Exercise Hydration: Water or Sports Drinks?

Contributed by Roy Alfonso


If you believe advertisement, then a sports drink will enable you to run longer on the treadmill and beat the competition in your favorite sport. Though hydration is extremely important during exercise, only continuous exercise that exceeds 60 minutes requires liquids other than water.

If you’re exercising for weight loss, consider the number of calories the sports drinks have versus water. You might be consuming more calories than your workout has burned.

Normal training is not likely to deplete your body’s storage of minerals such as: sodium, potassium and other electrolytes. If you are exercising over 60 minutes, it is recommended that you drink fluids supplying 60 to 100 calories per 8 ounces.

In order to figure out how much water you should drink, weigh yourself before and after you workout. If you lost 2 or more pounds during your workout, you should drink 24 ounces of water for each pound lost.

To find out more about hydration, prehydration and rehydration, visit the web sites www.sportsmedicine.about.com and www.acsm.org.