Nix users are actively and consistently logging workouts, but we’ve seen that the workout length varies drastically based on activity type and also varies somewhat based on gender. This article takes a deeper dive into how these differences manifest in cycling versus running workouts.
Athletes across the globe have been using the Nix Hydration Biosensor to quantify fluid and electrolyte losses during their workouts. In general, athletes report that they value the metrics gathered from their workouts, but the data from their longest workouts are most critical in their training preparations. Because of this, it's no surprise that on average we see both genders consistently log workouts of 2 hours or more. The typical workout duration for women averages 131 minutes, while men clock in 14% longer at 149 minutes.
Our dataset also reveals that 62% of female workouts are between 1 to 3 hours in duration while 58% of male workouts are in between 1 to 3 hours. According to the data, men are more likely to put in longer hours with 26% of workouts lasting longer than 3 hours.
Despite men logging longer workouts, differences in the overall duration of a workout is more pronounced when looking at the activity type chosen within the Nix app. This article looks at the differences between running and cycling only. 53% of all cycling workouts are between 2 and 6 hours in length; while 43% of running activities are between 1 to 2 hours long.
The average cycling session with Nix is 181 minutes, which is 51% longer than the average running workout at 120 minutes. There are a multitude of reasons to explain the discrepancy in time allotted to these activities, most notably being that cycling is lower impact than running, making it easier on the joints and enables athletes to workout longer.
On average, hourly fluid and electrolyte losses for athletes generally decline as the workout duration increases. This phenomenon is most often explained by shorter, more intense workouts with a higher RPE versus longer workouts which are generally less intense for a longer period of time. For example, according to the dataset, the average cyclist on a 6 hour ride needs ~1,270 mg of electrolytes per hour and ~27.4 oz of fluid per hour while a similar, but shorter, 1 hour ride would require ~160 mg more of electrolytes per hour. This is equivalent to a little over half a scoop of INFINIT Speed.
This analysis looks at all workouts regardless of time of day and weather conditions. We’ve seen that environmental conditions (or the Nix Index), terrain, location, body composition, and fitness level all contribute to an individual's sweat metrics which vary workout to workout. It’s important to ensure fluid and electrolyte needs are not neglected for shorter workouts.
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Data for this article was compiled based on gender, workout length and activity type (cycling and running) for workouts from August 2023 through Sept 24, 2024. This data range was selected to ensure all workouts included the respiratory model which was introduced in July 2023. Only workouts of at least 30 minutes in length are included within the dataset.