How To Prevent A Stitch; How Long Before a Run Should I Drink Water?

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MiriamVP

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Unfortunately, I'm an individual who needs to go to the bathroom to pee very regularly. As a result, 1 to 2 hours before I go to bed I cannot drink water, otherwise I spend most of my night waking up going to the toilet; a broken sleep.
As a result, I wake up lightly dehydrated. Unfortunately because I work 7 days a week, my schedule only allows me to run at particular times of the day. In the morning, because of my dehydration, I must drink water, usually an hour before a run, sometimes even 2 hours! However, I STILL get a stitch which highly effects the intensity and times of my run.

How can I prevent or 'cure' the dreaded stitch?
 
Stitch is nothing to do with water levels. It is the build up of lactic acid meaning you are working above the level you can maintain fuelled totally aerobically. The way to avoid this is to slow down slightly to a level you can maintain aerobically. To increase this you can do more static state cardio at gradually increasing pace, but it will improve faster if you throw in some intervals training as well.
 
Well, it can be water related, since dehydration is going to affect your ability to clear lactate as well as the contraction/relaxation of muscles. Stitches are usually a cramp of either your oblique muscles or your diaphragm. (Yes, the diaphragm can cramp.)

Slamming back a lot of water at once can cause stitches itself, since you're just filling the stomach without a lot of it actually getting into your system and hydrating the body. Instead, just casually sip on some water all day, every day. This will maintain constant hydration, even if you do need to stop drinking a couple hours before sleep.

Another thing to help with stitches during running is a breathing technique. Take a few deep breaths and fill your lungs to max capacity, then on the exhale, push out every ounce that your physically can. Taking the lungs to the limit on both ends is a stretch for the diaphragm and can provide instant relief to a stitch.
 
The breathing stuff is similar to what I do before a run instinctively. My bodies way of saying this is your weakness get it ready.
 
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