INTRODUCTION
Are you at the beginning of starting your fitness journey? Then you definitely need to understand the importance of hydration during exercise. Hydration and fitness are interrelated. Staying hydrated is crucial for everyone and also plays a major role in achieving your fitness goals. Staying hydrated not only helps in your fitness journey but also has a positive impact on your overall health and well being.
Let us explore the correlation between hydration and fitness from the blog.
The Importance of Hydration in Your Fitness Journey
In order to achieve your fitness goals, you need to exercise regularly. In addition to exercise, you need to track your hydration levels. It is a well known fact that when you exercise, you sweat more. You lose energy while exercising. To compensate for the energy loss, it is crucial to drink water and stay hydrated.
If you do not drink enough water during your workout session, then you may not be able to achieve desired results. If you are a beginner and want to achieve fitness results sooner and easier, then you need an expert Personal Trainer’s guidance. A Personal Trainer will not only customize fitness plans according to your fitness levels but also analyze your overall body composition and assist you with the exact nutrition plan as well.
Dehydration - Causes and Effects
In a city like Singapore where the climate is mostly humid and hot, it is essential to stay hydrated all the time. Lack of hydration leads to dehydration in the body which is a serious concern. Dehydration causes lack of physical performance, dizziness, and also muscle cramps.
Have you experienced this? You are sleeping and suddenly you experience a cramp in your calf muscle. This is nothing but cramp due to dehydration. Excessive dehydration can also cause heart stroke, which can be life-threatening. That’s when the importance of hydration during exercise gains attention.
Here are some of the ways dehydration can affect your fitness journey:
Reduced Physical Strength : Dehydration lowers your overall body strength thereby hindering your fitness performance. You might lose muscle strength due to lack of water intake.
Risk of Injury: The chances to get injured while trying a new workout is higher when you are not properly hydrated. Dehydration affects coordination as well as cognitive functions.
Reduce Recovery Rate: Due to dehydration, your body will take more time to recover from injury. This can lead to long-term muscle soreness and fatigue.
HOW MUCH WATER SHOULD YOU CONSUME?
So, how much water should you consume? This is a common question in everyone’s mind.
The Institute of Medicine recommends, on average, that men should consume 3.7 litres of water a day. Women should consume 2.7 liters of water per day. This includes water from all beverages and food that you consume in a day.
If you are a fitness enthusiast, then you need to consume one liter more than the above mentioned amounts. This is because people who regularly exercise sweat more and lose more fluid from the body.
To give you a clear understanding, if you weigh 150 pounds, you should drink between 75 to 150 ounces of water per day. Also, keep an eye on your urine output and the colour of your urine. It gives a better picture of what your water intake looks like.
HYDRATION - TIPS AND TRICKS
Drink Regularly: Keep track of your water intake regularly. Set a timer on your mobile phone. Drink water every 30 minutes. Make sure you achieve your daily intake.
Drink Water before workout: Drink at least 1 liter of water 2-3 hours before your workout and 250ml of water before starting your workout.
During Workout: Make sure to drink 300ml of water every 20 minutes during your workout session. If you are involved in rigorous training such as strength training and HIIT workouts then remember to include some supplements.
Hydration post-workout: When you workout, your body starts to sweat more resulting in loss of fluids from the body. Therefore, it is very much important to hydrate post-workout sessions. Drink at least 450ml – 700ml for every pound of body weight you lost during workout.
CONCLUSION
Hydration forms the basis of any workout routine considering Singapore’s tropical climate. Make sure to regularly hydrate yourself. If you are regularly working out and following a certain fitness routine, you need to understand the importance of hydration during exercise. Stay hydrated and enjoy a healthy and active lifestyle.
