It is important for anyone doing physical activity to keep well hydrated, for performance to be at its best. Sports drinks are specially formulated to help people rehydrate during or after exercise. Drinks such as Gatorade and Powerade contain the main electrolytes and carbohydrates, which are used by the working muscles, to maintain optimal sports performance (Medindia.net, 2014). The acidity of sports drinks and the sugars, is raising health concerns, and creates unnecessary calories. (Nutritionwonderland.com, 2014) Sports drinks are proven to only be necessary when working intensely for over 90 minutes, so an athlete running a marathon may need a Powerade, but water is the best source of hydration for exercise of 90min or less. (Griffith-Greene, 2014)
Sports drinks contain electrolytes such as sodium and potassium, which carry an electrical current and aid in bodily functions as well as replenishing and rehydrating your body. (Griffith-Greene, 2014) Just as fluid balance is strictly regulated, the electrolyte balance in the body’s cells, must maintain at a certain level. When the body’s electrolyte balance is at the correct level, nerve impulses and muscle contractions, occur as intended. When, there is an imbalance of electrolytes in the blood, cell functions, physiologic function deteriorates and athletic performance is impaired. (Powerbar.com.au, 2014) Electrolytes are salts which are part of the body’s natural fluids, and so as an athlete or anyone who engages in physical activity sweats, electrolytes, are lost. If electrolytes are lost too quickly, the body is not able to restore them, which means, that deterioration begins to take place. Although drinking sports drinks means that the electrolytes are able to replenish...
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...re promoted as a positive element, to keep up your workout performance, and make the most of your workout. If someone is working for more than an hour at high intensity, then calories are not such a bad idea, as they will keep your performance continuous. Although, for the majority of people, who exercise, are doing it to lose weight and so drinking sports drinks, would cause the same effect as not completing the workout at all. (Nutritionwonderland.com, 2014) Sports physiologist Dr. Greg Wells says “Eighty-five per cent of Canadians don’t get enough exercise to begin with, so they don’t need sports drinks. The remaining 15 percent that actually does exercise, you probably have one or two per cent exercising really hard, really intensely enough to really need those sports drinks. In this group, probably a small amount of them are exercising long enough to need it.”
Are young athletes being pushed too far to always perform at higher and higher expectations? Taking vitamins are highly recommended by doctors, but there are some supplements that are illegal for use in high school sports. New pre-workout supplements cause new high school drug policies, research into both the active ingredients and short/long term effects of these products. These pre-workouts are this generation’s steroids and can have side effects that are just as dangerous. Their purpose is to provide you with a burst of quick and long lasting energy, increased blood flow, muscle growth, and faster recovery periods. Their popularity is growing faster than the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) can research them and provide more information on what these products truly do to your body, such as whether they are actually safe for young adult athletes to use.
Barnard, J. (1992) Caffeine in Sport: influence of endurance exercise on the urinary caffeine Concentration.
...l., 1987). In a study in which the participants performed sprint interval training (Bayati, 2011), there was an increase in maximal blood lactate from pre to post training, indicating greater capacity of anaerobic glycolysis. This increase was found coinciding with increased peak power, mean power, and total work . Sharp et al. (1986) reported an increase in blood lactate concentrations and total work performed during a 45-s maximal cycle sprint after eight
That’s when a spark lit and I started asking questions such as, “What benefits do sports drink have over water or juices?”, “What exactly electrolytes are and how many are in sports drinks?” As a curious 12 year old, I started researching on sports drinks. I discovered electrolytes include potassium, sodium, calcium, and other elements too. As a person perspires he/she loses water and electrolytes in the body. Loss of electrolytes can lead to heat exhaustion, nausea, and other conditions. I continued my research.
...ease of calcium, and reduction of lactic acid is a result of glycogen sparing. In endurance exercise, caffeine allows athletes to exercise for a longer duration through glycogen- sparing, burning fats as fuel, increase calcium production, and increase in alertness and adrenaline. Caffeine is also proven to improve reaction time by the increase amount of adrenaline the caffeine provides. Caffeine also aids in post-work out pain an athlete may experience after a rigorous workout. Caffeine also has its health benefits. Caffeine reduces the risk of: liver cancer by improving enzyme activity, Alzheimer’s by blocking the progression of the disease as a result of the A2A antagonist, and Parkinson’s disease by protecting dopamine- producing cells. Ultimately, caffeine is shown to have a positive effect on an athlete’s performance, and also has positive health benefits.
Many sports supplements are a combination of herbs and proteins. A popular supplement of this sort is called "Heat." Heat has many different ingredients in it that allow the athlete to experience more energy by creating more heat. This allows the athletes' body to work more efficiently and therefore work faster, stronger, and longer. This is very important in the sports world because it is becoming harder and harder to compete at an unsupplemented level. Athletes want every advantage that he or she can receive.
In 2002, a group of Australian researchers published a paper entitled the "Effect of different protocols of caffeine intake on metabolism and endurance performance". Caffeine use during sporting events has become much more popular and has widely studied. The purpose of the research was to examine the work increasing (ergogenic) effects of differing regiments of caffeine on metabolism and performance while simulating the typical nutritional preparation an athlete would do for a race. The study also sought to examine the effect of timing of caffeine intake, comparing results when caffeine was given before an event (precaf) to results from caffeine given during an event (durcaf). In addition, the researchers wanted to understand the practice of endurance athletes drinking defizzed Coca-Cola towards the end of a race. It was widely observed that many triathletes and marathoners feel they derive a boost from consuming Coca-Cola in the final stages of an event as a replacement to sports drinks.
Early summer, about forty-eight years ago in 1965, University of Florida assistant football coach, Dwayne Douglas, sat down and wondered why so many of his players were suffering from heat strokes and heat related illnesses during games or practice. So, he went to the university physicians and asked them to determine why this was happening. Not long after it was discovered that two key factors were causing the Florida Gator players to suffer from these conditions: the fluids and electrolytes the players were losing during the events were not being put back into the body, and the massive amounts of carbohydrates the players' bodies used for energy were not being replenished. So, he decided to create Gatorade. There are plenty of Gurus out there who will sit and tell you that water is natural and it’s the best thing you could ever put into your body, but let’s get real I’ll take scientifically proven research over someone’s “word” any day. (Rovell 58)
Gatorade is a sports drink and nutritional supplement manufacturer that provides a line of products that athletes may use to hydrate, recover and fuel their body while they practice and compete in competitive sports. Gatorade, in their commercial “Your Game is Our Lab,” they claim, “This (athlete's place of training or competition) is our lab. It’s where we learn everything we know. Where we study the athletic body.” Many athletes consume Gatorade, but often do not know the importance of the company’s tactics in why they are consuming Gatorade’s line of sports fuel products.
Sweat excessively while exercising and you 'll lose water and electrolyte but if you drink energy drink after that just to have more energy you 'll only dehydrate yourself more.
The term energy drinks refers to beverages that contain caffeine in combination with other ingredients such as guarana and other vitamins and minerals. In other words, energy drinks can be defined as a soft drink containing a high percentage of sugar, caffeine, or another stimulant, typically consumed during or after sporting activity or as a way of overcoming tiredness. Energy drinks are highly sweetened, caffeinated beverages that are packaged in brightly colored, slim line containers. They are sold virtually everywhere. At first, energy drinks were sold as a medicinal tonic drink and they have some benefits if person take it in limit. There are various negative effects of energy
The human body needs water to maintain enough blood and other fluids to function properly. Along with the fluids, the body also needs electrolytes, which are salts normally found in blood, other fluids, and cells. Dehydration is a serious health problem but can be treated but coaches and athletes should try to prevent this the most by staying hydrated. One way to make sure your hydrated is the color of your urine: Clear or light-colored urine means you 're well hydrated, whereas a dark yellow or amber color usually signals dehydration. Coaches can help prevent their athletes from being dehydrated in humid conditions are by Requiring young athletes to drink plenty of fluids before practice and during regular beverage breaks even if they aren 't thirsty, Make sure clothing is light colored, lightweight and loose fitting, or exposes as much of the skin as possible, and Decrease or stop practices or competitions if necessary, or move them indoors or to a shady area. Reasons for dehydration that athletes should now and be able to prevent are Wearing clothing or protective gear that contributes to excessive heat retention,Rarely exercising ,Is overweight or obese, is sick or had a recent illness, especially involving diarrhea, vomiting or a fever,Is taking certain supplements or medications, such as cold medicine. Last if any athletes are expiriencing any feeling of dehydration symptoms are Dry or sticky mouth, Thirst ,Dizziness and excessive fatigue. f your child plays sports in hot weather, encourage him or her to drink plenty of fluids before, during and after practices and games. Teach your child the signs and symptoms of dehydration, as well as the importance of speaking up if they occur. Involve your child 's coach, too. Talk to the coach about adjusting the intensity of practice depending on the temperature and humidity on the field and support the coach 's decision to cancel games and practices
Energy drinks are thought to help enhance performance, boost mental alertness, improve endurance and energy, decrease fatigue, enhance metabolism, and improve overall performance. Energy drinks are also used because of short term health benefits, taste, energy boost, improved performance, and to justify or improve poor dietary habits (Rath). But, drinking energy drinks come with so much more along with a list of health problems and possibly
...In summation energy drinks can be good for a quick boost of energy. And over the years they have become increasingly popular. Many people should become more aware of the benefits and downfalls to drinking energy drinks. They should never down one before strenuous exercise or drink numerous amounts at a time. Energy drinks should never be mixed with alcohol due to the dangerous side affects that can occur. Energy drinks affect all people differently, but consumers should be more aware before drinking these products.
Have you ever wondered if buying a gatorade before a game is worth the price or would water just be fine? I have often wondered if getting a gatorade would be worth the money or if just getting water would be fine. I play sports almost every season and always have to decide wether to get a gatorade or just drink the water they gives. I am so think that what makes the gatorade worth buying, is it just for the taste or does it have something that actually helps. I believe that learning more about electrolytes and hydration would be useful to explain which drink would be for me as an athlete during a game.