Beat the summer heat with these hydration options

The summer heat can make hydrating on the run vital, but also tough. From small handheld bottles to large, quad-cartridge holsters, it can be tough to known what you need for which run. We’ve broken down the basic options with some ideas as to what they best serve.

Handhelds

Handheld bottles aren’t really clasped in your hand anymore, making them a lot more convenient than simply carrying your own, regular water bottle around with you. Most come with a small, light strap which more holds your hand to the bottle rather than vice versa. The bottles can range in size, but most come in small 150 ml – 300 ml sizes, convenient for carrying. They come in larger sized options also, but carrying about much more than 500 ml or so can tire your arms out quickly.

Most of these will come will a small pocket to stuff a key or a few dollars inside, a convenient feature when your shorts may not have zipper pockets.

For most runs, you won’t need much more water than a single small bottle. If you’re correctly hydrating between runs, anything shorter than a single hour shouldn’t require much, if any, re-hydration during the run. If you did need a bit more, picking up too handheld bottles is an option. Good luck opening doors easily.

Hydration Belts

A trusted option in this category is the Fuel Belt bottles found at most running stores around Canada.

For longer runs on some real hot days, you may need more than a single, small bottle. A belt will carry extra cargo and keep the weight closer to your body so sloshing liquid won’t throw you off balance. Options range from belts that hold a single, larger bottle, to belts which hold four or more smaller bottles.

A belt with two or more pockets has the benefit of offering you the opportunity to carry a few different types of hydration. You can keep an electrolyte mix in one and water in the other. A single, larger bottle can give you more pocket space on some models, another benefit to a belt-style. The belts offer much more room to carry small items on you while running. You likely don’t need a lot, but having the option to bring a few small items is a nice bonus.

Nathan, FuelBelt and The North Face all make great belt options.

Hydration Packs

The largest option, usually reserved to long trail runs lasting many hours, is the hydration pack. These backpack-style packs carry upwards of 2 L of water and also often offer plenty of space to carry a light rain shell or snacks you may need on the trail.

These are generally used for more than just hydration and the water bladder is a feature that is included with the pack. It holds the water close to your centre of mass, helping you stay balanced and keep everything tightly compact.

We’ve reviewed hydration packs before, and the most well-known name, Camelbak, is always a strong choice, but other companies, like outdoor bag manufacturer Osprey, also make great gear.