RE: [RC] PLEASE discuss Potassium article...Roger are you outthere? - Terry Banister
I looked at that article as well, but since I have been doing fine without adding e-lytes, except powdered ones over feed on a hot 100-miler, I gave up trying to understand the article. However, Lew Hollander's mix (physicist, triathelete and endurance rider, and author of "Endurance Riding, From Beginning to Winning") is: 16 oz table salt 22 oz Morton Lite salt 1 oz Magnesium salts
"The table salt raises the sodium concentration. That is necessary because Lite Salt alone is too high in potassium, which can interfere with the magnesium absorption. You need a balance of sodium, potassium and magmesiom ions."
"The mix is given in the feed prior to the ride, and in a wormer syringe during the ride. One ounce of electrolyte mix is combined with about 2 oz of pancake syrup (unbuttered) for use. The pancake syrup is used instead of molasses, because it will flow at any temperature, and lasts forever."
Amount of Sodium ~ 18.9 grams Amount of Potassium ~ 8.5 grams Amlount of Magnesium ~ 0.71 grams
To: ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Date: Tue, 16 Dec 2008 20:30:29 -0500 Subject: [RC] PLEASE discuss Potassium article...Roger are you out there? From: rides2far@xxxxxxxx
Come on guys, I honestly think this is the most important thing that's come through this week and nobody even commented on it.
OK, here's what my totally unscientific mind saw...and I need some of you guys who understand this stuff to tell me if I'm in any way getting it.
The old Kerry Ridgeway mix for electrolytes is 2 part salt (Sodium Chloride) 2 part lite salt (Potassium Chloride) and 1 part calcium.
This study seems to think endurance horses have problems caused by a spike in Potassium so they did a study at a 50 mile endurance ride where half the horses were on electrolytes that did not have potassium and the other half did have it. Their completion rate was basically identical. They felt the mild conditions contributed to the lack of potassium not being a real benefit.
Now I'm thinking of past bloodwork I've heard of. Didn't Roger Rittenhouse have bloodwork run on one of his horses after pulling at Biltmore and decided he had to up the potassium in his mixture. I also am pretty sure another prominent rider told me that she'd found her horse had to have more potassium in his mixture than average. I've heard several suggest they had had to *up* it, but never eliminate it. Am I reading this study correctly?
Right now my most recent personal home made electrolyte recipe is 4 parts Morton Lite Salt Mixture (since it is approx 1/2 salt) and one part dicalcium phosphate. At the last ride we went to it was mild weather, but the top 2 vet score horses with a perfect 500 and a 480 were both using my electrolytes. For years I used 2 parts salt and 2 parts Morton Lite Salt thinking the lite salt was all Potassium Chloride, then when checking the real amounts of the ingredients for Josie's science fair project we realized the Morton's Lite salt was 1/2 and 1/2 so I started using 4 parts Lite salt, so I have effectively doubled the amount of Potassium Chloride in *my* electrolytes in the last couple of years.
Would somebody please correct me if I'm missing anything obvious in this study and what do you all think about it?
