This question of whether or not you should be drinking something during your workout is extremely important and comes about our way frequently. It is somewhat a “common-sense” problem, but those are always easy to mess up. Let’s not do that.
To give you a short answer right away here and now – yes, of course. You should drink water during your workouts. But, like it usually is, the answer is not that simple and it does require a bit of explanation. That’s why we have an entire article for it.
You can (and sometimes should) drink more than just water, some people need to hydrate differently than others, you shouldn’t drink any type of fluids, and the list goes on. We’ll cover all of the important topics so don’t worry, just sit back, relax, and let us do all the work for you.
Hydrating your body
The whole topic of hydrating your body is important to understand from a health or medical standpoint. In order to function properly, your body needs water every single day. Your entire body is comprised of about 60% water. Cool, right? Because you lose all of the water in your body during everyday activities (even just sitting at your desk and doing nothing) it makes perfect sense that you need to replenish those reserves.
The thing is, we do get a lot of it even when we’re not thinking about it. We get plenty of water through all different kinds of means, the main ones being when we eat, and obviously when we drink. But that isn’t enough if we push ourselves when we work out or when we have a seriously demanding physical task at our hands. We will inevitably lose more than what we’re taking in.
That’s when we might wanna implement our minds a little bit so as not to fall unconscious. Oh yeah, that is one of the possible side effects of extreme dehydration. And the whole “when you feel thirsty you’re already dehydrated” thing? All of it is true…
So, we’re not going through all the scary things that you might experience if you don’t get enough water. Let’s just see what you want to keep an eye out for throughout your day if you wanna keep your body fresh and hydrated.
- Drink fluids as often as you can. Keep a bottle of water close to you at all times.
- Drink whenever it comes to your mind and go for small sips over huge chugs.
- If you have some dizziness, fatigue, headache, or slightly elevated blood pressure then you might be dehydrated. Of course, if you experience these without any other symptoms or trauma, naturally.
- Remember, it’s way harder to be over-hydrated than to be dehydrated. We take those chances.
- Lastly, the color of your urine can be a guide as to whether or not your body has enough water. The darker the color the less hydrated you are.
Staying hydrated during workouts
When we workout is when we spend a lot more water than we otherwise do. More water expenditure calls for more water intake. Simple as that. Now, let’s get into some details.
There are a few things that you should be aware of when it comes to losing water. We all lose water at a different rate and in different amounts. The reasons behind why that is the case are abundant. It depends on the outside temperature, humidity, the intensity of your workout, your fitness level, the duration of the workout, what you had or didn’t have to eat that day, how you’re dressed, whether or not you sweat a lot, and more.
Regardless of whether or not you lose water quicker than others, everyone should be drinking water while they are having a workout. No matter if it’s only a 10-minute jog or a 45 cardio session. You need it. Even if you don’t feel thirsty.
Now, the people who might be interested in some additional types of fluids are those who like to extend their workouts in terms of duration. If your workout is longer than 50 minutes then you should consider adding a little extra something to your workout drinks.
Namely, when you sweat and lose water you will need some extra electrolytes. They are the only component you could ever have if a true energy drink ever existed. To be extra simple – you need salt. You just need to replenish your body with a little bit of salt if you’ve been dehydrated. Therefore, when you’re searching for an energy drink make sure it has as many electrolytes and as little sugar as possible.
There is no “real” need for energy drinks, or any other supplement out there in order to stay fresh in your mind and your body. Our body gets everything it really needs from nature.
Types of drinks
Water with a little bit of Himalayan salt will do the trick for anyone. We recommend you try that when you’re making your workout drink. You can also buy a commercial drink if you like those, but we do have a couple of suggestions if you’re gonna do that.
First off, as we’ve mentioned, lay off the sugar. You do not need sugars when you’re trying to rehydrate your body. It will leave you with the opposite effect since the sugars usually drain your body from H20. So Powerade, Gatorade, or any else, first check the back label and then decide whether or not it’s good for you. From a health standpoint, it isn’t necessary. But if you like it then go for it. Some people feel more motivated knowing that a nice drink is waiting for them and if you’re one of those people then you should do what feels right.
Also, you might wanna keep an eye out for added caffeine. Too much of it in your diet is no good therefore you might wanna skip that one too. Especially if you go heavy on the coffee or tea during your day.
Lastly, try to avoid juice, or other drinks of that kind if you’re on the court or in the gym. These are no good on our mission. You can enjoy these later in the day, but not before, during, or shortly after your workouts.
If you wanna keep your hydration game on point there are a couple of things more you can try. For example, you can make cucumber/lemon water. Get a cucumber and some lemons. Chop those up nicely and put them in a glass bottle filled with water. You can leave it overnight in the fridge and in the morning you’ve got yourself a nice, refreshing drink. Full of electrolytes and useful vitamins too.
In the end, to wrap it all up, you need to remember only a handful of information. Drink water frequently throughout the day, drink more than usual during your workout, and remember that not any type of drink will keep you hydrated. There you go.
Thank you all for reading!
Stay ALPHA.
