The hydration deliberation

The whistle blows. Cleats dig into the ground, spraying pieces of grass with every step. Leg muscles fight the weight of the protective pads that every player wears; every step is a fight, an uphill battle. The team sprints down to one side of the field, stops, redirects and sprints back.  Balls of sweat dribble down foreheads, t-shirts underneath are soaked with sweat. Hot air fills the players' lungs as their bodies try to recover from sprinting. The final whistle sounds and they huddle around the coach, relieved that the practice is over. After the talk, the athletes crowd around one cooler filled with Gatorade and another with water. Which one should they choose?

Since the invention of Gatorade by researchers at the University of Florida in 1965, sports drinks have been a huge part of physical activity. Celebrity endorsements, flashy commercials, and clever marketing have turned many sports drinks into household names. Powerade and Gatorade top this list of popular sports drinks. Specially formulated to regain vital nutrients lost during physical activity, these brands of drinks are sought after by athletes everywhere. 

But how much activity does an athlete need to do for their bodies to require those extra nutrients? According to Arianne Szymas, a Dietician and Nutritionist at PSU, "You see these athletes sweating profusely and then they drink the sports drink and all of a sudden have energy. Someone playing a 30 minute pick up basketball game probably doesn't need the extra energy." Szymas goes on to say, "[For] under 60 minutes of vigorous work out, water is just fine. [Sports drinks] are overused and sometimes unnecessary." She added that although water would be fine for under those 60 minutes, the body does require more for longer activities. 

"The body loses about 900 to 1,400 milligrams of sodium per liter of sweat," Szymas remarked. Gatorade has a sodium content of 450 milligrams per liter, and does a nice job of replacing lost sodium in ways that water can't. Sodium is what keeps water in the blood and maintains hydration, which is vital.

   Sports drinks also help to replenish carbohydrates and electrolytes. Once again, the loss of electrolytes is not crucial unless the body is active for more than an hour. According to Keith Belmore, an Athletic Trainer at PSU, "Gatorade provides electrolytes, sodium, and potassium chloride that the body losses. It also helps to deter cramped muscle function. It provides a good source of carbs and has glucose readily available for the muscles. Sports drinks keep fluid balance and provide sweat replacement." It's no secret that sports drinks genuinely have much more flavor than water does. "The flavor is more appealing and helps motivate athletes to stay hydrated," Belmore added.

 Belmore went on to say that, "Water is definitely preferable during exercise but after the two hour mark, the body is depleted of electrolytes and energy and they need to be replenished to continue." Water does enter into the bloodstream quicker than sports drinks because it has less sugars and carbs in it. According to Belmore, "People should be drinking at least 8oz. of water a day and athletes should be drinking a significant amount more than that."

 For a person who is not on a sports team or is not performing vigorous exercise for more than an hour, water is definitely the way to go. While sports drinks do an excellent job of replacing lost nutrients that will help an athlete to stay hydrated, they only add extra calories, sugar, sodium, and carbohydrates if they're not burned off. This can lead to unwanted weight gain. "Someone who is not regularly exercising can gain 13 pounds a year off of just sports drinks," said Szymas. The high sugar content in sports drinks also erodes teeth faster than any soft drink and the extra sodium can lead to high-blood pressure and hypertension. "After-workout snacks high in sodium such as pretzels work just as well as sports drinks," she added, for those not doing vigorous workouts. "Apple juice and orange juice are also excellent replacements," Szymas remarked.

So is there really a battle between sports drinks and water? It really all depends on the person. Whether or not to drink water to hydrate or to get an extra boost from sports drinks is up to the individual. How hard do you plan to work out or exercise? How long do you plan on taking part in physical activity? These are questions that one must ask themselves before making a decision. While sports drinks are very important and scientifically proven to increase endurance in physical activity, a non-active body can take in a lot of unnecessary nutrients from them. Choose wisely.