Hydration & Exercise
During hard exercise, your muscles can generate 20 times more heat than they do when you are at rest. This heat is dissipated through sweat that helps cool your body down. If you do not sweat your body can reach a dangerous temperature (around 106 degrees) that will start damaging and killing cells in your body. Replacing fluids from what you sweat is important to keep your body temperature regulated efficiently.
- For every pound (16 ounces) that you lose, you need to learn to drink 80-100% of that loss (13-16 ounces) while exercising. You have to train your gut to handle that amount of liquid to properly hydrate yourself
- Generally speaking, the athlete should drink 4 to 8 fluid ounces of water and sport drinks every 15 minutes
- Electrolyte replacement: Made up of sodium, chloride, magnesium and potassium
- Electrolytes regulate fluid balance, nerve conduction and muscle contractions
- Replenish by adding small amount of salt to food when needed, or by eating potassium rich foods (citrus fruits, bananas, orange juice, tomato juice) or drinking electrolyte fluids like Gatorade or Powerade
- If you are experiencing thirst, you are ALREADY dehydrated. You need to replenish your fluids before you are thirsty
- The best way to determine how much fluid you need to drink is to weigh yourself before and after workouts, naked, to get an idea of how many pounds/ounces you are losing. After a few times you get a general idea of what that particular workout will require you to drink
- Your urine color will also help you determine if you are hydrated enough. The lighter it is, the better you are hydrating; the darker the urine, the more you need fluids
- If you fail to drink enough, don't tough it out to finish your workout as you could become a victim of heat illness. Watch for these signs: muscle cramps, nausea, vomiting, headache, dizziness, confusion, disorientation, weakness, reduced performance, inability to concentrate, and irrational behavior
- Exercise hydration does not begin during exercise. You should be preparing throughout the entire day and day prior to a big competition by hydrating with sports drinks and other fluids
