As it is getting warmer outside, it is very important to make sure you are drinking enough water as it plays a big role in your health, fitness, weight loss and also your energy levels.
How water is important when it’s hot and how hydration can affect your health and exercise.
Being active and continuing to exercise all year round will always be a struggle with the different seasons and different temperatures if you workout or exercise outside. With spring here and summer looming, there are some important tips that can continue to help with you progress as it gets warmer and even HOT during the boot camp sessions. A few of the basic tips when you are working out or exercising outside would be to add sun screen, wear lighter clothes, and to bring a towel to help with the added sweat. If there one key tip that I would like everyone exercising outside in our boot camp, it would be to make sure you are drinking plenty of water and staying hydrated. Dehydration is what we are trying to stay away from during these next few months.
We will begin this article with some basic facts and research just so that you think some personal trainer or Fitness boot camp coach is making this stuff up.
It is important to know that your body relies on a certain level of water in your system for a variety of physiological processes, one of which is maintaining your normal body temperature. You bring fluids into your body through ingested water, other drinks and some foods. An hour of exercise can use up about a quart of your body’s water. If you don’t replenish this water loss, your body can become dehydrated. Exercising in the heat utilizes even more water than normal, partly due to the increased sweat rate you will experience in a hot environment. Dehydration during long-duration workouts also often results in sodium and electrolyte losses.
Water is not only essential for life but in your quest for losing body fat, building muscle, and keeping healthy, it is crucial. Water is crucial to the proper functioning of every major system in your body. We lose about a liter of water per day just through our daily activities. If you’re not getting enough water, your body will not metabolize fat or digest food as efficiently. Drinking enough water allows fat and calories to burn effectively, rid the body of toxins and waste efficiently, and improves metabolism.
Water is also important in controlling hunger. When your body does not have enough water or it is dehydrated, it will send a signal to your brain to eat. Watch out, because your body is really asking for water. This can be controlled if you’re drinking enough water. Become self-aware of your water needs and drink enough, throughout the day, before your body tells you that you need it.
Some benefits of water are that it has zero calories, it helps protect and lubricate your joints, and it helps head off wrinkles because water promotes elasticity in skin. Water also helps prevent kidney stones, helps cure hangover symptoms, and helps prevent urinary tract problems.
According to a Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine report, “The vast majority of healthy people adequately meet their daily hydration needs by letting thirst be their guide.”1 The report states that healthy adults do consume enough water from drinking fluids (about 80%) and eating food (about 20%) to maintain health and proper physiological function on a daily basis—an average of about 3.7 liters (125 oz.) for men and about 2.7 liters (90 oz.) daily for women. However, this statement may not be true for individuals with higher than average fluid and electrolyte needs.
Those daily needs or average per day are for the typical person. Not sure if you have seen the studies about how many people are actually moving or working out on a daily basis, but they are very low. So if you are working out, which is most likely a high percentage of you reading this, those daily needs are probably going to be higher. If you are active at the gym or park doing cardio, resistance training, strength training, boot camps, or have a personal trainer, more than likely, you are going to need to drink more water.
The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and the National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA) caution physically active people against “letting their thirst guide them.” After all, research shows that thirst—a physiological response to the stress on our bodies from fluid and sodium loss (via sweat, diarrhea or vomiting)—is NOT a good indicator of hydration status or the body’s fluid levels.
These groups recommend active adults drink before, during and after exercise and other active occasions (i.e., sports, physical work, recreation, etc.) to:
- Regulate their body temperatures.
- Replace fluids lost through sweat—preferably at a rate close or equal to sweat rate to minimize the potential for heat illness. (To determine adequacy of fluid intake, weigh individuals before and after exercise.)
- Stay properly hydrated without overdrinking
Another tip that should be pointed out is most studies suggest that if you are only exercising an hour a day, you only need to drink water. We don’t need to go the big marketing sports drinks and electrolyte drinks are doing to try to encourage people t we suggest not taking, but those drinks are really just for folks that are fitness enthusiasts and workout longer than an hour a day. Most people drink these high calorie drinks with ingredients like high fructose corn syrup and other unhealthy ingredients because they “taste good”. If taste is an issue, you may want to go with Advocare’s Rehdrate as an option. For those of you that are exercising for more than an hour, this may be a great option for you to use to help. We have helped many boot camp and personal training clients that were having a hard time with hydration with the Advocare Rehydrate.
What is Advocare Rehydrate Electrolyte Replacement Drink and how does it work?
Rehydrate Electrolyte Replacement Drink is a sports drink mix that provides efficient rehydration anytime, but especially before, during and after exercise. It has a low glycemic index for reduced insulin response and is isotonic, providing rapid gastric emptying and rapid rehydration. The formula contains a sequential carbohydrate profile for sustained energy. The addition of an essential trace mineral, chromium, aids in proper carbohydrate metabolism. Rehydrate Drink has a balanced 1:1 ratio of sodium and potassium to replenish these ions that are lost in sweat and urine. It supplies calcium and magnesium, vital to muscle physiology and energetics, benefiting both contraction and relaxation phases for reduced cramping and quicker recovery. The antioxidants in the formula help protect against exercise-induced free radical damage. Coenzymes and catalysts for cell energy production optimize the conversion of macronutrients into energy. L-glutamine helps buffer and process lactic acid produced through physical activity, resulting in reduced muscle cramping, and also serves as an energy source for mental function. L-arginine helps support muscle strength and recovery as well as optimizing cardiovascular blood flow.*
* These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.
Great Resources and Studies:
Comparative effects of selected non-caffeinated rehydration sports drinks on short-term performance following moderate dehydration. This compares Advocare Rehydrate with Gatorade. Click Here for Study and Results.
For more information about the Coppell Fitness program and getting started, go to https://CoppellFitness.com
If you live or work in Coppell, Valley Ranch, Irving, Lewisville, Las Colinas, Carrollton, Flower Mound, Grapevine, Addison, Corinth, Highland Village, Dallas, and Farmers Branch, the Coppell Group Personal Training is just minutes away from you. Get You In Shapes programs include the Get You In Shape Group Personal Training, 24 Day Challenge, sports specific training, weight loss programs, Corporate wellness plans, nutrition plans, core fitness training, strength training, toning and more. Clients include athletes (golf, basketball, tennis, football, track, baseball, baseball, volleyball, and softball) corporate executives, professionals, weekend warriors, cheerleaders, dancers, models, stay at home moms, and anyone looking for results.
Owner Brad Linder, has been featured in numerous newspapers and even as the fitness expert on the news 8 (ABC). Get You In Shape was also featured on The Doctors TV show as one of the top Fitness Companies in Texas. He continues to use the gifts that he has been given to help serve the needs others have when it come to being healthy, losing weight, sports, toning up, and overall fitness.
More information about Get You In Shape at www.getyouinshape.com
