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Electrolytes Help. I forgot my Nuun

TexasIndia

Still Walking
Donating Member
Time of past OR future Camino
Oct 2022
Oct 2023
I'm starting tomorrow in Llanes on the Camino del Norte/Primitivo. My legs were cramping last night and I realized I had forgotten my Nuun tablets.
Any suggestions for alternative electrolytes. I have a hard time with very sweet drinks like Gatorade. Is there something readily available at a bar or a grocery?
 
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Any farmacia will sell electrolytes.
Though they may be more of the Diarrhea rehydration type than sports type.
Of course there is the local version of Gatorade, Aquarius that all bars and stores carry.
I see it's made by Coca Cola!

It also has a sugar free (Sin azúcar) version. I always use that.
 
Agreed the sugar free Aquarius is great and very freely available in all the main supermarkets. Two flavours I think, orange and lemon. A big bottle (1.5lt) is about €1.80. It will clearly state ‘sin azucar’ at the top (neck) of the bottle.
 
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Some foods that can help prevent muscle cramps are bananas, nuts and leafy green vegetables.

As for relieving muscle cramps, a lot of people have been able to get almost immediate relief with either yellow mustard or pickle juice. Yeah, crazy but I've seen it work with Peg. She keeps packets of mustard in her daypack.

We have a thread on the topic.
 
I have had in the past leg cramps so bad it has thrown me out of bed, once almost out a 6th floor window in Quito. My wife who has experience working in an old age home says that the nurses would give salt to such sufferers and that would immediately resolve the problem. So for the past 8 years I have a small dish of kosher salt next to the bed and I have avoided this ever since.
I do take secondary precautions, no top bunks! I had this happen once in a hostel and it was not an experience I'd ever want to relive
 
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This may sound crazy, but if you have Amazon Prime, use it to ship what you need to a place where you are going to be. Check ahead and makes sure they will accept it. But, if the will, it's a quick and easy way to get things where you want them to be. I've used that to get something to me and it's working a few times without a hitch. You just have to make sure that you are ordering it on a European Amazon site.
 
Another vote for Aquarius. I cannot stand Gatorade it's b awful but Aquarius is absolutely wonderful after or during a day's walk. Full sugar is still way less sweet than even a Sprite let alone Gatorade. I seldom actually drink any type of soda but this seems to really hit the spot plus deals with the issue of cramping ie - none!
 
Other than Aquarius, my best suggestion is to go to a farmacia. Either show the empty tube for your Nuun tablets, or show the website to the farmacist. They likely have similar electrolyte tablets behind the counter.

BTW - I have used Aquarius in cases of traveler's diarrhea, all over Europe for several decades. It works but has less hydration salts in it than a specific product made for medical grade rehydration. Then again, I also carry loperamide (Immodium) tablets with me too.

But for simple rehydration tablet or powder, I recommend trying a farmacia for something similar to Nuun.

Hope this helps.

Tom
 
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When you can't find electrolytes, pickle juice works.
So does plain old mustard.
I always carry mustard packets just in case.
 
Thanks all. If I stay on top of it, I can usually be ok. I'm going to drink an Aquarius daily. Since it's going to cool down a bit hopefully I'll be ok. If not I'll go to the farmacia. I'm going to see about Amazon. I'll be in Oviedo 2 days.
 
Eat fresh tomatoes. The sodium in them is brilliant at stopping cramp. I have consumed cherry tomatoes for years whilst competing in long distance walking and trail races.
 
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Yes to Aquarius! Also, while you're still in a town, see if you can get Calcium/Magnesium tablets at a pharmacy. I walked all around Leon and finally found a tiny vitamin store. And drink more water!
 
Jim Bispham said:
Eat fresh tomatoes. The sodium in them is brilliant at stopping cramp. I have consumed cherry tomatoes for years whilst competing in long distance walking and trail races.
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Thanks. I'm a marathon runner and swear by Nuun. I'll try tomatoes, Aquarius and other things mentioned here!
 
Incidentally ,@TexasIndia , bananas and salted nuts eg cashews generally speaking are more than sufficient to assist me through a hard, hot day on a job site - I don't see why the camino would be any different. They're actually recommended on various sites is a natural electrolyte source.
I just added the aquarius to my personal Camino list because it was suggested elsewhere and after a particularly long hot day it was great!
 
Camino Way markers in Bronze
The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
Aquaris
 
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::::chuckle::: Well, * Regular* beer has electrolytes and carbs, so you may be OK....
 
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