HYDRATION DURING EXERCISE HOW MUCH? WHEN?

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There is a widespread interest in what is the best hydration strategy during the exercise. Specifically, two opposing trends on this topic could be differentiated: those who believe that hydration should be planned in advance and those who think that the athlete should drink based solely on their thirst sensation.




<a href='https://www.freepik.es/foto-gratis/deportista-agua-potable_1744760.htm'>Photo de agua creado por freepik</a>


Under the hypothesis that the feeling of thirst is an imperfect mechanism to control the water balance (that is, when we are thirsty it is too late), the classic recommendations of the American College of Sport Medicine proposed that during the exercise you should drink everything the possible without causing gastrointestinal discomfort. More recently, these recommendations were slightly modified, suggesting that the necessary amount should be drunk to avoid weight loss greater than 2%, which would be considered excessive dehydration. In summary, these researchers propose as an optimal strategy to plan hydration by drinking even in the absence of thirst to avoid excessive losses of body weight.



However, another trend suggests that these recommendations are more based on commercial interests - many of these research groups are financed by companies such as Gatorade - than on scientific results. In fact, there is little evidence that involves the loss of water during exercise per se (without absence of thirst) as responsible for the normally associated consequences such as muscle cramps, cognitive difficulties or events such as heat stroke. As an example, meta-analyzes published in the prestigious British Journal of Sport Medicine have shown how drinking based on the thirst sensation provided greater benefits in performance than controlled hydration protocols (above or below the sensation of thirst), also showing that in the absence of thirst losses of up to 4% of body weight are not related to a decrease in performance.



In fact, just as it is dangerous to drink less than what the body asks of us, drinking over the sensation of thirst can also entail serious health risks, leading to hyponatremia associated with exercise. Although this condition is less known, it has a worrying prevalence in endurance athletes, and although it usually has moderate symptoms (nausea, vomiting) there have been some cases of death.

In conclusion, there is a lot of controversy surrounding which is the best hydration strategy during the exercise. However, and contrary to the recommendations of some companies and certain prestige estates, the scientific evidence seems to indicate that it is best to attend to the athlete's own sense of thirst, taking special precaution not to drink more or less.

I leave a video where he explains what was written in the post more graphically with a presentation.

 https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CLZdgCcuGR-WZpyP-_jlJnycGptyGWn9/view?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1jpuroR9dIxYPr9JPtflRgZ2kRrE2UMnd8PJozPCJ4qc/edit#slide=id.g3b2c9c8428_1_27

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1uUfRekejU
REFERENCES


  1. Kenefick RW. Drinking Strategies: Planned Drinking Versus Drinking to Thirst. Sport Med. 2018. doi:10.1007/s40279-017-0844-6.
  2. Convertino VA, Armstrong LE, Coyle EF, et al. American College of Sports Medicine position stand. Exercise and fluid replacement. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1996;28(1):517-521. doi:10.1097/00005768-199610000-00045.


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