Health and Wellbeing Advice
Water is Essential
February 23 2011 by Paul Pearce, STARplex Fitness Centre Manager,
SUMMER is here and lots of us
look forward to exercising
outdoors.
For newcomers beware
because this can cause heat
illness and dehydration leaving
even the most avid exerciser
feeling nauseous, dizzy and
disorientated.
A simple tip to prevent this
happening is to understand the
fundamentals of exercising in the
extreme conditions of an
Australian summer.
Water has many important
functions in the body including:
• Transportation of nutrients /
elimination of waste products.
• Lubricating joints and
tissues.
• Temperature regulation
through sweating.
• Facilitating digestion.
Secondly, adequate fluid intake
during exercise is essential for
comfort, performance and safety.
The longer and more intensely
you exercise, the more important
it is to drink the right kind of
fluids.
Specific recommendations are
difficult as there is wide variability
in individual sweat rates, losses
and hydration levels. If you sweat
a lot you are at greater risk of dehydration.
For endurance athletes,
exercising for hours means you
need to drink more frequently to
avoid dehydration.
To estimate adequate
hydration:
1. Check your urine. A large
amount of light colored, diluted
urine probablymeans you are
hydrated; dark coloured,
concentrated urine probably
means you are dehydrated.
2. Try to drink enough to
replenish weight lost during
exercise. Any weight gain could
mean you are drinking more than
you need.
Develop customised fluid
replacement programs that
prevent excessive dehydration.
Most athletes can use the
following guidelines as a starting
point, and modify their fluid
needs accordingly.
Before exercise, drink about
500mls an hour and 150ml every
15 minutes during exercise.
Consumption of sports drinks
high in calorific content, while
useful for athletes who are
exercising at a high intensity for 60
minutes or more, is for most of us,
more likely to result in weight gain.
Next month I will talk about how
and why you should exercise
outdoors.
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