Ultra-FIT magazine

Your body is made up of between 65 to 75 percent water so a ten stone (140 pound/64 kilogram) person’s body contains around 42 to 48 litres of water! It’s no wonder then that virtually every nutritional expert places a high value on hydration, rehydration and avoiding dehydration.

Water is a number of functions in your body including:

• Temperature regulation through sweating
• Movement of chemicals around your body
• Medium for chemical reactions
• Lubrication of digestive tract
• Elimination of waste materials and toxins
• Integral part of all muscles
• Provides a carrier medium for blood cells – known as plasma

 

Water is the most essential part of your diet. You can live for quite a long time without food as even the leanest person has a significant supply of body fat but, as we cannot store much water and it is essential for virtually every reaction that occurs in your body, you won’t live more than a few days without water to drink.

Staying Hydrated
As it is water your body needs, it is water you should drink but there are numerous opinions about how much water you need. The most common hydration recommendation is six to eight tall glasses of water a day; the equivalent of around two litres. Interestingly, this figure has absolutely no scientific basis and is not the result of any studies, medical journals or statistical research. It’s simply a figure that was proposed back in 1945 by the American Nutrition and Food Board that was adopted by just about everyone thereafter. That is not to say that these figures are wrong but only that two litres is an arbitrary number based on one organization’s opinion as opposed to scientific fact.

Rather than focus on the amount that your body MAY need, it is better to focus on what your body actually DOES need. The best determinant of your water needs are your thirst and your urine colour and output.

Thirst
Thirst should be  our best hydration indicator. Our caveman ancestors’ probably only used thirst to govern their water drinking habits. If you were thirsty, you needed to drink. Simple! The problem now is that,  because modern man often slakes his thirst with sweetened, calorie dense beverages, thirst and hunger signals can become confused. In other words, you might feel hungry but, in reality, you are actually thirsty but your brain gets the signals all turned around! This was not a problem for our non-sugary drinking ancestors. Subsequently, thirst has become a less accurate indicator of hydration. Because of this lack of thirst sensitivity, it is better to drink enough water to avoid thirst in the first place.

Urine Colour and Output
Other than your first urination of the day, most experts agree that your urine should be relatively clear, fairly copious and also odourless. Dark, smelly and infrequent urination can be a sign of dehydration and the less than rosy odour suggests a build up of undiluted toxins and waste-products. 

By avoiding thirst and making sure most of your urinations are a light straw-like colour and neutral smelling, you can be confident that your body as all the water it needs to maintain healthy metabolic and thermoregulatory functions.

Dehydration
Mild dehydration is common. A hard workout, too much coffee or alcohol, too little water or hot weather can all result in less than optimal water levels in your body. This is not a serious problem if this is a short term or infrequent occurrence but regular and/or long term dehydration can cause numerous performance and medical related problems.

Signs of Dehydration – in approximate order of onset and severity

• Dry mouth (sometimes referred to as “cotton mouth”)
• Reduced urine output
• Dark, odious urine
• Headache
• Muscle cramps
• Fatigue
• Cessation of sweating
• Hot, dry skin
• Elevated heart rate
• Confusion
• Elevated core temperature
• Heart palpitations
• Unconsciousness
• Kidney failure
• Coma
• Death

Too Much of a Good Thing?
While water is essential for life, too much water can actually be harmful to your health. Although very rare, some people have suffered from a condition called hyponatraemia, also known as water intoxication. This condition can manifest if you drink very large volumes of water, for example during a long distance running event where you consume significantly more water than you are losing by over taking on water at each and every feed station. This results in a dangerous dilution of essential minerals, collectively called electrolytes; specifically sodium. Sodium is essential for muscle contractions, regulating inter and extracellular fluid levels and pressure as well as controlling heart rate and rhythm. A significant enough sodium dilution can even prove to be fatal. Needless to say, this is a very rare occurrence and is usually the result of an underlying medical condition combined with an extreme excess in water or sports drink consumption.

Sports Drinks
No discussion of hydration would be complete without mentioning sports drinks. With so many on the market and so much advertorial information telling you what drink you should consume when, it can be very hard to choose a sports drink that is ideally suited to your needs.

The first question to ask yourself is, however,  do you really need a sports drink? If you are exercising for 60 minutes or less, are exercising for weight loss and have eaten properly in the hours leading up to your workout, I would suggest that plain water is more suited to your purposes. If, on the other hand, you are not eaten properly before training, are going to be working for 60 minutes or more and are not trying to burn fat during your workout, a sports drink is an acceptable way to stay hydrated. There are three main types of sports drinks:

• Hypotonic
  With a very low amount of carbohydrate, a hypotonic drink is mostly about hydration and offers very little in the way of fuel. That being said, ingesting carbohydrates can suppress fat burning so water is the better choice if that is your exercise goal
• Isotonic
  Containing around 6 grams of carbohydrate per 100 millilitres of water, isotonic drinks are the most common sports drinks. Usually engineered to provide a mix of slow, medium and fast acting sugars for energy plus essential electrolytes, an isotonic drink provides fuel and hydrating fluids in equal measure. Isotonic drinks are ideal for long workouts where a drop in blood glucose or muscle glycogen levels would result in decreased performance. However, the carbohydrate content and extra calories in these types of products would negate most of the benefits of a fat-burning workout.
• Hypertonic
  Ten plus grams of sugar per 100 millilitres of water means that hypertonic drinks are more food than fluid. The high level of sugar may actually interfere with water absorption so these drinks are not ideal for helping you stay well-hydrated. If you chose to use a hypertonic drink, you should also consume plenty of plain water to make sure that you rehydrate as well as refuel.

The bottom line is that your body needs copious amounts of water to function properly and while soft drinks, coffee, tea, alcoholic beverages, fruits and vegetables can all contribute to your daily fluid intake, it is water that your body needs. Avoid getting thirsty, drink as much as you need to keep your urinations frequent and mostly clear, drink plain water during most types of exercise and use sports drinks wisely and you’ll be well on your way to avoiding dehydration.

 

When it comes to sports drinks, there are a huge number of different products on the market to choose from, each one promising to increase your performance, fight off fatigue or help you recover from training faster. In this article we’ll explore the main types of drinks available and explain which ones are best suited to your training and competition goals…One thing is for sure – we’ve come a long way since I used to drink flat coke during triathlons!

 

 

Water

For many exercisers, water is probably the sports drink of choice and with good reason – it’s exactly what the body is using lots of while you exercise. If your workouts are less than 60 minutes in duration, you are well fed having had a suitable pre-training meal and you don’t feel you need any extra energy to fuel your workout then water is a fine choice as a sports drink. As a general rule of thumb, consume 250ml per 15 minutes of exercise to replace fluids as you are losing them. Drink more if you begin to get thirsty. Water has the advantage of being very cheap or even free and containing no calories.

Hypotonic drinks

This variety of sports drink contains a small amount of carbohydrate in the form of sugar which can provide energy for exercise. Hypotonic drinks contain around 2g per 100ml which is just enough to give you a small lift but is insufficient to fuel a long or hard workout. This type of sports drink is best suited to workouts of an hour or less where fluid replacement is more important than refuelling. Hypotonic drinks are absorbed well and are therefore ideal for countering dehydration. They will often contain chemicals called electrolytes which are the minerals lost when we sweat such as potassium and sodium and may reduce cramping.

Isotonic drinks

Containing more sugar than hypotonic drinks (around 6g per 100ml) isotonic drinks bridge the gap between fluid and fuel. These drinks are ideally suited to longer workouts or matches where carbohydrate and fluid replacement are necessary to avoid a drop off in performance. Because isotonic drinks provide energy they may not be ideal for exercisers who are trying to manage their weight but for sports people they may stave off fatigue in the latter stages of training or competition. To make your own isotonic drink, just mix 500ml of unsweetened fruit juice with 500ml of water or, alternatively just buy one of the many isotonic drinks available e.g. Gatorade, PowerAde or Lucozade.

Hypertonic drinks

Containing 10g of carbohydrate per 100ml, hypertonic drinks are excellent for refuelling after exercise but the presence of so much carbohydrate can mean that water absorption is delayed. Hypertonic drinks can be thought of more as food than fluid and are best used after training or alternated with water during longer events. Hypertonic drinks are also great as a convenient pre-training snack if eating solid food isn‘t possible e.g. if training early in the morning. Pure unsweetened fruit juice is a good example of a hypertonic drink but there are also commercial versions available.

Protein drinks

Generally considered the reserve of bodybuilders and weight trainers, protein drinks have changed a great deal over the last 20 years. Originally, protein drinks were made from dried eggs which were not very pleasant tasting or very easily digestible. Soya protein was also popular and later protein shakes based on milk where in vogue. More recently protein drinks derived from dairy whey have become popular and seem to be the best in terms of bioavailability and digestibility. Protein drinks are a convenient way of getting extra amino acids (the body’s building blocks) into the diet without having to spend all day cooking and eating meat. They offer portability and come in a variety of flavours from savoury to sweet to suit most people’s tastes. Not all products are created equal though and as whey proteins can be damaged by excessive heating it’s best to look for ones that have been cold processed. If you feel you need more protein in your diet (you should be aiming for around 1g per lb of bodyweight) a protein supplement may be useful to you but generally, real food is a better choice and remember that protein supplementation doesn’t automatically equal larger muscles!

Protein/carbohydrate drinks

Usually containing a 1:2 ratio of protein and carbohydrates, this type of sports drink can be thought of as a meal replacement making it ideal for athletes on the move. Training hard and often requires frequent feeding and it’s not always convenient to chow down on a normal meal! Often referred to as MRPs (meal replacement products) protein/carbohydrate drinks offer a portable and instant alternative to carrying large amounts of food with you wherever you go. Athletes who are underweight and find it difficult to eat enough food often find that they can consume additional calories easily by using MRPs but this is a double edged sword as those who are interested in losing a few pounds may end up consuming more calories that they need as their MRP may not fill them up very much although it contains plenty of calories.

Creatine drinks

Creatine is one of the few sports supplement products that has stood the test of time and been tested successfully numerous times. Users of creatine often report that they recover faster from workouts, feel stronger during training and competition and gain muscle mass faster than usual when using this product. Creatine drinks often include carbohydrates which enhance its absorption and can be very useful for anyone involved in sports that utilise the anaerobic energy pathways such as field sports. However, not everyone gets noticeable benefits from creatine supplementation but because of the potential benefits – both anecdotal and empirical – it’s worth trying at least once. To get the most from creatine supplementation, it’s important to follow the manufacturer’s instructions stay “on” for 6-8 weeks to give the product time to work. If after that period you notice no changes in performance then chances are that creatine is not for you.

So, 7 different sports drinks that may be of benefit to you which, with the exception of water, should be considered as “add ons” to a good healthy diet. No sports drink will ever be able to replace a healthy diet but may add to it and could possibly provide you with an edge in both training and competition.

Water is a calorie free fluid that is essential for life. You can live quite a long time without food (depending on the size of your body fat stores) but only a day or so without water. Water makes up around 70 percent of your total body mass and to stop you getting dangerously dehydrated, your body uses thirst to tell you when to drink.

How your body uses water
Water acts as a suspension medium for the chemicals in your body. Without water, these chemicals would have no way to mix together or move around your body. For example, plasma is the suspension medium for your various blood cells. No water? No way to circulate oxygen carrying red blood cells, infection fighting white blood cells or clotting platelets.

Your body also uses water as a lubricant. Your joints, skin, eyes and digestive system function smoothly because of the presence of water. Like a car with no oil, your body would soon cease to function smoothly without water.

Water is also used to help detoxify your organs, Water is flushed though your digestive system and kidneys so that toxins can be eliminated via your urine. Have you ever noticed how much more smelly and dark your urine is when you are dehydrated? That’s the increased concentration of toxins you can smell. Staying well hydrated means that you are better able to flush these potentially harmful metabolic remnants out of your system.

Your body also uses water got temperature control. When you get too warm your body produces sweat which subsequently evaporates and helps dissipate heat. You can lose a lot of water through sweating. Vigorous exhalations also result in water loss. The breath you can see on a cold day is in fact water vapor. It’s still there when you exhale in warm weather – you just can’t see it.

So how much water do I need?
Opinions vary but consensus suggests that you need around two liters of water per day plus a further half a liter per 30 minutes of exercise. Drinking more is not likely to cause you any harm as excesses will be eliminated.

Tea, coffee and juices as well as fruit and vegetables all contribute to your fluid intake as well but as it’s hard to estimate just how much water these sources provide, you should simply shoot got two liters of water per day as a minimum. If you are getting thirsty, your body is telling you that you need to take some more water on board. Ignoring your thirst can actually desensitize you to the message your brain is sending and although you might not feel thirsty, you may still be dehydrated. As a general rule, your urine output should be regular, copious and mostly clear and odor-free.

Sports Drinks
Sports drinks are designed to rehydrate you and also provide you with energy in the form of carbohydrates. Different sports drinks contain different amounts of carbohydrates and contents vary from 2 to 10 grams per 100 milliliters. Sports drinks are great for long and grueling matches or workouts but are merely a source of unwanted calories for most general exercisers. Some “light” sports drinks contain no carbohydrate but use artificial sweeteners, flavors and colors. These chemicals are often linked to health problems like ADD, anxiety and hyper-activity and are generally best avoided. In the majority of cases, regular exercisers are best served by drinking plenty of plain water. If you find you are running low on energy during a workout of 60 minutes or less, the fault lies with your diet and not your choice of sports drink.