings.

A drink can contain:

electrolytes

and still provide:

almost zero carbohydrate.

That means it may help with:

• sodium replacement
• palatability
• fluid retention

but it may do almost nothing for:

exercise fuel.

If you are three hours into hard cycling or running, replacing sodium does not replace carbohydrate.

You need to think about both.

Option 3: carbohydrate-electrolyte sports drink

A traditional sports drink combines:

• water
• carbohydrate
• sodium

This can be very useful during prolonged exercise because one product can contribute to:

hydration + electrolyte replacement + fuelling

at the same time.

That becomes increasingly attractive when the session is:

• long
• continuous
• intense
• difficult to eat during
• competition-like

Examples include:

• long runs
• cycling
• endurance events
• prolonged conditioning
• long combat-sport sessions with limited breaks for food

Carbohydrate becomes increasingly relevant during prolonged exercise

For longer-duration exercise, carbohydrate intake can support performance by supplying an external fuel source.

A commonly used evidence-based range is approximately:

30–60 g carbohydrate per hour

during prolonged exercise.

For events lasting more than approximately:

2.5 hours

higher intakes approaching:

90 g/hour

may benefit some trained athletes.

At these higher intakes, mixtures of carbohydrates using different intestinal transporters — commonly glucose plus fructose — are generally used.

That does not mean everybody should immediately consume:

90 g/hour.

90 g/hour is not a beginner target

High carbohydrate intake should be practised.

The gut adapts to what you repeatedly ask it to tolerate.

Jumping from:

no food during training

to:

90 g carbohydrate every hour

can result in:

• bloating
• nausea
• cramps
• diarrhoea
• general gastrointestinal misery

Start with what the session actually requires.

Then practise the strategy during training before using it in competition.

A drink can provide some or all of the carbohydrate

Suppose you want:

60 g carbohydrate/hour.

Your drink provides:

30 g/hour.

You could obtain the remaining:

30 g

from:

• a gel
• chews
• food

The drink does not need to do everything.

Likewise, if your drink already provides:

60 g/hour

you do not automatically need additional gels on top.

Count the total.

How concentrated should a sports drink be?

Many sports beverages use a carbohydrate concentration around:

4–8%

which means approximately:

4–8 g carbohydrate per 100 mL.

For example:

5% drink

5 g per 100 mL

or:

50 g per litre

6% drink

6 g per 100 mL

or:

60 g per litre

8% drink

8 g per 100 mL

or:

80 g per litre

More concentrated is not automatically better.

Very concentrated drinks may become harder to tolerate, particularly when:

• intensity is high
• fluid needs are high
• the environment is hot

Example: 6% carbohydrate drink

A:

750 mL

bottle containing:

6% carbohydrate

provides:

45 g carbohydrate

because:

750 mL × 6 g/100 mL = 45 g

If you drink that bottle across one hour:

45 g/hour

falls inside the commonly used 30–60 g/hour range for prolonged exercise.

But you still need to consider whether:

750 mL/hour

matches your fluid needs.

Do not set fluid intake only from the amount of carbohydrate you want.

This is why fluid and fuel can conflict

Suppose you need:

60 g carbohydrate/hour

but your sweat rate is relatively low.

If your sports drink contains:

60 g/L

you might think:

“I must drink one litre every hour.”

But your fluid requirement may be much lower than:

1 L/hour.

In that situation, forcing a litre simply to get the carbohydrate would be poor planning.

Instead you could use:

• a smaller amount of sports drink
• a gel or food for additional carbohydrate

This separates:

fuel requirement

from:

fluid requirement.

The opposite situation can also happen

You may have a very high sweat rate.

Suppose you need around:

1 L/hour of fluid

under particular conditions.

But you only want:

40 g carbohydrate/hour.

If your drink contains:

80 g/L

then one litre would provide:

80 g carbohydrate

which may be more than you want or tolerate.

A weaker drink or:

water/electrolyte drink + separate food

may work better.

There is no single perfect sports-drink concentration

The right concentration depends partly on what else you consume.

That is why serious endurance strategies often separate:

• hydration
• carbohydrate
• sodium

rather than assuming one fixed bottle solves every situation.

What does sodium actually do?

Sodium is lost in sweat.

How much you lose depends on:

sweat volume × sweat sodium concentration

So two athletes can have dramatically different sodium losses during the same training session.

For example:

Athlete A

Sweat rate:

0.6 L/h

Sweat sodium:

400 mg/L

Sodium loss:

240 mg/h

Athlete B

Sweat rate:

1.4 L/h

Sweat sodium:

900 mg/L

Sodium loss:

1,260 mg/h

Same sport.

Very different loss.

That is why there is no universal electrolyte dose for every athlete.

Read Sweat Rate vs Sodium Loss: What to Measure After Hard Training for the full explanation.

How much sodium should a drink contain?

There is no one concentration that perfectly replaces every athlete’s sweat.

Sodium intake should become more individualised when:

• sweat rate is high
• sweat sodium concentration is high
• exercise is prolonged
• conditions are hot
• rapid recovery is required

For prolonged exercise in the heat, IOC guidance discusses drinks containing approximately:

0.4–0.85 g sodium per litre

or:

400–850 mg/L

as a practical range in that context.

That is useful context.

It is not a universal prescription saying every bottle must contain exactly:

625 mg/L.

A drink does not need to replace every milligram as you lose it

Suppose you estimate sodium loss at:

900 mg/hour.

That does not automatically mean your drink must contain enough sodium to replace:

900 mg every hour

during exercise.

Replacement can also occur through:

• food
• recovery drinks
• meals after training

The appropriate strategy depends on:

• duration
• total loss
• recovery window
• individual tolerance

For sodium-loss calculations, read Sodium Loss Calculator for Exercise.

Salt marks are not a sodium measurement

White marks on:

• shirts
• hats
• shorts
• training equipment

may suggest that you lose meaningful salt in sweat.

But they do not tell you:

mg sodium/L.

Likewise:

• salty-tasting sweat
• sweat stinging the eyes

cannot provide a precise concentration.

Use them as clues.

Not calculator inputs.

What about potassium?

Potassium is also present in sweat.

But sodium is generally the electrolyte of greater practical importance when replacing substantial exercise sweat losses.

Normal food provides potassium from many sources.

The fact that a drink advertises:

• potassium
• magnesium
• calcium

does not automatically make it better for prolonged exercise.

If sweat replacement is your goal, check the actual:

sodium content.

Magnesium is not the main sweat-loss problem

Magnesium is frequently marketed heavily in electrolyte products.

That does not mean a high-magnesium drink is automatically better for hydration.

The major electrolyte lost in sweat is sodium.

Do not judge an exercise drink by the length of its mineral list.

Read the label

When comparing drinks, look at:

fluid volume

sodium per serving

sodium per litre

carbohydrate per serving

carbohydrate per hour at your planned drinking rate

That gives you much more useful information than:

“contains five electrolytes.”

Example drink comparison

Drink A

Per 500 mL:

• 0 g carbohydrate
• 300 mg sodium

This is essentially an:

electrolyte hydration drink

Drink B

Per 500 mL:

• 30 g carbohydrate
• 250 mg sodium

This is closer to a:

carbohydrate-electrolyte sports drink

Drink C

Per 500 mL:

• 5 g carbohydrate
• 50 mg sodium

This may be flavoured water with relatively small amounts of both.

All three may use words such as:

hydration

or:

electrolytes

on the label.

The nutrition panel tells you what the drink actually does.

A practical decision table

Training situation	Practical starting option
Short, easy, cool session	Water or no drink during session
Normal 60-minute gym workout	Water
60–90 min hard sweaty training	Water or electrolyte drink depending on losses
Long easy session with food available	Water/electrolytes + food as needed
Long moderate-high intensity session	Carbohydrate + fluid; sodium depending on sweat losses
Long hot session	Fluid + sodium; carbohydrate if intensity/duration requires fuel
>2.5 h endurance event	Planned fluid + sodium + carbohydrate strategy
Two hard sessions in one day	More deliberate fluid, sodium and carbohydrate replacement

This table is a starting point.

Your measured losses should refine it.

What should you drink during Muay Thai?

Muay Thai is an interesting case because the session can be:

• highly intermittent
• very intense
• extremely sweaty

but may also include:

• instruction
• partner changes
• breaks
• technical work

So:

90 minutes of Muay Thai

does not automatically equal:

90 minutes of continuous endurance exercise.

Technical Muay Thai session

If the session is:

• mostly drilling
• moderate intensity
• cool environment

plain water may be completely adequate.

You probably do not need a high-carbohydrate drink simply because the class lasts:

90 minutes.

Hard Muay Thai session

Now imagine:

• skipping
• pads
• clinch
• sparring
• conditioning
• warm gym
• heavy sweating

for:

90–120 minutes.

Fluid and sodium become more relevant.

If you also trained earlier or have not eaten for several hours, carbohydrate may be useful too.

Do fighters need carbohydrate during class?

Not always.

A fighter who:

• ate a carbohydrate-containing meal beforehand
• trains for 75 minutes
• has plenty of breaks

may not need carbohydrate during the session.

A fighter doing:

• two hours of hard training
• conditioning afterwards
• two-a-day training

may benefit much more from carbohydrate during or between sessions.

Again:

match the fuel to the workload.

Two-a-day Muay Thai

This is where drinks can become particularly useful.

Suppose you train:

Muay Thai at 10:00

and:

strength or another Muay Thai session at 17:00.

The first session creates losses of:

• water
• sodium
• glycogen

Now recovery speed matters.

A drink containing:

• fluid
• sodium
• carbohydrate

can contribute to recovery immediately after session one.

That does not mean the entire recovery must be liquid.

Eat real food as well.

For the full strategy, read Two Workouts a Day: Simple Hydration and Recovery Plan.

What should runners drink?

Running often benefits from simpler logistics.

You may need to carry what you consume.

For a short run:

nothing or water may be enough.

For a longer run:

water + carbohydrate

or:

carbohydrate-electrolyte drink

may become useful.

For a long hot run:

all three variables become important:

• fluid
• sodium
• carbohydrate

Example: 45-minute run

Cool weather.

Normal hydration.

Normal breakfast.

You may need:

nothing during the run.

There is no requirement to carry a sports drink simply because you are exercising.

Example: 90-minute run

Moderate intensity.

Warm weather.

You may benefit from:

• water
• perhaps carbohydrate depending on intensity and goals

If you are sweating heavily, sodium may also be relevant.

Example: three-hour run

Now you are dealing with:

• significant fluid loss
• accumulated sodium loss
• carbohydrate depletion

A structured plan becomes much more useful.

This is a very different problem from the 45-minute run.

What about cycling?

Cycling often makes drinking and eating easier because bottles and food can be carried on the bike.

This allows you to separate components.

For example:

Bottle 1:

water + electrolytes

Bottle 2:

carbohydrate drink

plus:

• gels
• bars
• food

There is no requirement that every bottle have identical composition.

Long gym sessions

A:

two-hour gym session

does not automatically require sports drink.

Much of the time may involve:

• rest between sets
• equipment setup
• low cardiovascular demand

If sweat loss is modest and you ate normally beforehand:

water may be enough.

Duration alone does not determine nutritional need.

Long conditioning sessions are different

Two hours of:

• circuits
• running
• rowing
• sled work
• repeated intervals

creates a very different fuel and fluid demand from two hours of low-density strength training.

Use the session itself.

Not just the clock.

Training in heat changes the problem

Heat can substantially increase sweat rate.

That means the same workout may require a different hydration strategy in:

July

than:

January.

Suppose your sweat rate is:

Normal conditions:

0.7 L/hour

Hot conditions:

1.3 L/hour

Over two hours:

Normal:

1.4 L sweat

Hot:

2.6 L sweat

That is almost double the fluid loss.

Your bottle strategy should probably change.

For the complete guide, read Hydration in Hot Weather: How to Train in Heat Without Crashing.

Humidity matters too

High humidity makes sweat evaporation less effective.

You may become:

• soaked
• hot
• uncomfortable

because sweat stays on the skin and clothing rather than evaporating efficiently.

Fluid loss can still be substantial.

Do not judge hydration need only from:

how wet your shirt looks.

Measure sweat rate if this matters to your training.

Know your sweat rate

Sweat-rate testing makes beverage planning much more useful.

Suppose you know you lose approximately:

1.0 L/hour

during long summer sessions.

That gives you a realistic idea of the scale of fluid loss.

It does not mean you must drink exactly:

1.0 L/hour.

But it tells you that drinking:

200 mL across two hours

is unlikely to replace much of what you are losing.

Likewise, it tells you that forcing:

1.5 L/hour

may exceed your needs.

Read How to Measure Your Sweat Rate Correctly.

Do you have to replace 100% of sweat during training?

No.

The goal is not necessarily to replace every millilitre in real time.

In some sessions:

• full replacement is unnecessary
• full replacement is impractical
• full replacement may be uncomfortable

The useful goal is to avoid an unnecessarily large deficit while also avoiding excessive intake.

Individual sweat-rate measurements help define that range.

Do not deliberately gain weight from drinking

For prolonged exercise, gaining body mass from fluid intake is an important warning that intake may be exceeding losses.

Example:

Before:

75.0 kg

After:

75.7 kg

during a long endurance event.

That does not automatically diagnose a problem.

But it tells you that you consumed enough fluid to finish heavier than you started.

That is generally not the target.

Electrolyte drink does not protect you from overdrinking

This is critical.

You can develop exercise-associated hyponatremia while drinking:

• plain water
• sports drink
• electrolyte drink

if overall fluid intake becomes excessive relative to losses and excretion.

Adding sodium does not give you permission to drink unlimited fluid.

Read Can You Drink Too Much Water During Exercise? Hyponatremia Explained.

Why sports drink can still cause hyponatremia

A typical sports drink contains far less sodium than blood.

It remains a hypotonic fluid.

If someone consumes large quantities faster than fluid is being lost, body water can accumulate.

So the correct prevention message is not:

“Use electrolytes and you cannot get hyponatremia.”

It is:

avoid excessive fluid intake.

Drink to thirst or follow a plan?

These are not necessarily opposites.

For many recreational athletes, thirst provides a useful guide.

For athletes competing in predictable conditions, a measured strategy based on:

• sweat rate
• drinking opportunities
• tolerance

can also be useful.

The plan should not force fluid regardless of what the body and conditions are telling you.

And it should not aim to create weight gain from drinking.

What if you are not thirsty during a long session?

Consider the full context.

If:

• conditions are cool
• intensity is low
• sweat rate is low

you may genuinely need little fluid.

But if you know from repeated measurement that you are losing:

1.5 L/hour

and you routinely forget to drink for several hours, relying solely on awareness may not produce a practical strategy.

This is where knowing your own sweat rate becomes useful.

What if you are extremely thirsty?

Drink.

Thirst is a normal regulatory signal.

But avoid turning:

strong thirst

into:

drink two litres immediately.

Large boluses can cause:

• stomach discomfort
• bloating
• nausea

Gradual intake is generally easier to tolerate.

One bottle or two?

Both systems can work.

One-bottle strategy

A single carbohydrate-electrolyte drink.

Advantages:

• simple
• convenient
• fluid + sodium + carbohydrate together

Disadvantages:

• harder to independently adjust carbohydrate and fluid

Two-bottle strategy

One bottle:

water

Second bottle:

carbohydrate/electrolyte drink

Advantages:

• easier to adjust concentration
• easier to respond to changing thirst
• more flexible in heat

Disadvantages:

• more complicated
• not practical for every sport

Choose the system you can actually use during training.

Water + gel can work

You do not need liquid carbohydrate.

For example:

• water for fluid
• electrolyte capsule or salty food for sodium
• gel for carbohydrate

can create a workable strategy.

But now you have three separate moving parts.

That can be useful for competition.

It can also be unnecessarily complicated for an ordinary training session.

Sports drink can be simpler

If one drink gives you approximately:

• the fluid you tolerate
• an appropriate amount of carbohydrate
• some sodium

then there may be no reason to split everything into separate products.

Convenience matters.

Food can replace the sports drink

Long lower-intensity sessions may allow real food.

Examples:

• cycling
• hiking
• long walks
• some ultra-endurance training

In these situations you might use:

• water
• electrolyte drink

plus food containing:

• carbohydrate
• sodium

A sports drink is an option.

Not a requirement.

What about energy drinks?

An energy drink is not automatically a sports drink.

Energy drinks may contain:

• caffeine
• high sugar concentrations
• carbonation
• other stimulants

They are not designed primarily around exercise hydration.

A highly caffeinated carbonated drink may be uncomfortable during a long session.

Judge the actual product.

Do not treat:

energy drink

and:

sports drink

as synonyms.

What about pre-workout?

Pre-workout can contain fluid if mixed with water.

That water counts.

But pre-workout is not necessarily designed to provide:

• sodium
• carbohydrate fuel

for prolonged training.

A pre-workout shaker before exercise does not replace an in-session hydration strategy if the session creates large losses.

Read How Much Water to Drink Before a Workout if You Use Pre-Workout.

What about coconut water?

Coconut water contains:

• fluid
• carbohydrate
• potassium

but its sodium concentration is often relatively low compared with drinks designed specifically for replacing heavy sweat losses.

It can be a beverage.

It is not automatically the ideal endurance electrolyte drink.

Check the label and match the drink to the actual need.

What about zero-sugar electrolyte drinks?

They can be useful when:

• you need fluid
• sodium replacement is relevant
• carbohydrate is unnecessary or supplied separately

They are particularly useful when you do not want carbohydrate tied directly to your drinking rate.

Just remember:

zero sugar = zero or very little fuel.

What about sugary sports drinks?

Sugar is not automatically a flaw during prolonged exercise.

In this context, carbohydrate can have a purpose.

A drink containing:

30–60 g carbohydrate/hour

may be providing fuel deliberately.

That is different from drinking a sugary beverage while sitting at a desk.

Context matters.

But more sugar is not always better

An extremely concentrated drink can be difficult to tolerate.

Possible issues include:

• nausea
• bloating
• slow gastric emptying
• diarrhoea

particularly during intense exercise.

If you need a high carbohydrate intake, using multiple carbohydrate sources and practising the strategy matters.

Do not simply make the drink thicker and thicker.

Practise your race-day drink

Do not discover during competition that your planned drink causes:

• nausea
• diarrhoea
• stomach cramps
• flavour fatigue

Use important competition strategies during training first.

That applies to:

• carbohydrate
• sodium
• fluid volume

Flavour matters more than it sounds

A drink you dislike is a poor hydration plan.

Palatability can affect voluntary drinking.

During a long session, extremely:

• sweet
• salty
• strongly flavoured

drinks may become difficult to tolerate.

Sometimes a lighter drink makes it easier to consume an appropriate amount.

Temperature matters too

Many people prefer cooler fluids during hot exercise.

A cool drink may improve:

• comfort
• palatability

and contribute to thermal management.

But the exact temperature is less important than having a drink you can actually consume appropriately.

A practical 60-minute session

Normal gym.

Cool room.

Moderate sweating.

A simple setup:

water

You may need nothing more.

A practical 90-minute hard session

Warm gym.

Heavy sweating.

Possible setup:

water or electrolyte drink

If intensity is high enough that fuel matters:

carbohydrate may also be useful

depending on what you ate beforehand.

A practical two-hour Muay Thai session

Hot gym.

Hard pads + clinch + sparring.

Heavy sweat.

Possible setup:

fluid + sodium

and potentially:

carbohydrate

especially if:

• the session is genuinely high volume
• you did not eat recently
• another session follows later

A practical three-hour endurance session

Now a more structured strategy makes sense.

Possible components:

• fluid based on conditions and sweat rate
• sodium based on loss/context
• approximately 30–60 g carbohydrate/hour or more depending on event duration and training status

For very long events, carbohydrate targets may rise toward:

90 g/hour

in athletes who have practised and tolerate higher intakes.

Example: separating fluid from carbohydrate

Suppose your comfortable fluid intake is:

600 mL/hour

Your carbohydrate target:

60 g/hour

Your drink provides:

40 g carbohydrate per 600 mL

You could add:

20 g carbohydrate

from a gel or food.

This is better than forcing extra fluid simply to reach the carbohydrate target.

Example: separating sodium from fluid

Suppose your drink contains:

500 mg sodium/L

You consume:

600 mL/hour

That gives:

300 mg sodium/hour

If your sweat sodium losses are substantially higher and the session is prolonged, you may choose a higher-sodium strategy.

But that decision should be based on your losses.

Not on the assumption that everyone needs:

1,000 mg/hour.

How to know whether the plan is working

A workable strategy should allow you to train without:

• excessive thirst
• major stomach sloshing
• repeated urgent urination
• steadily worsening dehydration
• unnecessary body-weight gain
• gastrointestinal distress from fuel

Performance and recovery should also be reasonably consistent.

No single sign proves the strategy is perfect.

Look for patterns across repeated sessions.

Weigh yourself occasionally

Pre- and post-session body weight can help you understand what is happening.

For example:

Before:

80.0 kg

After:

78.8 kg

Drink consumed:

0.8 L

That indicates substantial sweat loss despite drinking.

You may want to refine your plan for similar long sessions.

At the other extreme:

Before:

80.0 kg

After:

80.6 kg

during prolonged exercise

suggests you consumed enough fluid to finish heavier.

That is useful information too.

Common mistake: “long session = electrolytes”

Not automatically.

A long easy session with low sweat losses may not require much sodium.

Common mistake: “electrolytes = energy”

No.

A zero-calorie electrolyte drink provides essentially no carbohydrate fuel.

Common mistake: “sports drink = unhealthy sugar”

During prolonged demanding exercise, carbohydrate can be there for a specific performance purpose.

Context matters.

Common mistake: “water is always enough”

Sometimes it is.

During prolonged, hot, very sweaty training, the problem may eventually involve more than water.

Common mistake: “plain water is dangerous during long exercise”

That is also too simplistic.

The major overhydration problem is excessive fluid consumption.

Water is not automatically dangerous just because exercise lasts a long time.

Common mistake: “sodium prevents hyponatremia”

Not by itself.

Excessive fluid intake remains the central preventable risk.

Common mistake: drinking to replace carbohydrate

Do not force unnecessary fluid just because your sports drink is your carbohydrate source.

Common mistake: eating gels without enough fluid

Some concentrated carbohydrate products are intended to be consumed with fluid.

Follow product directions and practise your strategy.

Common mistake: copying elite endurance athletes

An elite cyclist racing for:

five hours

has different requirements from somebody attending:

90 minutes of recreational Muay Thai.

Do not copy the bottle because the athlete is famous.

Common mistake: choosing based on marketing

Ignore phrases such as:

• advanced hydration
• complete electrolytes
• ultimate endurance
• superior hydration matrix

Read:

• sodium
• carbohydrate
• serving size

instead.

Common mistake: using the same plan in every season

Your sweat rate may be very different in:

• winter
• summer

Retest when conditions change.

Common mistake: trying a new drink on competition day

Train the gut and test the product first.

Common mistake: thinking more is always better

More:

• water
• sodium
• carbohydrate

is not automatically better.

The goal is:

enough for the task.

A simple decision process

Before a long session, ask these questions.

1. How long will I actually be exercising?

Not just how long will I be at the gym.

2. How hard is the session?

Technical drilling and hard conditioning are different.

3. How much do I expect to sweat?

If unsure, measure it.

4. Is it hot or humid?

Expect losses to change.

5. Do I need carbohydrate during the session?

Consider:

• intensity
• duration
• food beforehand
• performance goal

6. Do I need meaningful sodium replacement?

Consider:

• total sweat volume
• sweat sodium if known
• recovery time

7. What will I eat afterwards?

A normal meal can provide:

• carbohydrate
• sodium
• fluid

and may reduce what needs to be replaced during the workout.

A simple starting framework

Under roughly one hour

For most normal training:

water or nothing during exercise

may be enough.

Around one to two hours

Depends heavily on:

• intensity
• heat
• sweat

Water may still be enough.

Electrolytes may become useful with large sweat losses.

Carbohydrate becomes increasingly useful during sustained demanding exercise.

Two hours and beyond

Planning becomes more valuable.

Think separately about:

fluid + sodium + carbohydrate.

Very long events

Practise the whole strategy.

Do not improvise on race day.

FAQ

What is the best drink for long workouts?

There is no single best drink.

The best option depends on fluid, sodium and carbohydrate needs.

Is water enough for a 90-minute workout?

It can be.

A moderate gym or technical session may need only water.

A hard 90-minute session in heat may require a more deliberate plan.

When should I use electrolytes?

They become more useful when sweat and sodium losses are substantial, especially during long or hot exercise or when recovery time is short.

Do electrolytes give you energy?

Usually very little unless the product also contains carbohydrate.

Check the nutrition label.

What is the difference between an electrolyte drink and a sports drink?

An electrolyte drink may contain primarily water and minerals.

A traditional sports drink typically provides:

• fluid
• sodium
• carbohydrate

Do I need carbohydrate during exercise?

It becomes increasingly useful during prolonged, demanding exercise.

For longer-duration sport, approximately 30–60 g/hour is a commonly used range.

When would 90 g/hour be useful?

Some trained endurance athletes competing or training for more than approximately 2.5 hours may benefit from carbohydrate intakes approaching 90 g/hour.

This should be practised and generally uses multiple transportable carbohydrate sources.

Should I consume 90 g/hour during Muay Thai?

Not automatically.

Most recreational Muay Thai sessions do not require an elite endurance fuelling protocol.

Is a zero-sugar electrolyte drink good for long exercise?

It can provide fluid and sodium.

If carbohydrate fuel is also needed, obtain it from another source.

Is a sports drink better than water?

Not universally.

It provides additional carbohydrate and electrolytes, which can be useful when the session requires them.

How much sodium should my drink contain?

There is no universal target.

Needs depend on sweat rate, sweat sodium concentration, duration and recovery demands.

Is 500 mg sodium per litre enough?

It may be appropriate for some situations and insufficient or unnecessary in others.

Do not treat one concentration as universal.

Can I use gels with water instead of sports drink?

Yes.

That can allow you to adjust carbohydrate and fluid independently.

Can I use food instead?

Yes, especially in lower-intensity long sessions where eating is practical.

Should I drink exactly my sweat rate?

Not necessarily.

Sweat rate tells you the scale of loss.

It is not automatically a mandatory drinking rate.

Should I drink before I am thirsty?

A planned strategy can be useful during predictable long events, but it should not force excessive fluid intake.

Can I drink too much sports drink?

Yes.

Sports drink is still fluid.

Overconsumption can contribute to excessive fluid intake and exercise-associated hyponatremia.

Do electrolytes prevent hyponatremia?

Not reliably if you are overdrinking.

Avoiding excessive fluid intake is critical.

How do I know if I am overdrinking?

One useful clue during prolonged exercise is finishing heavier than you started.

Symptoms such as bloating, nausea, headache or confusion require caution and may have multiple causes.

Do I need sports drink for gym training?

Usually not for ordinary short strength workouts.

Water and normal meals are often enough.

What about long gym sessions?

Consider the actual work performed.

Two hours in a gym does not necessarily mean two hours of continuous high-intensity exercise.

What is best for Muay Thai?

For a normal class, water may be enough.

For long, hot, very sweaty sessions, fluid plus sodium becomes more useful.

Carbohydrate may help when training volume and intensity are high or another session follows.

What is best during long runs?

For longer runs, a combination of fluid, sodium and carbohydrate becomes increasingly useful as duration, heat and sweat losses increase.

Should I practise drinking and eating during training?

Yes.

Any important competition hydration or fuelling strategy should be tested during training first.

Sources and further reading

The recommendations in this guide are informed by sports-hydration and carbohydrate-fuelling research.

• Sawka MN et al. American College of Sports Medicine Position Stand: Exercise and Fluid Replacement. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. 2007;39(2):377–390. PMID: 17277604. DOI: 10.1249/mss.0b013e31802ca597.
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17277604/

• McDermott BP et al. National Athletic Trainers’ Association Position Statement: Fluid Replacement for the Physically Active. Journal of Athletic Training. 2017;52(9):877–895. PMID: 28985128. DOI: 10.4085/1062-6050-52.9.02.
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28985128/

• Burke LM, Hawley JA, Wong SHS, Jeukendrup AE. Carbohydrates for Training and Competition. Journal of Sports Sciences. 2011;29(Suppl 1):S17–S27. PMID: 21660838. DOI: 10.1080/02640414.2011.585473.
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21660838/

• Racinais S et al. IOC Consensus Statement on Recommendations and Regulations for Sport Events in the Heat. British Journal of Sports Medicine. 2023;57(1):8–25. PMID: 36150754. DOI: 10.1136/bjsports-2022-105942.
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36150754/

• Hew-Butler T et al. Statement of the Third International Exercise-Associated Hyponatremia Consensus Development Conference. Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine. 2015;25(4):303–320. PMID: 26102445. DOI: 10.1097/JSM.0000000000000221.
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26102445/

Long training creates several separate problems.

Do not assume one bottle has to solve all of them.

Final takeaway

When deciding what to drink during a long training session, separate three questions:

How much fluid am I losing?

How much sodium am I losing?

Do I need carbohydrate fuel?

If the session is easy and sweat loss is modest:

water may be enough.

If sweat loss becomes large:

sodium becomes more relevant.

If exercise is prolonged and demanding:

carbohydrate becomes increasingly useful.

And if the session is long, hot and hard:

a carbohydrate-electrolyte sports drink can conveniently provide all three.

But no drink should become an excuse to:

• overdrink
• copy someone else’s sodium intake
• consume unnecessary carbohydrate
• ignore your own sweat rate

Match the drink to the workout.

That is a much better strategy than automatically choosing water, electrolytes or sports drink based only on how long the session lasts.