Water. That thing our body is made majority with. With the temperature rising, it is important to stay hydrated. However, some times it isn’t enough. You drink plenty of water, but still feel like crap. What’s going on? Let’s take a look at why water isn’t the solution.
When we sweat, it isn’t just H2O that is coming out of our system. There’s ammonia, urea, sodium, sugar, potassium, chloride, and a bunch of other electrolytes. So water wouldn’t replenish the lost resources. If you sweat a lot and keep drinking water, what could happen is you dilute the sodium and in the bloodstream, resulting in hyponatremia. This can lead to you feeling like crap and nauseousness. “Man, I am feeling light-headed.” I cannot count how many times this has happened to my clients during our training session. I don’t recommend water at this point, but rather sports drinks.
Sports is a prime example of how water isn’t the solution to replenishing lost resources. What do they drink? Gatorade. Powerade. These athletes sweat so much that they need to replace the electrolytes. Otherwise, they risk cramping. I remember watching a NBA game on TV and the stadium they were playing in the A/C went out. However, the game continued, but the athletes were cramping up. The humidity and rise of the temperature led these athletes to sweat more and consequently to cramping.
Now, I am not comparing our performance to athletes, but when you are exercising in a hot environment and sweating a lot, sports drink is sometimes our preferred choice. So if you plan on going on a long hike on a hot day, take that Gatorade with you. Also, there’s low sugar options (in my opinion, you need a little sugar) to help you manage the sugar intake.
Ultimately, sports drinks is our preferred drink of choice when it comes down to a client sweating a lot and exercising in a hot environment. Hope you enjoyed this week’s blog. Stay HYDRATED and stay tuned for more next Wed……………………………Kei