Most athletes drink less fluid during exercise than they lose as sweat, that is, they become dehydrated. Severe dehydration can even be life threatening.
Even a small degree of dehydration can lead to diminished performance in sports. Why don't we drink enough during exercise to replace our body fluids? For one thing, drinking during exercise can be a bit awkward, and in some events drinks are not readily available. Moreover, as soon as the first sips of a beverage moisten our mouths, nerves in the mouth send signals to the brain to reduce our sense of thirst.
Also, large volumes of fluids in the stomach lead to discomfort, especially during running events. Finally, we may not drink enough simply because we don't like the taste of the available beverages.
Here are some ideas that can help you improve your fluid intake during exercise.
- Determine your typical "fluid shortfall" during exercise by measuring your body weight before and after practices and competitions with your normal fluid intake. (Measure your fluid intake, too). For each pound of weight you lose during the exercise period, your fluid shortfall is about 16 oz. For example, if you lose three pounds during a two-hour training run, you have sweated away 3 lb. x 16 = 48 oz. more of fluid than you have consumed.
- Your body can adapt to increased fluid intake, so during future training sessions, gradually increase your fluid intake-even when you don't feel thirsty-until you can replace at least 80% of your sweat losses during the exercise. In the example above, this means that you would need to increase your drinking during exercise by 0.80 x 48 oz. = 38.4 oz. (If you can replace your entire fluid shortfall, that's even better, but don't drink so much fluid that you gain weight during the exercise.)
- Use an alarm wristwatch or some other method to remind you when it's time to take a drink.
- Ask athletic trainers, teammates, or friends to have drinks available at appropriate places and times during training and competition.
- Experiment with different beverage containers to determine which one makes it easiest for you to drink while exercising. Some athletes may do better with a squeeze bottle, others with a wide-mouth bottle.
- Drink smaller volumes more frequently (every 15-20 min) to minimize stomach discomfort.
- Choose a beverage that tastes good and contains carbohydrate plus a small amount of sodium chloride. The carbohydrate can help improve performance, and the sodium is important to minimize dehydration and maintain body sodium balance.
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VOLUME 12 (2001)
NUMBER 1
SUPPLEMENT
Sports Science Exchange Roundtable 43
Reprinted with permission from the Gatorade Sports Science Institute.
The evaluation of any athlete, whether as a part of health evaluations prior to activity or as a diagnosis of an injury as the consequence of sports activities, is specific to that individual and the history and current state of the individual presented. Advice, diagnosis and treatment is individualized according to numerous factors, including patient health and age information, medical history and symptoms. All athletes should be cleared by a physician or other appropriate medical professional before engaging in physical activities and, after injury, diagnosis and treatment, for return to play.