Now that the hot weather is FINALLY upon us, it's more important to focus on hydration. I know this, because yesterday's workout required a mop to clean up after ourselves from the rivers of sweat, and I pretty much felt like dog poop the rest of the day.
Normally, I drink 5-7 liters of water a day. I try to drink my body weight in ounces every day, then I add another liter or so to replace coffee and sweat. Water isn't enough, though, when you're sweating or peeing all of your electrolytes out. Coconut water is a great source of potassium and sodium, and if you're working out, running, or even just doing a lot of yard work in the heat, you need to be replenishing your electrolytes.
There are some easy signs to recognize that you are suffering from mild to moderate dehydration. First, if your mouth is dry, drink. That's the earliest sign that you are getting out of a normal fluid balance. Second, look at your pee. Oh, come on, don't make that face, we all look at our pee. Even my 11 year old can discuss his hydration status based on his pee. You should be going, often, and it should be very light to clear. This is especially important the hotter it is outside. If it's dark amber or gold, your kidneys are working too hard and your body is trying to hang on to its scarce water supply. The next symptoms are headaches, increased heart rate, dizziness, lethargy, and general weakness. Your heart is beating faster, because it needs to get less blood volume around your body, so it races to deliver the nutrients to your tissues. Your head hurts because the blood vessels are locked down trying to deliver a smaller volume to your brain. If you load up your blood volume with more fluid intake, your heart won't have to beat as fast, and the pounding in your head will stop.
Electolyte imbalance goes hand in hand with dehydration. With heavy exercise in the heat, you can lose up to 2 liters of sweat in an hour. 2 LITERS!!!! Your body sweats to cool your core temperature. Dogs pant, we sweat. Once your body heats up, your brain signals your sweat glands to cool it down. Sweat takes mostly sodium and chloride out with it, but also a little bit of potassium as well. Potassium mostly leaves the body in your pee. If you aren't peeing, you're potassium is probably too high. If you've sweated it all out, then it's too low. If you've vomited, then it's even lower. Muscle cramps, nausea, stomach cramping are all signs of potassium imbalance. Dizziness and confusion or lethargy are signs of low sodium. Either way, you need to get the fluids and the electrolytes back in. Drink coconut water, and follow it up with a LOT of water.
If you're like me, you might be getting tired of waterboarding yourself. There are some paleo-friendly daytime drinks you can use to give yourself a little variety. My favorite in the summer is what my kids call "Weed Water." It's actually herbal infused water, but that sounds too fancy for me. I take my gallon pitcher, throw in some mint and sliced cucumbers, and keep adding water to it. The herbs and cukes last for about 3 days. You can also add ginger, lavender, strawberries, or really anything you can think of. Heck, throw olives in and you'll almost feel like you're getting away with a martini. Kombucha. Fun to say, interesting to drink. Kombucha is a fermented tea, and it bills itself as a homeopathic, ancient treatment for all kinds of ailments. It's an aquired taste, but comes in many flavors, from fruity blends to spicy ginger. Unsweetened tea is also great, but be careful, because tea is a natural diuretic, so you will have to replace it with extra water.
I MUST be out in the heat. I love the sunshine, the heat, even the humidity. Stay hydrated. The warnings aren't just for the elderly or kids - it's for everyone. Now, bottoms up!
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