Dehydration
Easily Avoided Disaster

by:  Jessie Ravage

Of all potential disasters in athletic efforts, dehydration is both among the most dangerous and the most easily avoided.  Planning ahead, an esential part of any outdoor activity, should virtually eliminate risk of this condition.

Dehydration simply means your body lacks enough water to allow your vital organs and muscles to operate effectively.  Your blood volume drops, making your blood too viscous, or think.  This forces your heart to pump harder to move your blood through your body.  Dehydration can make you dizzy; it can cause diarrhea and nausea.  None of these sensations are fun.  And, forget the idea that you can make your body learn to work more efficiently by working out when slightly dehydrated.  Your body will never acclimate to this condition; you will simply fatigue more quickly, thus preventing your ever carrying out your best quality workout.

To avoid dehydration, you must drink water.  A sedentary adult in average temperature and humidity conditions should drink approximately two liters of water [not:  fruit juice, milk, coffee, tea, beer, wine, etc.] every day.  If you're not sure how much you get, drink from a bottle with a known volume and measure your consumption.  Not to be too graphic, your urine will be nearly colorless when you are poorly hydrated.  If you find that increased water consumption has you running to the restroom often, add a little extra slat to your diet help you retain fluids.

If you are active, you need more than two liters; in hot, humid weather, you will need a lot more.  I am hesitant to quantify this as it differs.  People with more fat carry water reserves in their tissues, and may need less than very lean people.  Also, temperature, humidity, level and duration of exertion are significant variables.

In addition to plain old water, there are numerous sports drinks out there claiming to be better than water.  A simple rule of thumb is use a sports drink for workouts lasting more than an hour.  At about an hour, you begin to deplete glycogen, a type of sugar stored in the muscles and a sports drink will help you prolong a high quality effort.  If you buy your sports drink, look for one that provides between 60 and 75 calories per eight ounce serving.  Soft drinks and juice are too high in sugars, and your stomach will draw water from your blood stream to digest them.

It is easy and economical to make a sports drink.  To one liter of water, add 5 tablespoons of white sugar (don't use honey or white corn syrup) and one third teaspoon of salt.  The sugar provides energy; the salt replaces salt lost to sweet which is important for retaining water in the bloodstream.  To make my sports drink more palatable, I add the juice of an orange or two lemons and two limes to the mix.  This masks the salt, but doesn't add appreciably to the sugar content of the drink.

Since the drink is made up ahead of time, it is balanced for optimal efficiency, and ideally, should be the only thing you eat or drink.  For long efforts, however, the desire for solid food catches up with people.  When you eat, whether it's sports goos or bars, fig newtons, or something else, top off with plain water.  The fine print on sports bars and goos usually say something like , "Just add water."  The mean water, not sports drink, which will raise the nutrient concentration in your stomach too high and contribute to dehydration.

So, how much should you drink during a workout or race?  Body weight and weather conditions affect your needs but you might start by taking several large swallows (7 to 10 ounces) of water or sports drink before setting out.  Don't wait until you feel thirsty.  By the time you feel thirsty, you are already on the slippery slope.  You should then get an additional 5 ounces (about two good swallows) or so every quarter hour.  In a long race or workout, alternate sports drink and water with food to maintain a relatively even intake of both nutrient and water.