The temperatures are heating up and that means staying hydrated is crucial, especially if you’re playing a sport or exercising outside.
“We can lose a large amount of fluid in our body, pounds of fluid just exercising for an hour in the heat and we have to replace that, and that’s paramount,” explained Dr. Collin Kitchell, a family medicine physician for Cleveland Clinic Florida. “Now, we don’t always just want to replace it with free water, but we want some electrolyte supplementation in there as well.”
Kitchell said signs of dehydration include feeling thirsty, having dark-colored urine, increased heart rate, muscle cramps, headache and fatigue.
Dehydration can also lead to heat exhaustion and the risk for heat stroke, which is when your body can’t regulate its temperature.
Heat stroke can be deadly and needs to be treated immediately.
So, what’s the best way to avoid dehydration?
Kitchell said if you’re an athlete, it’s not enough to just drink water right before your game.
You should prepare much sooner than that.
“I always tell my athletes that are preparing to start three days before the event. And to get your body fully hydrated and to get the cells full of water,” he said. “But, leading up to the event, two hours before is a good time to really start hydrating and helping with fluids, as well as throughout.”
He notes if you are planning to buy any sports drinks with electrolytes, be sure to keep an eye on the sugar content.
You don’t want it to have too much.