Keeping hydrated

[hockeytim18 0]

Hey guys this past weekend I was having a big problem keeping hydrated. If I only drink water I don't feel a good amount of energy and if I just drink Powerade/Gatorade same thing goes. The best i've come to do is drink both of them. Is there anything you guys know of or use that will give kind of the best of both. I know it sounds dumb but just asking. And I do drink a bottle of water or 2 before the game also.

Thanks

[Storm 0]

I don't think water is your problem is keeping hydrated if you're drinking all those liquids.

Being well hydrated will not (edit: sp) eliminate fatigue.

Try looking at other facters such as stamina, rest, nutrition

..................I reread your post maybe you're drinking too much?

[A_Steeves12 0]

ok a bit off topic but the football players at my school told me that there coach tells them to drink 5liters of water a day. now to me that sounds rediculous. like isnt that much water bad for your kidneys?

[Storm 0]

That amount is spread out throughout the day. And it sounds about right.

You should drink half a glass every 15 minutes while exercising. Small amounts will keep you from getting that uncomfortable sloshing feeling, which often occurs when we get too thirsty and drink too much water at a time.

If your urine is deep yellow, you need to drink more water. If its clear you are fine.

[pantherfan 0]

ok a bit off topic but the football players at my school told me that there coach tells them to drink 5liters of water a day. now to me that sounds rediculous. like isnt that much water bad for your kidneys?

I think 2 litres is the minimum for the average person anyway.

[DamnLocust 0]

I find gatorade/powerade to be too sugary, and makes me thirsty. I use gatorade powder and use more water than is recommended. This way, I get the electrolytes, but not the syrupy taste that makes me drink too much.

[usahockey22 0]

5 liters per day would be good, which is about 1.3 gallons. For serious athletes, it is usually a good idea to get 1-1.5 gallons per day, or even closer to 2. Water is not bad for your kidneys...it is good for them. It flushes out your system. You can never really drink too much water, unless you are seriously drowning your body with it, combined with not eating/consuming foods or sodium, which can throw the natural balance out of whack. Generally, the more water, the better, assuming you have a proper diet.

[KYHockey3 0]

gatorade doesnt help keep me hydrated either, it makes me more thirsty.

i drink lots of water each day and try to drink lots before a game too

[BK 0]

1/3 Gatoraid

2/3 Water.

Put a little picklejuice in water (heard it while watching a BYU game a few weeks ago).

[technophile 0]

Note that drinking too much water is just as bad as drinking not enough. (The symptoms are even the same.)

What you should do: Weigh yourself before the game and after. If you weigh less after, you should be drinking that much more water. (i.e. if you weigh 2 lbs. less after the game, drink 2 lbs. worth more of water next game) If you weigh more after, drink that much less.

Generally water is fine; you're not going to be losing enough salt etc over the course of a game for it to matter. (Atheletes who exercise for really long periods of time, such as marathoners, need to make sure to keep their salt/electrolytes up or they can become overhydrated really easily.) Some people do prefer Gatorade etc, but I doubt it makes much of a perceptible difference for anyone who isn't a top (professional-level) athelete.

[technophile 0]

You can never really drink too much water

That's not true at all. In the short term (for instance, during a single marathon), drinking too much water will have the same effect as drinking not enough--wooziness, leading to actual delirium. It's called hyponatremia, and people have died from it.

Drinking something like Gatorade can help with this, although for really short periods (a single game/practice) it's rarely a problem. Salt tablets can help as well.

The only way to know how much you should be drinking is to test yourself, as I mentioned. Everyone is different. Drinking when thirsty is a reasonable guideline, but I would definitely suggest weighing yourself to make sure your fluid replacement is right.

[Smitty34 0]

I agree. It is possible to drink too much. Too much water will make you feel heavy for lack of a better word. Truth be told, you're going to get tired no matter what. If you eat a good pre-game meal that will help.

[chk hrd 164]

you need to hydrate well before you excersise, not an hour or two before. Your body needs to have ample time to absorb and distribute the water to your system. Try to start drinking water in moderate amounts the night or day before you exercise and continue it up up to a couple hours before you start, then limit the intake to smaller amounts so you don't get that full stomach, sloshy feeling. Make sure you eat correctly to maintain a good chemical balance. If you excersise/practise every day (or close to it) you should be drinking water every day. Also limit the crappy fluids that you drink, energy drinks, cafffinated drinks, sodas, will dehydrate you and/or make you feel bloated.

[Trooper 8]

gatorade doesnt help keep me hydrated either, it makes me more thirsty.

i drink lots of water each day and try to drink lots before a game too

Being thirsty and being dehydrated are not the same thing. Gatorade is designed to hydrate. There are also salts and electrolytes in it. It is supposed to make you thirsty so you keep drinking.

And you can drink too much water, but everybody should relax. The chances of doing this are so remote it's not even funny. Most people don't drink enough in normal life, much less when training. You should be constantly drinking, not only an hour or two before a game or practice.

[sc37 0]

Idk if any of you have tried the new Gatorade Rain. It's has a lighter flavor, less sugary to me as I do water down the normal Gatorade.

Have you tried an alternate sports drink? Gatorade has a lot of sucrose in it...some other drinks have different sugar in it like glucose, and fructose which might or might not be better.

[Sven 1]

like isnt that much water bad for your kidneys?

I drink almost 3-4 litres everyday. Without exercising. Nothing pad happened yet and the last time i watched some education-channel on TV, they said that there is no "too much water". That made me happy.

I dont eat that much but i drink very much. Its quite annoying that i have to go to the bathroom every 1-2 hrs. but thats ok with me.

[sc37 0]

like isnt that much water bad for your kidneys?

I drink almost 3-4 litres everyday. Without exercising. Nothing pad happened yet and the last time i watched some education-channel on TV, they said that there is no "too much water". That made me happy.

I dont eat that much but i drink very much. Its quite annoying that i have to go to the bathroom every 1-2 hrs. but thats ok with me.

Drinking that much is good especially getting rid of kidney stones...but yes, don't think much will happen if you don't exercise. Just think its when you are active and your body has too much going on to process everything and you wind up drowning yourself essentially.

[technophile 0]

Drinking that much is good especially getting rid of kidney stones...but yes, don't think much will happen if you don't exercise. Just think its when you are active and your body has too much going on to process everything and you wind up drowning yourself essentially.

The issue is that when you sweat, you're not just losing water, you're losing salt. If you're drinking lots and lots of water, you're just diluting the amount of salt in your body even further. Since salt is important for several bodily functions, washing all of the salt out of your body can cause severe problems.

Like I said, in general it's not an issue; mostly it's a potential problem for marathoners and others who keep up a high (sweating) activity level for hours upon end.

Weighing yourself before/after is the only really accurate way I know of to see if you're drinking too much or not enough.

[tbintexas 0]

I drink Propel and like them - can buy a big package at Sam's for cheap and probably Costco too. Not salty like Gatorade (but it is a Gatorade product). Have never seen any reviews or reports on it but I'm pretty sure the sodium content is a lot less...

[usahockey22 0]

You can never really drink too much water

That's not true at all. In the short term (for instance, during a single marathon), drinking too much water will have the same effect as drinking not enough--wooziness, leading to actual delirium. It's called hyponatremia, and people have died from it.

The issue is that when you sweat, you're not just losing water, you're losing salt. If you're drinking lots and lots of water, you're just diluting the amount of salt in your body even further. Since salt is important for several bodily functions, washing all of the salt out of your body can cause severe problems.

Yes, which is what I just said in my post. IT would be incredibly difficult to actually drink so much water at a time, or per day, to become ill, if you are an athlete, and someone who is eating a normal diet for an athlete. (Typically a lot of food, high in sodium). You would start to feel full or sick to the stomach simply from consuming so much fluid before you would be in danger from drinking too much. If you are thirsty, your body needs water. So yea, if you are malnourished and decide to drink 5 gallons in a day, then it could kill you.

Most people might practice hockey or engage in hard physical activity for up to 3 hours per day, at the most, but usually much less on average. No, you are not going to lose sodium from the body to make any difference on your performance in that amount of time if you are eating a regular/athletic diet. Probably 95% of the people in this country consume a very high sodium diet, and this can be regulated with consuming enough water. If you are an athlete you should be eating something at least every 4 hours anyway, so the danger of sodium levels dropping low enough to OD on water should be pretty much impossible.

Personally, I could drink 2 liters of water during a hockey game, and still be dehydrated and not having to urinate the rest of the night after playing, because I lose so much water weight when doing physical exercise, and I am generally always thirsty and drinking water. Some people are different, or aren't working as hard, and therefore need less replenishment...

[pops04xx 2]

http://www.eload.net/eHome.htm

Try this stuff.

It's like Gatorade X 10.

A little pricey though.

[usahockey22 0]

Premium orange juice can also be really good...it is mostly water, but has naturally occuring carbs/fruit sugars (better than added sucrose), a small amount of protein (which all energy drinks leave out), a lot of potassium (helps prevent cramps), and a lot of vitamin C (very healthy, and some studies have shown to increase athletic performance). It doesn't have sodium, but you could just have a nice big glass of orange juice prior to your game, along with a salty piece of toast, bagel, etc...then just drink water/gatorade/propel/OJ during the game. I think a really good drink for during a game would be slightly watered down orange juice, and maybe throw in a pinch of salt...it's much healthier, and probably better than gatorade, although good orange juice (not from concentrate) is usually a bit pricey.

[Chadd 916]

I used to drink water with a shot of lemon or lime juice. It was always fun to see someone try and sneak some of my water.

[BK 0]

Premium orange juice can also be really good...it is mostly water, but has naturally occuring carbs/fruit sugars (better than added sucrose), a small amount of protein (which all energy drinks leave out), a lot of potassium (helps prevent cramps), and a lot of vitamin C (very healthy, and some studies have shown to increase athletic performance). It doesn't have sodium, but you could just have a nice big glass of orange juice prior to your game, along with a salty piece of toast, bagel, etc...then just drink water/gatorade/propel/OJ during the game. I think a really good drink for during a game would be slightly watered down orange juice, and maybe throw in a pinch of salt...it's much healthier, and probably better than gatorade, although good orange juice (not from concentrate) is usually a bit pricey.

I did that and hated it.. I cant drink that much citric acid before a game.. I get really bad heartburn.

[usahockey22 0]

I did that and hated it.. I cant drink that much citric acid before a game.. I get really bad heartburn.

yea. sports drinks all have citric acid as well (in addition to artificial flavors, dyes, etc). Personally, I don't think I would like drinking OJ during a game, as I would get sick of it, but I like to drink a big glass beforehand for the stated benefits. During any game or exercise, I never crave anything besides large amounts of ice cold water.