How runners put on weight

Tuesday December 21st, 2010

Marathon runners who rely too much on sports drinks to keep them going may harm their chances of winning the race, according to a new analysis.

Some runners were found to put on as much as five per cent in weight during a race in France - and were generally not very successful.

Researchers found the runners who lost the most weight were the most successful during the marathon at Mont St Michel, France, involving more than 600 runners.

On average competitors who completed the marathon lost more than three per cent in weight - while those who came in during the next hour lost 2.5 per cent.

Runners who took more than four hours lost on average two per cent. But 9.5 per cent of competitors gained weight.

Writing in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, Professor Timothy Noakes, of the University of Cape Town, South Africa, says: "Such over-drinking most likely results from specific messaging directed, especially by the sports drink industry.

"This messaging has promoted the concept that any dehydration that occurs during exercise impairs exercise performance and increases the risk for potentially adverse outcomes.

"As a consequence, athletes may continue to believe that they must drink as much as is tolerable during exercise."

British Journal of Sports Medicine December 21 2010; doi 10.1136/bjsm.2010.074641

Tags: Europe | General Health

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