We have all heard the recipe for homemade rehydration drink with oranges, salt and baking soda. In this note we address the simplest, but most important, details about hydration in endurance sports and we explain if making the homemade isotonic recipe is a good plan.
"Today we are going to prepare homemade isotonic: we cut oranges, we cut lemons, we squeezed everything, we added water until we reached a liter and we added a tablespoon of salt or baking soda".
Have you seen this recipe on social media? Have you made it at home? Will it be a good plan? In this note we address the simplest, but most important, details about hydration in endurance sports and we explain if making the homemade isotonic recipe is a good plan.
Let's start with the homemade rehydration drink , which is and is not a good plan. "It provides us with carbohydrates and electrolytes, due to the sodium bicarbonate and salt, so to take it after a training session is fine. But if you are preparing to go to a race and in that race you are going to drink some of the commercial hydration drink, which have other components such as colorants, the correct thing is to hydrate yourself with that drink that you are going to have on the day of the competition. I do not recommend using homemade as the main hydration, because it will be unlikely that you will find the same thing on race day and carry this drink will be difficult. Just imagine in a trail running race, six hours that orange juice with you, the heat, the humidity ", this is how nutritionist Raquel Guzmán, a specialist in the sports area, explains the details to consider about the homemade isotonic.
As she explains, commercial houses make sure to create products that do not cause gastrointestinal problems in runners, for which a lot of tests are done, which is why she suggests using them when doing quality workouts and long runs focused on a race. Anyway, and like everything in athletics, the ideal is to test well in advance how our body reacts to the different drinks that the market offers.
"For example the Chicago Marathon will be giving Gatorade Endurance lemon-lime this year, so I've been telling my patients who are going to go for a run if they can get that moisturizer and start getting used to that taste and testing if they tolerate it. well, let them do it. Only then will they know what their digestion will be like, "says Guzmán.
Another detail to take into account when preparing at home is the correct amount of ingredients. More baking soda or salt than necessary could lead to diarrhea. So, if you try it, it is better to start with a small amount.
Electrolytes and what else?
When we talk about hydration we are talking about replacing electrolytes lost due to physical activity. But some moisturizers also have carbohydrates, which play a key role in helping our bodies react positively to workloads.
"Whether or not to consume carbohydrates in the hydration drink depends on the number of kilometers you are going to run, the duration of physical activity, the intensity and the weather. If you are going to do a training of less than an hour and the exercise is of low intensity taking electrolytes is enough. However, if you are going to do a quality training, such as intervalos or fartleks, which are of short duration, but very explosive, it is advisable to look for a hydration drink that also provides us with carbohydrates ", assures the nutritionist.
And when it comes to funds, always yes. "The American College of Sports establishes that carbohydrate improves the taste of the drink, that means that we can take more volume of hydrating agent," she adds.
Proper hydration and replacement of electrolytes, especially sodium, which is most lost through sweating, is vital to avoid cramps, lack of concentration, fatigue and headaches.