As a runner, I am always looking for new forms of energy to boost my race performance and everyday energy. I drink at least 8 bottles of water daily, to sustain my hydration. I have never really been a fan of the super sweetened sports drinks that taste like pure sugar. A large amount of my friends are sports drink addicts. I wanted to look into the effects, both negative and positive to see how worth it can drinking these be.
I never drink soda, or really even juice for that matter. I’ve never found the taste of the sugary drinks to be appealing. Sports drinks have that same sugary taste to me but are claimed to replenish electrolytes and other nutrients we need when we exercise. I strongly believe that there isn’t a better way to get these things through the food we eat, naturally. We need water to keep our bodies hydrated. Something that I didn’t think much about before looking into this, was the calories that are in these drinks. We are basically giving ourselves more calories than we are probably burning by drinking sports drinks. “A study in the Journal of Applied Physiology found that the taste of the drinks along with salt and other ingredients found in them actually cause people to drink more. So while you may be keeping yourself hydrated, you’re also consuming more calories than likely intended”(9 Negative Effects of Sports Drinks).
People will drink these just because they like the taste. People will drink them during or after a short workout, and others during or after a long workout. According to the MayoClinic, people should only drink sports drinks if they are working out for an hour and anything more than that. Otherwise, they only need water(Fitness). We know that sports drinks contain a lot of sugar that will give us short term energy, but there is a possibility of energy crashing. That’s why people should only drink it during a longer workout and after a long workout to replenish and keep them going.
While I believe that water is the best way to stay hydrated, it is good to know that sports drinks can have benefits for people who are already dehydrated. This article from Men’s Health Magazine, has great tips and information about drinking water vs. sports drinks.
Works Cited
1.”9 Negative Effects of Sports Drinks.” Leons Restaurant RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Oct. 2014.
2. “Fitness.” Sports Drinks: Better than Water? Mayo Clinic, n.d. Web. 13 Oct. 2014.
Here I am, doing absolutely no physical activity and sipping on some watermelon strawberry Gatorade while reading your blog (how ironic). I look at Gatorade sort of how people look at chocolate; there are benefits and disadvantages to eating chocolate, so debating the “healthiness” of it is not something that can be characterized in one sentence. The key to Gatorade consumption is that it is only beneficial when you are active. Most people know that Gatorade is full of electrolytes. These electrolytes, which can be sodium or potassium, replenish the body after perspiration. In a study done in April 2009, they found that sodium in Gatorade helped the endurance of bicyclists. Without any clear experimentation done that measures our bodily functions after consuming this sports drink, it’s hard to say what actual effect this has on our biology. Experimenting with Gatorade would be easy because it is in the market and won’t kill you (unless if you drink if in excess maybe).
http://www.livestrong.com/article/386179-why-would-gatorade-be-good-for-you/
I am actually really happy you wrote this blog. I have commented on any blog so far that has discussed energy or sport drinks while working out. I have actually wrote an article on it myself. I completely agree with you that sports drinks have benefits such as providing energy, but I think they have more harmful effects than we realize. Like you said, the drinks are all sugar and only provide us with a short burst of energy. Sports drinks are fine to drink during intense workouts or hours of physical activity because it will replenish our lost electrolytes and carbohydrates, but also contains a bunch of unnecessary calories. Flavored water is a good substitution over energy drinks when working out for a short workout because it provides us with a good taste so we will be satisfied and hydrated. The link below talks about why choosing flavored water would be a better choice over a sugary sports drink when performing physical activity or just in general. Also, there are some methods to flavor your water in a healthy way that also contain health benefits. Take a look if you are interested!
http://www.offthegridnews.com/2012/03/27/the-health-benefits-of-flavored-water/
I think it’s important that you wrote this article. I commented on someone else’s blog post that discussed specifically the effects that drinking gatorade can have on the body during a workout. As I previously stated on that persons’ blog as well, it seems as though sports drinks of that nature as you said are only beneficial after a certain point. Most people drink sugary drinks like gatorade after a long football or soccer game as opposed when you are simple lifting your arms or legs for a shorter amount of time. I think it was good that you discussed the possibility of an individual ingesting more calories from these drinks than he or she is actually burning off. I think you could further explain the effects that electrolytes have on the body and why they’re so important. Here is an article that further explains the positive effects of electrolytes: http://health.howstuffworks.com/wellness/diet-fitness/information/electrolyte.htm
I cannot agree your article more. For me, sport drinking is a thing that put the mask of health which actually cannot help us as much as we expected. The main component in most of sport drinks is suger, and it is exactlly those sugars help, our bodies can feel energetic in a short time. But the addiction to this is so bad to our health. Putting too much sugar without noticing will put a burden to our heart and blood vessel. Every time when I want to drink something sweet after sport I always tell myself to drink some water first, after that if I still want it, I will take some, but most of the times I just feel hydreat and throw the thought of drinking sport drinkings away.