Sports Drinks vs Water: The Gloves Are Off

When you are exercising or playing sports such as football in your Discount Football Kits you need to keep your body hydrated, and many people automatically reach for a sports drink, but are these really better than plain and simple water?

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Advantages of Sports Drinks

Naturally, we need water to keep hydrated, but if you are sweating profusely in your football kits from kitking  you will also be losing electrolytes like potassium and sodium, so a sports drink may help to replenish these. Your muscles depend on electrolyte levels for optimum functioning, so if the levels become too low you can experience problems such as headaches and muscle cramps. Athletes may also need iron supplements which can be found in some sports drinks.

Overall, sports drinks containing carbohydrates in addition to potassium and sodium can help to provide fuel for muscles during exercise, a definite advantage when you have not had time to eat a well balanced meal. They also maintain hydration, and you need to replace about 20 fluid ounces of water every hour during rigorous exercise, but drinking too much plain water can cause problems. According to a Harvard Medical School health blog, overhydration was responsible for the death of a 28 year old woman who collapsed during the Boston Marathon in 2002. Because she had drunk an excessive amount of water, the level of sodium in her blood was depleted, and she died from hyponatraemia.

When Are Sports Drinks a Bad Idea?

People who are exercising in order to lose weight should not opt for high energy sports drinks. As The Guardian reports, it is possible that people drinking some of these drinks are consuming more calories than they burn off, therefore they can be counterproductive. Always check the label to see how much sugar your sports drink contains.

There are other ways of keeping hydrated and boosting energy. Eating a well balanced meal after exercise can help to replace the electrolytes and nutrients that are lost during exercise, and milk is a good source of protein, carbohydrate and potassium to have following exercise.

For people who are not engaged in exercise, sports drinks simply add calories that you do not need and cause weight gain. Those who need specific supplements can obtain them from numerous different retailers.

There is a place for sports drinks, but they are not for everyone.