What Everyone Should Know About Water

What is Water?
Water is an important nutrient for you as athlete. Water makes up 60% of your total body weight and 70% of your muscles. Without enough water, you can't work at your top level of performance and you may even harm yourself. The most important thing you should remember about water is that it cools your body. As you exercise your body temperature increase (even when it's cold outside). As your temperature increases, you sweat. When the sweat evaporates from your skin, your body cools down.

DEHYDRATION
If you start a physical activity without having enough water in your body or if you sweat during practice and do not replace the water lost, you may become dehydrated even when you loose a few pounds as sweat. Once you become dehydrated, you can no longer sweat and get rid of the heat that builds up when you exercise.
Dehydration is very dangerous. The first symptoms of dehydration include thirst, clammy skin, chills, throbbing heartbeat and nausea. When you become more dehydrated, you may develop a headache, cramps, shortness of breath, dizziness, and /or dryness in the mouth. At most serious level of dehydration, you can experience hallucinations, deafness, visual problems, swollen tongue, and /or kidney failure.

STEPS TO AVOID DEHYDRATION

• Drink Plenty of cool, plain water before, during, and after practice and competion as a preventive measure. Even if you feel thirsty. Drink 1-1.5 cups of plain; cool water 15 minutes before working out. Drink a half-cup of water every 10-15 minutes during the event.
• Don't rely on thirst alone as a guide to how much water your body needs. Weigh yourself before and after exercising. For every pound lost as sweat, drink 2 cups of fluid.
• Most of all aviod working out in plastic suits that can cause serious dehydration, limit your performance, and lead to possible heat stroke.

Bottom Line Drink plenty of water because it's the best vitamin that you can take and it's FREE!!