August 17, 2016, by Lindsay Hall
Staying hydrated for sport in the heat
With temperatures in Rio in the high twenties and humidity levels of 83%, staying hydrated for sport is a priority for all the athletes out there. Sue Dunbar and John Burgess from our sport and fitness team talk about the importance of staying hydrated, especially when the sun is shining and things hot up.
Along with higher sweat levels caused by playing sport in high heat and humidity, our lean muscles – which contain more than 75% water – become more easily fatigued leading to an adverse impact on performance. So, maintaining water/fluid intake is crucial to keep yourself well hydrated and performing at your best.
If you’re taking part in more intense exercise, or for a longer period of time, then it’s important to replace the lost minerals – electrolytes – which you can get with supplements in addition to water – or some brands of water have these included!
An easy and quick way to check for hydration levels is to pinch the skin on the back of your hand for a few seconds between your thumb and forefinger – if your skin takes a while to return to normal you may be dehydrated. Dizziness is also a sign of dehydration so if you start to feel lightheaded during exercise take a break and grab a drink.
The daily recommended water intake for an adult is 2 litres, but if you’re playing sport or know you’re going to be outside and keeping active for the day then you should aim to drink more.
Remember – drink plenty and stay healthy!
The fitness team will be based in the new David Ross Sports Village, opening this Autumn, and are on hand offering personal fitness programmes and training sessions across our 200-station fitness suite.
It’s nice to see some sports nutrition information that doesn’t shamelessly plug man-made supplements! I strongly believe in keeping things natural, and things don’t come much more natural than water. Also if you’ve been involved in intense physical activity it’s a good idea to supplement your diet with some of the salt that you lose whenever you sweat.