Hydration Needs for Exercising

Are you staying hydrated enough? The average person needs to consume 8-12 eight ounce glasses of water per day.

What happens if you don't get enough water?

• Your brain won’t work properly – you’ll be groggy, slow, and feel out of it
• You’ll lose muscle tone
• Your kidneys won’t be able to function; toxins and wastes will back up in your body, making you feel generally crummy
• You’ll have trouble regulating your body temperature; you make feel overheated, or you may feel chronically cold and unable to get warm.
• You’ll get constipated
• Fats stored in your body won’t get used up or metabolized
• You’ll think you’re hungry all the time, and so you’ll be likely to eat more
• Your skin will get dry, itchy, and saggy

Working hard on the ergs in a stuffy basement room can produce a lot of sweat, which means that you are losing a lot of water while exercising. Get in the routine of carrying a water bottle in the afternoons before practice. Make sure that you consume at least 16 oz. (half a Nalgene bottle or 2 cups) of water about two hours before practice.

Use breaks between pieces to get a drink from the water fountain or bring your own water bottle. This does not mean that you need to drink so much that water sloshes around in your stomach, but rather than you are drinking enough that you don't feel parched after practice. By the time you start to feel thirsty, your body has already starting experiencing dehydration. Also, remember to replentish fluids 5-15 minutes after you exercise. Remember to have at least one glass of water (if not more) at dinner!

Drinks with caffeine do not count toward your water requirement. They actually cause you to lose water by increasing your urine output. You may need to drink more water to counterbalance drinks such as coffee, tea, or soda. Also, you will not get bloated from drinking a lot of water, because your body will only retain the amount of water you need.