Running Stronger: How Salt Tablets Transformed My Performance

Salt tablets have transformed my endurance running. I’ve gone from sickness, feeling dizzy and headaches to a much more comfortable running experience. I now have a high degree of confidence I’ll finish an event.

I’m a runner at heart, having been regularly running for the last 15 years or more. In that time I’ve completed hundreds of half marathons, 6 marathons, 4 ultras and plenty of long distance runs in between. At the risk of a less than humble brag, I can complete a half marathon with minimal prep. However steady I run though, I’ve always struggled when going over 15 miles or two hours. 

Road marathons I’ve found the hardest. The constant intensity for a long period of time, the repeated motions and regular pounding take its toll. I’ve always preferred trail races where the terrain is more varied, the intensity more variable and the opportunities for taking on nutrition more accessible. I’m quite happy walking up a steep hill munching on flapjack but you don’t get that option on the road. 

At about the two hour mark for a road marathon I always begin to implode. I’d start getting a headache and feeling dizzy. Sickness would start to creep in and I’d get muscle cramps. I’d feel dehydrated even in cooler conditions like the Midnight Sun Marathon in Norway. Yes summer, but in the Arctic Circle! Water would go in, but come back up rather unpleasantly. 

For years I battled this, always suffering similar symptoms. I tried running slower, faster and mixing up how much water I took on. Nothing really made a difference. I never failed to complete an event, but when you spend upwards of 50% of your time completing the last 20% of a race, being overtaken by half the field it’s a pretty painful experience. On occasion I recovered pretty quickly once I stopped exerting myself. Other times I was too ill to drive even hours after finishing the event. 

After each event I’d try and understand where it all went wrong. After a while I found research about salt deficiency in runners. My diet isn’t that of an elite runner, I expect my salt intake is pretty average for the population. I’ll eat my fair share of crisps, snacks and salty foods, but I won’t regularly add salt to my cooking. I didn’t however consume much salt during races. 

I’d experimented with energy gels and whilst they really worked for me in many respects they weren’t saving me from my typical long distance fate. 

After a while I stumbled across salt tablets. These felt a little serious for me and also dangerous. We’ve all been conditioned to fear high salt intakes after all. That said all the symptoms I had were consistent with the research papers I’d read and I knew I was a pretty heavy sweater. So I did a bit of research for a relatively inexpensive, easy to digest salt tablet option. 

Initially I punted for the Precision Hydration Electrolyte Capsules. Each tablet contains 250mg Sodium, 125mg Potassium, 50mg Calcium and 25mg Magnesium. Tablets come in a standard blister pack and are designed to be swallowed, taken with water. If you’re comfortable taking medicine in tablet form, this feels no different. For some of my trail races I started taking one of these before the race, then taking a couple with me to take every 60-90 minutes with water that I was carrying. This seemed to make a world of difference however I appreciate being able to down a tablet during a race isn’t going to work in all situations.

I also started experimenting with SaltStick Electrolyte FastChews. Coming in a variety of flavours, the lemon and lime worked for me – these tablets are much smaller and are designed to be chewed. Each contains 50mg Sodium, 15mg Potassium and 3mg Magnesium – so different ratios but similar to the Precision Hydration tablets. The beauty of these is that you can take one with a bit of chewing and don’t have to follow it with water, thus it can be easier to take these on the move. The smaller dose also means I felt more comfortable taking them ahead of feeling any salt deprivation symptoms. 

I’ll take a Precision Hydration tablet 60 minutes before the race and a couple of FastChews just before the start. For anything less than a half marathon this usually gets me through. For longer distances I’ll take an additional Precision Hydration tablet every 60-90 minutes and a FastChew after any particularly sweaty or intense sections of the course, or periodically if I feel any symptoms setting in. 

I combine the salt tablets with energy gels and solid food including salted snacks if I’m doing a long distance with varying intensity. 

Salt loss during running is a very personal thing and there are risks involved with taking on too much salt. Studies show an average running will need approximately 300-600mg of salt per hour of exercise. Taking too much salt is reported to be just as bad as too little, so I’d recommend being careful with the dose and sticking to the recommendations given by the manufacturers. If you are mixing products, start slow and understand what works for you.

I was far less worried when I considered just how much salt was in some of the food I might eat day to day. There is almost 700mg of salt in a single slice of Pepperoni Pizza from a well known UK take away. Sodium makes up approximately 390mg of a gram of salt, so a single slice of pizza contains approximately the same amount of sodium as a Precision hydration tablet. Whilst pizza might not be your go to food mid race, I expect we’d all consider a few slices fair fuel for the event. With that in mind, I’m not worried about increasing my salt intake too much.

Salt tablets have transformed my performance, and my understanding of the impact of salt levels when exercising has increased immeasurably. Whilst I’m sure a little more research could improve my post race routine, the science seems to support my current approach of polishing off a family sized bag of salted crisps before the journey home, and I don’t plan on changing that anytime soon!