USA Hockey Magazine

Don't Wait Until You're Thirsty To Hydrate Y O U S W E A T, Y O U D R I N K . It's a simple concept that is a fundamental for anyone who is physically active. But often the cool dry air in rinks leave a t h l e t e s u n d e r e s t i m a t i n g how much they need to drink, especially goalies. Short benches and lots of pads in hockey can set the stage for very significant fluid loss that could set the stage for perfor- mance decline, slow post game recovery and possibly heat injury. • As little as a 2 percent sweat loss in a 100-pound athlete (2 pounds) can leave his or her reaction time and endurance on the sluggish side. • Sweat loss in the 3 to 5 percent range in that same 100-pound athlete (3 to 5 pounds) is common in high-minute athletes and goalies, and must be replenished in a timely manner, especially if playing another game that day or heading out into the heat. • When we see athletes lose more than 5 percent of their body weight during a com- petition, it could spell trouble that could require immediate cooling and IV interven- tions to prevent a very severe condition of muscle breakdown called rhabdomyolysis and organ failure (kidney in particular). We teach athletes to realize that their drive to drink falls well behind the rate that they sweat, so it's important to remember not to wait until you get thirsty to drink. We even have a pace that we are after for the athletes to drink water or sports drinks before and during activity to minimize net weight loss from setting in: • Consume 17 to 20 fluid ounces water/ sports drink two to three hours before exer- cise and seven to 10 fluid ounces of water/ sports drink 10-20 minutes before practice. • The goal is to maintain hydration at less than two percent body weight reduction. This generally requires seven to 10 fluid ounces every 10 to 20 minutes. • Increased sodium intake may be war- ranted when physical activity exceeds four hours, and during the first three to five days of activity exposure (camps or start of sea- son), since the increased thermal strain and associated increased sweat rate increase the sodium lost in sweat. Too much water and too little salt can actually cause water poisoning when sweat loss is extreme. Symptoms of water poisoning (hyponatremia) include puffiness, nausea, vomiting and headache. Too little consumption of fluids can be iden- tified by dry mouth, dry eyes, poor endurance, slow recovery of heart rate between shifts or by concentrated urine levels. One more coaching point on this very important topic. When things are going well in a game, athletes drink more liberally, but when things are not going so good they tend to not drink while brooding between shifts. By doing so they often minimize their chances of winning the next puck battle that is coming they go over the boards. Athletes need to be reminded to drink by the coaching staff on the bench and by parents before and after they get on the ice. P Dave Ellis is a sports dietitian and strength coach who has spent more than 40 years training collegiate, Olympic and profession- al athletics. He is currently the director of Performance Nutrition for the University of Nebraska Department of Athletics. k The fact that Americans spent $5.5 billion on sports drinks last year would come as no surprise to anyone who hangs around a rink. It's hard to navigate through a crowded lobby or enter a locker room without seeing bottles of fluorescent colored liquids. But when it comes to quenching your thirst and replenishing lost fluids are they any better than a big glass of water? Most nutritionists say that youth hockey players who are skating in a 50-minute practice or playing in a game will do just fine by drinking water. But if you're exercis- ing for more than 60 minutes or sweating excessively, a sports drink can help provide important nutrients. "If you're a goalie who is sweating buckets under all those pads and can't take a drink as often as the guys on the bench, we can make a case that you might have to take some more strategic precautions," said sports nutritionist and Level 5 hockey coach Dave Ellis. Ellis recommends low calorie versions of sports drinks because they have less sugar than most sports drinks, but they still have the electrolytes, salt and potassium that are being lost in the sweat. P AUGUST 2022 USAHOCKEYMAGAZINE.COM // 27 Bottoms Up To Stay On Top By Dave Ellis

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