No Sweat: 5 Easy Ways to Stay Hydrated

By Melanie McMullen // Swimnetwork.com Correspondent

For a swimmer, hydration is often at the bottom of the list of things to think about during training. But contrary to conventional wisdom, swimmers do sweat during practice, losing as much as 6 to 8 ounces of fluid every 15 minutes.

How? A body at work in the water generates friction from muscle contractions, causing a swimmer to heat up -- and dehydrate -- relatively quickly during an intense workout. Your body’s water loss can be even higher in the summer if you train in hot outdoor environments. Sweating out as little as two percent of your body weight (which is only 3 pounds if you weigh 150 pounds) can adversely affect your metabolism and performance.

To find out how to combat the effects of dehydration, Swimnetwork checked in with Australian sports physiologist and coach Rod Cedaro and sports nutritionist Nancy Clark. They offered these reliable methods to ensure you down enough water before you hit the water.

1. Pre-hydrate so you don’t dehydrate
The best way to avoid dehydration is to drink up before practice. Nutritionists recommend that you drink 17 to 20 ounces of water during the two hours before swim practice.

2. Bring your water bottle to every practice
Even if you start out fully hydrated, you need water while in the water. Cedaro recommends starting early in the swim practice and drinking small amounts (5 to 8 ounces) every 10 to 15 minutes. Smaller or slower athletes may need slightly less water to stay hydrated.

3. Determine your sweat rate
Most of us know whether we are moderate or heavy sweaters outside the pool, but do you know how much water you lose during swim practice? Weigh yourself before and after practice to determine your sweat rate. Each pound you lose is about a pint (16 ounces) of water loss that you will need to replace.

To ensure your sweat calculation is accurate, factor in your water intake during practice. For example, a swimmer who lost 1 pound after an hour-long swim and drank 16 ounces during the swim has an hourly sweat rate of 32 ounces. To match that sweat rate, the swimmer should drink roughly 8 ounces (or 1/2 of a 16-ounce water bottle) every 15 minutes.

Sweat rates vary greatly from person to person, according to Cedaro. Some evidence suggests that both younger and older athletes have less developed temperature regulation systems than swimmers age 18 to 35. So remember to retest your sweat rate once or twice a year.

4. Get a water log
While you may have some idea how much water you consume each day, the best way to ensure you are drinking enough is to be regularly track your intake. Some nutritionists estimate that 75 percent of Americans are chronically dehydrated and may not even know it.

A simple way to monitor your consumption is to use one of several specialized fitness applications for your phone or laptop that make tracking easy. For instance, the free “Eight Glasses a Day” application for iPhone lets you touch a virtual glass of water every time you drink a real one and counts glasses for you throughout the day (it refills all eight of your glasses at midnight). It even sends you a congratulations and health tip once you complete your eight-a-day goal.

5. Drink water for short workouts, but go long with sports drinks
Cedaro and Clark both agree that simply drinking water is the best choice during a short workout of about an hour.

For workouts lasting longer than one hour, Clark recommends fluid replacement with sports drinks containing electrolytes, such as Gatorade. Swimmers can absorb those drinks into the bloodstream more quickly, so they help avoid dehydration during practice and aid in recovery.

Cedaro also notes that the intensity of the workout will impact hydration. “When the athlete is doing an easy aerobic set, water can be the principal hydration fluid. When he or she does more intense sets, the sports drink should be used more liberally,” he adds.

Once your workout is complete, Clark recommends a tall glass of chocolate milk. “Milk or another carbohydrate/protein combo is ideal,” she says. “A swimmer needs carbs for fuel, and protein to heal.”

You can get more of Clark’s advice in her book, “Nancy Clark’s Sports Nutrition Guidebook” available at www.nancyclarkrd.com.

Melanie McMullen, BaySide Media (www.baysidemedia.com), is a freelance contributor for www.swimnetwork.com and a member of the Downtown Oakland YMCA Master’s swim team.