Sports hydration tip

Dehydration makes exercise feel harder because your heart has to beat faster to get the oxygen and fuel to your muscles that they need. Dehydration can also result in your body temperature increasing during exercise. Sports drinks such as Powerade Isotonic help to keep your body cool during exercise.

• Optimise your exercise, training or performance, by making sure you start well-hydrated
• It’s easy to become dehydrated, so be aware of how much you sweat and drink enough to replace lost fluids.
• Don't forget that performance can drop even when you're slightly dehydrated - the more it dehydrated you are, the greater the impact on your performance
• Hydration after exercise is also an important part of your recovery
• Whether you’re playing sport or just living an active lifestyle, you want to be performing at your best. Get the best out of your performance by drinking regularly and preventing dehydration.

Common indicators of dehydration are thirst and a dull headache. Remember to drink regularly throughout the day to balance out the dehydrating effects of air-conditioned offices or working outdoors in the heat, rather than letting dehydration affect your desire to be active.

To avoid dehydration and get the most out of yourself and out of your sports drink, you should drink before, during and after sport.

Hydration before the sports event
Before sport it is important to hydrate yourself and get fluid into the body (leaving it until you are on the field or track is too late).

Hydration during the sports event
Regular replacement of fluid is the main consideration during any sports event.
This can be in the form of plain water for shorter bouts of exercise, but for longer events the fluid should also include small amounts of carbohydrate (usually in the form of glucose).

Hydration after the sports event
Drinking it after sport will help you recover fast so you are ready for the next game.
Remember: Pre-hydration and preparation is just as important as re-hydration and recovery.

How much should I drink?
Before you can win, you need to know how much you lose. Get on the scales. Weigh yourself, immediately before and after exercise, you’ll get a good idea of how much fluid you actually lose during exercise. The difference in weight is all the fluid you need to replace. Once you know how much you lose per hour of exercise you know how much you need to replace. As a guide drink 1.5 times the amount of fluid lost. For example, 1 litre of fluid per 1kg loss in weight plus an extra 500ml.