How to Boost Sodium Intake

Hi Everybody.

I was fell very hungry after the workouts even I was very loaded with real food. I am pretty sure I am eating enough because I am counting calories and my weight is increasing slowly during off season.

After last 2 workouts I over ate salt, and I realized that it curbed my appetite and also it prevent me to go to toilet in the middle of my sleep. And unexpectedly I didnt wake up bloated next day. So I believe I need more sodium after indoor trainer sessions. For this, I drank pickle juice first day and second day I ate a salad with a lot of salt. But they are both hard to drink and eat.

Do you think can sodium intake really affect the hunger?
Do you have an easy way to boost sodium intake?

Thanks, Marry Christmass!

yes, much of the time you think you are craving calories, you are really craving sodium. It’s not a bad idea to try to calculate your salt loss from sweat so you can see if you are a particularly salty sweater. It’s not just a good idea for managing your appetite, it’s critical for staying hydrated during rides. Salt plays a big role in helping you retain water, keeping you more hydrated and keeping your blood from thickening up like gravy, which has a big impact on how much oxygen you can transport in the same amount of time. I used to add sodium citrate to my sports drinks at around 1000mg an hour depending on intensity. When I used the gatorade sweat patch to test my sweat rate, it gave me a range of between 800mg and 1300mg per hour, so I still feel good about the 1000mg. However, I’m using LMNT at the moment because it tastes good.

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I had the exact same problem as OP (was also getting super light headed after workouts), LMNT tea was my solution. Solved all the issues.

Salt your food more?

…also snacking on crisps/chips. Good excuse!

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I think it’s no wonder that if a bag of chips is in the house, it goes down quick. The body craves what it needs.

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If you’re not already, use kosher salt, it’s much more palatable than iodized salt.

Generally I train evening and there is only one meal between bed. If I dont enough consume in this meal, I craving a lot during night and morning. But putting all of required salt in only one meal, makes taste suck.

You could try salt tablets, or adding sodium citrate to your drinks while on the trainer. Sodium citrate has a much milder flavor than table salt.

Do you put salt into your drinks bottles?

Thanks for mentioning this. I didn’t know their were any non-clinical tests available.

I know that I am at the high end of both sweating and salting, and have adjusted my salt intake, but I may pick some of these up and see how it compares.