Hydration Recommendations for Athletes

Understanding and making efficacious recommendations in regard to recovery from training, like all things in the realm of human performance, requires that the professional knows the context of the situation. This, which can be frustrating for athletes and clientele, requires the practitioner to answer most questions regarding recovery methods with “It depends.”

Bishop, Jones, and Woods (2008) provide a categorization of recovery. They suggest that we should look at recovery in three different ways: immediate recovery between exertions, short-term recovery between repeats, or training recovery between workouts. As practitioners, this is a vital part of the context previously mentioned that we must understand when providing our clients and athletes with recommendations and practical strategies for recovery from exercise bouts. I will do my best with this writing to merge the evidence with my experience in private and college athletics to make practical recommendations regarding each category of recovery.

I believe it’s important to state that evidence supports proper hydration as the most important aspect when discussing all stages and categories of recovery from exercise or competition (Sawka et al., 2007; Sharp, 2013; Murray, 2013). This stands especially true for athletes who rely on a robust aerobic foundation for competition. The strategies implemented for proper hydration also deserve attention. There is evidence to suggest that hyper-hydration (drinking a lot of water in a short period of time prior to an exercise bout or competition) may not be beneficial due to its potential to dilute and lower plasma sodium before starting exercise and therefore increasing the risk of dilutional hyponatremia (Sawka et al., 2007).

This provides segue to discuss another strategy to be considered regarding proper hydration during exercise: electrolyte repletion through sodium supplementation. Sweat production during exercise depends on exercise intensity, duration, clothing, hydration status of the individual, heat-acclimation, and environmental conditions. Evidence has shown that there can be large losses of both sodium and water during exercise, especially for individuals who sweat profusely (Maughan and Shirrefs, 1997). Exercise associated hyponatremia occurs occasionally in American athletes who drink too much water to try and prevent heat cramps and dehydration (Sawka et al., 2007). There is evidence to support that these athletes can benefit from supplementing their fluid intake with optimal levels of sodium to maintain proper plasma balance throughout exercise (Sharp, 2013).

I would be remiss if I didn’t suggest that athletes should attempt to achieve euhydration and sodium homeostasis without the excessive use of sugary sports drinks due to the overconsumption of these drinks by young athletes outside of competition. The confusion that these drinks are a healthy alternative to juice and soda permeates most youth athletic associations and needs to be addressed. Steady and consistent consumption of water with the supplementation of sodium for those who sweat excessively should suffice to maintain proper hydration and avoid decrements in subsequent performance. It’s also worth noting that homeostatic sodium levels can be achieved through dietary strategies independent of supplementation. Eating foods with sufficient levels of sodium can keep you from having to stomach bitter drinks pumped full of salt or other additives.

It is my opinion that maintenance of euhydration and sodium homeostasis is the most important variable in regard to immediate and short-term recovery from bouts of exercise. Discussing longer term recovery between workouts (24-hours or more) warrants addressing proper macronutrient intake and timing. This mechanism requires considerably more context than the maintenance of euhydration so addressing it in this writing likely wouldn’t do it justice. I will address practical applications with evidential support on this front in a second writing.

For now, my recommendations to athletes seeking proper hydration status to avoid decrements in performance are to:

1.     Drink water consistently throughout the day and during training/competition.

2.     Avoid overcompensation strategies for poor hydration. Don’t try and drink a ton of water in a short period of time, because it may cause electrolyte imbalance and do more harm than good.

3.     Avoid sugary sports drinks like Gatorade and Powerade at all costs unless there are no other options or you are glycogen-depleted (light-headed from not eating).

4.     If you are an excessive sweater, salting your foods throughout the day and even adding some salt to your water throughout the day or during competition could be beneficial.

References

Bishop, P.A., Jones, E., Woods, A.K. (2008) Recovery from training: A brief review. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 22(3), 1015-1024.

Maughan R.J., Shirreffs S.M. (1997) Dehydration, rehydration and exercise in the heat. International Journal of Sports Medicine, 19(2),89–168.

Murray, B. (2013) Hydration and physical performance. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 26(5), 542-548. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/07315724.2007.10719656

Sawka et al. (2007) Exercise and fluid replacement. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 39(2), 377-390.

Sharp, R.L. (2013) Role of sodium in fluid homeostasis with exercise. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 25(3), 231-239. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/07315724.2006.10719572