HYDRATION

It’s HOT - Let’s hydrate.

With increased heat, hydration is top of mind. While most sports research has moved to encouraging us to drink to thirst - that actually might not be in the best interest for women, depending on where they are in their menstrual cycle.

When our hormone levels are high in our cycle (mid luteal phase - which is about a week before your period) progesterone and estrogen actually impact an area of our brain (hypothalamus) that helps control our hydration. Our hormones cause a reset in our body’s drive to drink - which is based on water volume in our blood and salt content - resulting in reduced thirst even if we are dehydrated.  This response actually gets worse as we age. We can start by drinking to thirst, but might need to consider adding an electrolyte beverage if we are exercising in the heat for a prolonged time.

Gatorade, and many other commercial sports drinks, actually contain more sugar than you need to rehydrate but enough to be considered “fuel”. In fact, these drinks can actually contribute to DEHYDRATION. We need a small amount of sugar and sodium to help transport fluid across our intestinal barrier. Be mindful of “light” drinks which contain sugar substitutes that can have the opposite effect of what we want - pulling water IN to our gut. We want about 3-4% of our drink to be sugar.

Check out a couple homemade recipes:

Tea Based

1L of herbal tea

1/4 tsp of sea salt

1/4 tsp potassium chloride

2 tbsp maple syrup or honey

lemon or lime to taste

Coconut Water Based

1/2 cup coconut water

Top up with water to reach 1L

1/4tsp sea salt

2 tbsp maple syrup

lemon/lime to taste if you like

(coconut water has a great combination of potassium and sodium!)

Let us know what you think!