Big Mistake To Drop Sodium!!!

I always thought hypertension was a direct result of not working your body. This goes a long way in confirming my thoughts. My BP has dropped a lot since I started my own road to recovery.

Good read. I'm at 15 g a day right now and rising.... Its all about the manipulation at the end... but there has to be an abundence ..

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Originally Posted by slin_shady1

Good read. I'm at 15 g a day right now and rising.... Its all about the manipulation at the end... but there has to be an abundence ..

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Wow your liquid intake must be through the roof too. I feel like i live in the bathroom at 5 litres a day already.

I don't add sodium, there is plenty of sodium in foods naturally that we don't need to go looking for it. That, is common knowledge. And we generally eat way too much salt, as most foods have it added to it to make them taste better even before we buy them in the store.

As for increasing water intake because you increase sodium... The kidneys are not designed to be diuressing 5 litres per day constantly. That is what is going to where out your nephrons. The ol' drink 8 large glasses of water a day is not even an official recomendation anymore. The recomendation is drink to thirst. And that is percisely what I do.

Bear in mind all the supplements we take also have lots of electroyltes added to them as well....

As I said before in bodybuilding there are many different ways to skin the cat. There are ways that are more healthy, and may give you greater longevity... i.e. not need a new set of kidneys for an extra few years lol... but that is the beauty of it.

There's been a fair bit in the news lately about how much salt is in processed foods. Canadian processed foods are usually much saltier than the same foods in other countries. Restaurant meals have heaps and heaps of the stuff.

What does this have to do with Abel's article? Well just that if you eat processed foods or eat at restaurant regularly you are getting lots and lots and lots of sodium -- another reason why preparing your own meals from scratch is worth it...you know how much salt you are getting.

This little quiz about the salt content in foods is kinda fun...hint...always pick the counterintuitive food: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/speci...rticle1184281/

Prisioner,, like you said,, there are a lot of different ways to skin a cat. Altering my sodium intake during the final couple of weeks before a show will have no long term negative side effects on my body, (the only reason I am playing with them right now, this far out, is that I am doing a trial run 2 weeks out from the show)

Thanks for the good info. I only eat whole food so it might be time to get some sodium back into my system

On a pre-contest diet it is natural to flush more water than normal. This is due to the low carb intake and obvious lower glycogen storage than normal. The body will flush more water as well as more quickly. This leads to an obvious mineral electrolyte leaching which cause an imbalance in the body. Increased mineral and sodium intake is thus preferred and necessary. Sodium is very commonly misunderstood and mistakenly restricted by BB while dieting. This can lead to many undesirable issues...ie low blood pressure (lack of vascularity- no pump) depleted and dehydrated muscle cells which increases catabolism, reduced strength and muscular contraction...sodium plays an essential role in this. Keeping fully hydrated while dieting prevents muscle loss and is not hard on the kidneys...you dont need to guzzle water like you are in the Sahara desert but 4-6 litres daily is quite normal and healthy depending of course on the size of the athlete. Along with water sodium should be increased as long as there are no hypertension issues etc. Any excess sodium will be excreted along with the water...as normal. Keeping sodium and water moderate during dieting also prevents water retention...ie increased aldosterone output will result if electrolytes in the blood are reduced. The idea is to work with the body not against it...makes things much easier.
P

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Originally Posted by Praetorian

On a pre-contest diet it is natural to flush more water than normal. This is due to the low carb intake and obvious lower glycogen storage than normal. The body will flush more water as well as more quickly. This leads to an obvious mineral electrolyte leaching which cause an imbalance in the body. Increased mineral and sodium intake is thus preferred and necessary. Sodium is very commonly misunderstood and mistakenly restricted by BB while dieting. This can lead to many undesirable issues...ie low blood pressure (lack of vascularity- no pump) depleted and dehydrated muscle cells which increases catabolism, reduced strength and muscular contraction...sodium plays an essential role in this. Keeping fully hydrated while dieting prevents muscle loss and is not hard on the kidneys...you dont need to guzzle water like you are in the Sahara desert but 4-6 litres daily is quite normal and healthy depending of course on the size of the athlete. Along with water sodium should be increased as long as there are no hypertension issues etc. Any excess sodium will be excreted along with the water...as normal. Keeping sodium and water moderate during dieting also prevents water retention...ie increased aldosterone output will result if electrolytes in the blood are reduced. The idea is to work with the body not against it...makes things much easier.
P

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Anybody try the new POWERAID ZERO product line??? two thumbs up!!!!

and yah... the whole RENIN - Angiotension I and II mechanism... is what I fear the most post contest... truthfully, my approach is less is best... just get as lean as I possibly can, drop a little diuretic or herbal to help pee out a little extra, and load up.... try not to mess overy with the kidneys as they tend to bite you in the ass hard afterwards lol.

Not really interested in taking Aldactone, as it is also an androgen receptor blocker, and nevermind the 'rebound' when coming off it :(.

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Originally Posted by Praetorian

On a pre-contest diet it is natural to flush more water than normal. This is due to the low carb intake and obvious lower glycogen storage than normal. The body will flush more water as well as more quickly. This leads to an obvious mineral electrolyte leaching which cause an imbalance in the body. Increased mineral and sodium intake is thus preferred and necessary. Sodium is very commonly misunderstood and mistakenly restricted by BB while dieting. This can lead to many undesirable issues...ie low blood pressure (lack of vascularity- no pump) depleted and dehydrated muscle cells which increases catabolism, reduced strength and muscular contraction...sodium plays an essential role in this. Keeping fully hydrated while dieting prevents muscle loss and is not hard on the kidneys...you dont need to guzzle water like you are in the Sahara desert but 4-6 litres daily is quite normal and healthy depending of course on the size of the athlete. Along with water sodium should be increased as long as there are no hypertension issues etc. Any excess sodium will be excreted along with the water...as normal. Keeping sodium and water moderate during dieting also prevents water retention...ie increased aldosterone output will result if electrolytes in the blood are reduced. The idea is to work with the body not against it...makes things much easier.
P

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Great explanation!