Should I drink water or a sports drink?

If you watch sports, you've probably seen athletes sipping on some sort of sports drink. Whether it's Gatorade, Powerade or others, you're probably wondering "should I drink them too, instead of water?"

Sports drinks are designed to provide three important ingredients: water, carbohydrates, and electrolytes, with the goal of improving exercise performance or recovery.

However, there are situations where water is a better choice than a sports drink. Continue reading to learn more about sports drinks, if you would benefit from them and a homemade sports drink recipe.

How do sports drinks help with performance?

When we exercise our bodies sweat and burn energy. This energy, AKA carbohydrates, is stored in our muscles and liver called glycogen. Consuming carbohydrates before or during exercise can slow down how fast our bodies run out of these stores. The amount of water loss in our sweat can be as much as 1-2L/hour of hard exercise or in hot conditions. Sweat not only contains water, it contains electrolytes, such as sodium and potassium, which help with fluid balance and muscle contractions.

The longer you exercise, the hotter the environment, and the more intensity you have the more sweat you lose and the more you deplete your energy stores, which can lead to dehydration and fatigue.

Sports drinks are made with specific amounts of water, carbohydrates, and electrolytes you need to fuel your muscles and to stay properly hydrated during exercise.

Should I drink a sports drink?

Drinking a sports drink may be better than drinking water in some situations. You may benefit from sports drinks if:

• Prolonged exercise lasts longer than an hour

• You are exercising at high intensity

• Exercising in the heat or humid weather

• You are competing or during games/events

• You are in preseason training or two-a-day training sessions

• During a phase of poor nutrition

• You are exercising at altitude and in the cold

How much should I drink?

The amount you drink depends on multiple things such as: the temperature outside, how much you sweat, the clothing you're wearing, level of fitness, exercise intensity and acclimation of the environment. Most people can meet their fluid needs by following these tips:

• Up to 4 hours before playing a sport, slowly drink about 5 to 7 mL per kilogram of body weight. This is approximately 1 to 2 cups of water or sports drink (this amount will be different depending on your weight).

• If over the next 2 hours no urine is produced or it is dark in colour, slowly drink another 1/2 to 1 1/2 cups of water or sport drink.

• Start drinking early and regularly to help replace all the water lost through sweating.

Drink more if:

• You sweat a lot

• You are wearing heavy sports equipment (like in hockey or football)

• You are exercising in the heat and humidity

When is water a better choice?

Here are 5 situations where water is a better choice than a sports drink:

• If exercise intensity is low or moderate and the session lasts less than an hour

• If you are well fed and hydrated prior to exercise that lasts less than an hour

• During an athletes off-season and on recovery days

• If exercise intensity is low to moderate in a temperate or cool environment

• If the goal of the training program (endurance athlete) is optimization of fat metabolism

The bottom line

In some situations drinking a sports drink may be better than water. You may benefit from drinking a sports drink if you are doing heavy exercise or playing sports for more than an hour, especially in the heat. Most people who enjoy being active, but are not athletes, are usually not exercising long enough or at a level intense enough to need sports drinks. In this case, plain water would be the best choice.

Homemade sports drink recipe

Click here for the recipe

Happy hydrating everyone!