Our blood circulates like an ocean within us. The water in blood helps
carry nutrients and energy to our body cells. It also carries waste
products away from our cells for excretion from our body. Water helps
regulate our body temperature, too--an important factor for all of us.
Caffeine acts as a diuretic. It increases urine output and can promote
dehydration.
By the time you feel thirsty, you may have already lost one
percent to two percent of your water--and that's enough to hurt performance. But
just drinking enough to satisfy your thirst may not supply your body's needs.
Conditioned athletes need more water--not
less. The conditioned athlete is able to store and burn more
energy in a shorter time. That means your body releases more heat,
requires more cooling, loses more water, and needs more water to replenish
its stores. Also, you may have increased your sweating response, which
means you lose even more water. As an in-shape athlete, you need more
water than other people.
About one cup (six to eight ounces) of cool water
every 15 to 20 minutes during an activity is about right for most
athletes. Some athletes can drink a bit more than this at each
interval. Cool water (40 to 50 degrees Fahrenheit) is best. Cool water
helps absorb body heat. And it empties from the stomach into the intestine
at a fast rate, which allows it to be absorbed rapidly into the body.
At one time, wrestlers purposely dehydrated to lose weight rapidly and
make weight categories. Fortunately, this practice is decreasing, but it
still occurs.
Wrestlers dehydrated in many ways. Some exercised in hot rooms, often
while wearing rubber suits in an attempt to sweat off water. Others simply
did not drink any fluids or eat foods high in water. Still others lost
water by spitting in a cup all day. And some took diuretics (water pills)
to increase urine output.
Dehydration poses both short- and long-term
dangers to your health. In the short-term, your body's cooling
system can't work properly and you can overheat, suffer heatstroke, and
possibly die. Long-term, repeated episodes of dehydration can be damaging
to your kidneys.
The most common outcomes of dehydration are poor
endurance and poor performance. Some athletes mistakenly
believe that after purposely dehydrating their bodies, they can rapidly
rehydrate and almost immediately regain optimum performance.
