What to drink during a workout?

When playing sports and sweating profusely, it is necessary to replenish bodily fluid. Ordinary water is also suitable for this, but using certain drinks will allow you to achieve your goals and recover from heavy loads quickly. Let’s figure out what to drink during a workout to increase effectiveness and what liquids should be discarded.

Why should you drink while exercising?

A person mainly consists of water: the brain – 80%, muscle tissue – 70%, blood plasma – 90%. It is involved in all body’s vital processes and is a natural cleanser of the digestive tract from toxins and toxins.

During intense physical exertion, the mechanisms of thermoregulation are triggered, which are accompanied by profuse sweating. Evaporation of water from the body’s surface contributes to natural cooling, but there is a loss of vital minerals and an electrolyte imbalance. Insufficient fluid intake during exercise puts the body in danger of:

• Increases the load on the heart and blood vessels, TK. blood becomes more viscous;
• slows down the delivery of oxygen and nutrients to muscle tissue;
• reduces endurance and concentration during exercise and can lead to injury.

With a lack of water in the body, metabolic processes slow down, and the breakdown of fat cells is impossible. The effect of fitness for weight loss is practically reduced to zero. Water helps build muscle mass – it provides a total supply of amino acids and nutrients to the muscles, which are necessary for their regeneration and growth.

The loss of only 2% of water reduces the workout’s effectiveness by 30%, leading to heat stroke, dizziness, convulsions, and loss of consciousness. Dehydration of the body by 10-15% leads to death.

Drinking fluids while exercising in the gym is necessary to reduce muscle pain after doing strength exercises and prevent degenerative joint disease development. Water is contained in the articular lubricating fluid, so its lack increases the load on the spine and joints; they wear out faster.

Dehydration makes it difficult to train at full strength and reduces endurance and strength performance. To achieve sports goals, you must drink during class.

But excessive fluid intake also harms the body:

• the concentration of minerals in the blood decreases, and the water-salt balance is disturbed;
• with problems with the kidneys, edema may appear, or blood pressure may increase;
• digestive processes may be disturbed.

During training, it is recommended to consume 150-250 ml of liquid every 15-20 minutes, i.e., about 0.5-1 liter per hour. Its amount may vary depending on the air temperature, intensity, and duration of the load. It is essential to listen to the body and not allow feelings of intense thirst. But, if you don’t feel like drinking, you don’t need to force yourself to do it by force.

It would help if you did not try to drink the required amount of liquid before physical activity to avoid being distracted by drinking during it. This will lead to heaviness in the stomach and frequent absences from the toilet.

What can you drink during a workout?

What is the best drink for athletes during training? The choice of allowed drinks is quite broad:

• water;
• isotonic;
• natural juices;
• herbal infusions;
• BCCA.

Preference for one or another drink should be given depending on the purpose of the workout, its duration, and its intensity.

Water

To avoid dehydration during training, it is enough to drink ordinary drinking water: filtered or bottled. Tap water or natural sources may contain substances or microorganisms harmful to the body, so they must be filtered or boiled. But after boiling, there are practically no helpful mineral salts left in it – most of it settles on the walls and bottom of the kettle.

Boiling water does not kill hepatitis A viruses and botulinum bacteria. It also contains phenols, pesticides, nitrates, salts of heavy metals, and oil products.

Mineral non-carbonated water will help to prevent electrolyte imbalance after intense workouts lasting up to 1 hour. Choose mineral water should be marked “dining room.” The sodium, magnesium, and potassium content in it is optimal for the body. This is the best option to compensate for micronutrient deficiencies caused by exercise. It is better to leave the medicinal mineral water for other purposes – with diseases of the digestive system; that can provoke exacerbations.

Isotonics

Isotonics are sports drinks containing mineral salts and sugars in a concentration close to blood plasma. They are designed to quickly replace the loss of minerals and glycogen during high-intensity and long-term sports. Some beverages may contain vitamins, flavors, creatine, and L-carnitine.

Isotonics increase the body’s stamina but are absorbed into the blood more slowly than water. Therefore, drinking them during sports, lasting less than an hour and a half, or during low-intensity training is pointless.

Several studies have found that the use of isotonic drinks without prolonged physical exertion leads to the appearance of excess weight. When doing fitness to lose weight, drinking them is not recommended. The most popular sports isotonic drinks among athletes are:

• Powerade;
• IsoMax by Powerbar;
• Gatorade;
• ISO Drink Cool;
• ISO+ from Antonia.

But you can prepare isotonic on your own. There are several proven recipes.

1. Simple. Mix in 400 ml of water 1/2 tsp. Salt and 200 ml freshly squeezed fruit juice.
2. Sports Academy. 400 ml of water, add 200 ml of fruit juice, 3 tbsp. Sugar and ½ tsp. Salt.
3. With Region. One sachet of Regidron powder (sold in any pharmacy as a remedy for dehydration) mixed in 1 liter of water with the juice of ½ lemon and 2 tbsp. Honey.
4. Gleesonade. 5 tbsp glucose (dextrose), ¾ tsp table salt, and 1/2 tbsp. Soda dissolved in 500 ml of water and mixed thoroughly.

Before training, it is convenient to pre-mix dry ingredients and dilute them with water.

When preparing an isotonic drink, table salt can be replaced with sea salt or sodium citrate (the sodium salt of citric acid). The taste of the drink will turn out a little different – with a slight sourness. Instead of natural juice, you can use dry fruit concentrate.

Natural juices

A good option for replenishing fluid in the body during strength training is natural juices from fruits or vegetables:

• apples
• oranges;
• carrots;
• pumpkins;
• grapefruits;
• pineapples;
• tomatoes;
• citrus mixtures.

They maintain the mineral balance in the body and charge with additional energy to perform heavy exercises.

Juices must be freshly squeezed and diluted with water by half or in a ratio of 1:2. This will reduce the content of simple carbohydrates and help the drink to be better absorbed.

A glass of orange or apple juice diluted in 2 glasses of mineral water will replace an 8% carbohydrate solution equivalent to a sports drink.

Herbal decoctions (infusions)

Using decoctions of herbs during sports training will increase their effectiveness and help eliminate discomfort after exercise. Herbal drinks contain vitamins, minerals, and photo components that have a tonic effect.

For active training, infusions and decoctions from the following plants are best suited:

• rose hip;
• thyme;
• Chinese lemongrass;
• ginseng;
• Eleutherococcus;
• yarrow;
• St. John’s wort;
• ginger.

It is not necessary to brew too herbal solid tea for use in training. The optimal dosage is 2 tbsp—of dry raw materials per 1 liter of water.

Herbal teas are good for weight loss. They contain virtually no calories and help speed up the metabolic processes in the body.

Some herbs can cause allergies, so you should drink decoctions cautiously, starting with a small volume (100 ml). Also, do not forget about the medicinal properties of plants – certain herbs may be contraindicated in certain chronic diseases or health conditions.

BCAA

BCAAs – are three essential amino acids (isoleucine, leucine, and valine), which increase strength and endurance during strength exercises. The intake of BCAAs in the athlete’s body during training will not only add energy but also accelerate the process of muscle regeneration and slow down catabolism – the destruction of muscle fibers.

In one study, a group of athletes took 6 g of BCAAs per workout for three months. The effect of a sharp acceleration of protein synthesis struck scientists: all subjects added 1-1.5 kg of lean muscle mass during this time.

Unlike protein shakes, which take time to break down and absorb in the digestive tract, the amino acids in sports supplements are absorbed into the bloodstream instantly. Therefore, it makes sense to take them throughout the workout to increase muscle mass and endurance.

BCAAs do not make up for the deficiency of electrolytes in the body since they are intended for other purposes. Using amino acids when playing sports together with water or isotonic is necessary.

What drinks are useless to drink during a workout?

Sports drinks such as fat burners, creatine, and protein help you reach your goals faster in the gym and help you gain muscle mass, lose weight, or cut. But it would be best to drink them no less than 40-60 minutes before training or within an hour. Taking these drinks during class will not bring much harm to the body, but there will be no significant benefit from this either.

Fat burners

Sports supplements with fat-burning properties based on thermogenic (caffeine, yohimbine, synedrin) or lipotropic (L-carnitine, omega-3, betaine) mechanisms are only helpful for weight loss when taken before exercise, at least 40 minutes before. They do not have time to take action for later use. They don’t put the electrolytic balance back in order.

Taking lipotropic while exercising does not hurt the body, so taking thermogenic can strain the cardiovascular system and raise blood pressure.

Gainers

Gainer is a high-calorie sports supplement consisting of carbohydrates and proteins. Its primary purpose is to accelerate the set of muscle mass for lean people.

Gainers are recommended to be consumed 1 hour before training. A portion of a protein-carbohydrate drink during a workout will cause a rush of blood to the stomach and a feeling of fullness and heaviness.

After taking carbohydrates, insulin levels will increase dramatically, suppressing testosterone (muscle growth hormone). A small number of carbohydrates during a workout will help to cope with fatigue and give strength, but a whole serving of a gainer will be extra. It makes sense to drink carbohydrate-protein mixtures only if the training lasts more than 1.5-2 hours. 100 g of a gainer every 15-20 minutes is optimal.

Carbohydrate-protein mixtures are suitable for use not only in bodybuilding. They add energy and endurance to athletes involved in athletics, skiing, and boxing, i.e., in any direction of sports where aerobic load prevails.

Creatine

Creatine (nitrogen-containing carboxylic acid) is involved in energy metabolism in muscle tissues and, when taken correctly, increases athletic performance.

The best time to take creatine is within an hour after your workout. During this period, the muscles are most susceptible to its absorption.

Creatine cannot compensate for the loss of mineral salts, but its use during strength training contributes to body dehydration (dehydration). Combined with profuse sweating, it can lead to electrolyte imbalance.

Protein

Taking protein or protein before training saturates the blood with amino acids, suppresses catabolic processes, and creates additional conditions for muscle growth. But even fast proteins (in the form of a hydrolyzate or isolate) need at least an hour to digest. The use of protein during training will make it difficult to perform exercises and slow down the process of muscle growth – the body perceives them as food, the digestion of which requires energy costs, and they are already decreasing with every minute of training.

Protein shakes taken during a workout will not benefit either muscle gain, recovery, or weight loss.

What not to drink during a workout?

When playing sports, some drinks can be harmful to health and cause the development of dangerous diseases. The list of liquids prohibited for use during training includes:

• coffee and caffeinated beverages;
• energy;
• carbonated drinks;
• industrial juices;
• alcohol.

These drinks are not the best choice for replenishing water and mineral salts lost through sweat in the body.

Caffeine increases the production of adrenaline and increases the load on the heart, which already has to work hard during exercise. Drinking coffee or tea during exercise can lead to a hypertensive crisis and cause digestive problems. Energy drinks contain caffeine and a lot of sugar. It is impossible to quench thirst with such a drink during sports without harm to health.

One serving of most energy drinks contains the caffeine equivalent of three cups of coffee and 14 teaspoons of sugar.

Carbonated mineral water, and even more so sweet soda, are also not suitable for replenishing electrolytes in the body. The carbon dioxide they contain can irritate the gastric mucosa and increase gas formation and belching, which can interfere with the training process. Sugary drinks (including packaged juices) have too much sugar (up to 6 tsp in one glass) and can trigger a quick release of insulin, which will cause weakness and fatigue during exercise. They will not quench your thirst, but they can cause the accumulation of extra pounds or the development of diabetes.

Do not drink alcohol during training. It is not compatible with sports.

Ethanol not only negatively affects the cardiovascular system – when it is used, protein and testosterone synthesis is reduced, which prevents muscle building. It inhibits the production of the enzyme lipoprotein lipase, which is involved in the breakdown of fat cells. Thus, using any alcoholic beverages (even seemingly harmless beer) during training reduces its effect to zero and significantly harms health.

It would help if you chose a drink for training based on its intensity, duration, and also depending on your goals. In terms of health safety, clean drinking water is the best option. It is also ideal for weight loss exercises. It is best for professional athletes and bodybuilders to drink special sports drinks during intense training – isotonic or BCAAs.