Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Hydration

Hydrating:
For active teens, hydrating is a big part of their life because without hydrating they would not perform well in whatever they’re doing. Hydrating is just as important as getting a good hearty meal because hydrating keeps your fluids clean and will help you feel better during the day.

When you hydrate, you should only drink water. Limit the sodas, and juices and only have water. Sodas and juices have sugars and caffeine’s that will give you energy for a short while and then will give you a lousy feeling called a sugar crash. They also can give you tooth problems like cavities.

Just having water is a good habit for a teenager and even adults. When you have snack during the day, which many teens do because of their busy schedules, you should have a bottle of water. Another good habit is to get a drink of water each time you past a water fountain.

But people say when you hydrate for a game, or event, you should drink lots two days before. I suggest drinking a lot everyday. Before a sports even drink a lot of water, and after drink a lot.

Water doesn’t have any useful vitamins or minerals but it is an essential ingredient in all humans’ lives. It serves a purpose, and you can’t wait until you really need it, so teens should drink even when they aren’t thirsty. If you are thirsty, it’s too late; you're not hydrated enough. Salts and sweating make you lose water, so hydrating will make sure it won’t be too late when you’re dehydrated. When you work out, it is easy to become overheated so being dehydrated will have an effect on your physical performance and your mental will. The main goal though, for athletes of endurance sports is to make your urine clear. If your urine is yellow, this might signify caffeine in your system, or not hydrated enough.

Some pros and cons about hydrating through the day should be obvious when you try it, but after a while it is worth it to hydrate. You might have to go the bathroom every forty-five minutes, but if you are really hydrating well it all pays off in the end. Hydrating is just another part of staying healthy, and if you create habits like staying away from certain foods, you will certainly have a better and more fun time whatever your doing.

By: Croix Laconsay

2 comments:

Kyle K said...

Very thorough. Nice job! Quick question, you said that drinking water is good for hydration. What about Gatorade or other electrolyte beverages?

Ben Ota said...

nice job croix. it's a very thoughtful piece of information. Are there any major benefits between gatorade/energy beverages and water? If so, what are they?