With the summer weather in full effect, there is no escaping sweat. Maybe you love the feeling you get after a long sweaty workout, and maybe you could do without all of the excess fluid dripping out of your pores. Sweat is a natural and healthy response to increased body temperature. As the body’s temperature rises, the nervous system stimulates sweat glands all over your body to release sweat. There are two types of sweat glands- eccrine, and apocrine. Eccrine glands release sweat in response to increased body temperature. Apocrine glands, located in the groin and armpits, can be stimulated by body temperature, but are also stimulated by stressful situations. Sweat is made up of water, sodium and other substances- like sodium and potassium, or “electrolytes”. These are nutrients you want to make sure you are putting back into your body in appropriate amounts after you sweat a lot.
Many people have the misconception that salt is dehydrating. This misconception is most likely due to the fact that salt causes thirst. Dietary intake of sodium does not necessarily increase or decrease the concentration of salt in your system – your body will adapt (by either urinating, or becoming thirsty- a signal to drink more water) in order to maintain a steady blood-sodium concentration regardless of the amount of sodium you consume in your diet. So let’s say you avoid most sodium and processed foods in your diet and you come into CFH to work out on a 95 degree day – your body will ensure that a proportionate amount of water is lost so that blood-sodium osmolarity is maintained. In other words, inadequate salt consumption is actually the opposite of what you want when it comes to staying hydrated. Conversely, excess salt consumption will cause you to bloat by causing water retention – your body will hold onto excess water so that sodium in your body does not become too concentrated.
Let’s not forget about potassium. Potassium is excreted in sweat, but in a smaller amount than sodium. Potassium is found in bananas, citrus fruits, potatoes, tomatoes, just to name a few. Another good source of potassium is coconuts and coconut water. If you are feeling depleted during or after long sweaty workouts, or if you are experiencing muscle cramping, you may need to be drinking more than water during and after your workouts. If you are feeling the effects of excessive sweating all summer long, try the following drink ideas to rehydrate before, during or after a workout, or just on a hot day by the pool:
Coconut Lemonade/ limeade – 1 serving
4-6 oz coconut water (plain, no sugar added)
Juice of 1 lemon or lime
1/4 cup water
Sprinkle of sea salt
Ice
Fill a large cup with ice. Pour coconut water and water into cup, and then add lemon juice, salt, shake/ stir and enjoy!
Yellow Hydration-ade – 4 servings
1/2 cup fresh pineapple juice
1 pineapple core (cut up a fresh pineapple and save the core)
32 ounces water (you can also replace 1/2 of this amount with coconut water)
Sprinkle of sea salt
Pour your water into a pitcher with your pineapple core and refrigerate for 4-12 hours to infuse water with pineapple flavor. Add in pineapple juice, along with a couple sprinkles of sea salt. Serve cold or over ice!
If you believe you may not be consuming enough salt in your diet (if you avoid most processed foods, and eat mainly fresh foods that you prepare yourself), you could also add fermented or pickled vegetables to your diet, which will contain potassium (some vegetables more than others) along with sodium.
Good luck, and stay hydrated friends!
Sources:
(1) Ross, C., et al. (Eds). (2014). Modern Nutrition in Health and Disease, Eleventh Edition. Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.(2) https://certification.acsm.