Importance of Fluid Intake (Hydrating)
Drinking enough fluid each day, especially quality water is vitally important for everyone. This is simply because our body is primarily made up water. It is found in high quantities within all of your cells that make up your body. As an example even your blood is made up of approximately 80% water.
Our body relies on the intake of water each day to perform numerous functions within the body. If our intake is too low we begin the cycle of dehydration which leads to impaired function and performance. As humans we can survive up to three weeks without food but less than a week without water. This reflects water’s importance to having good health and the ability to have the energy to exercise e.g. Swimming.
Scientific studies have shown that a loss of only 8% of the water content of your body can affect aerobic exercise performance e.g. Swimming and also cognitive function (Mental Clarity).
Luckily for us our body has a built in warning system. This system or mechanism is called our “Thirst Response” which prompts us to drink water (Hydrate).
It’s important to remember that when you notice the “Thirst Response” you are already dehydrated!.
When swimming the key aspects to be aware of are:
• Chlorine environments speed up the rate of dehydration.
• The higher your dehydration % becomes the more your aerobic performance potential reduces.
• Pool environment makes you unaware you are sweating.
• When you sweat you are losing a lot of water as that is the main component in sweat.
When swimming the key aspects to do are:
• Always have a bottle of water and leave it at the end of the pool.
• Drink small amounts regularly during your swim session.
• After your swim session ensure you drink enough water to adequately rehydrate.
Our guest blogger is Paul Barry and elite sports and conditioning coach from Brisbane, Australia. He is qualified in diverse fields including Advanced Nutrition, Sports Supplementation, Massage, Anatomy and Sports Physiology. His email address is pbelitecoach@gmail.com.
