Crosby Swimming Club
 

City of Liverpool Swimming Club have an nutritionalist working within their program at the moment, advising swimmers and parents about the importance of keeping your body hydrated at all times. NOT just during a training session but before and after, and throughout the day. This a very important part of your training schedule and can make the difference between a good training session where you are able to train to your full potential, or a session where you are under performing/ tired or lethargic.

 

The first signs of dehydration are;

Dry lips,

Dry mouth,

Feeling thirsty,

Body overheating,

 

THE 1ST SIGNS OF DEHYDRATION CAN BE HIDDEN DURING A SWIM TRAINING SESSION, BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY YOU ARE IMMERSED IN WATER SO YOU DO NOT FEEL YOUR BODY OVERHEATING, AND YOU WILL BE TAKING ON WATER DURING THE BREATHING PHASE OF YOU STROKES SO YOU MAY NOT FEEL THE NEED TO DRINK.

 

The second stages of dehydration;

Lethargy, feeling tired or heavy in the water,

Cramps,

Headaches,

 

THESE ARE ALL WARNING SIGNS THAT YOUR BODY IS TELLING YOU TO DRINK. BY THIS STAGE YOU ARE DEHYDRATED AND STARTING TO DRINK IS SIMPLY TOO LITTLE TOO LATE.

 

The third stage of dehydration;

You faint or pass out.

THIS IS YOUR BODY SHUTTING DOWN TO REPAIR ITSELF AND NOT CAUSE ANY MORE HARM.

 

Many of you are training very hard at the moment in preparation for North Wests etc. All of you will be competing in the Wirral Meet on July 7th and 8th ’12. That gives us just over a month to undergo the following program to get hydrated, keep hydrated and compete hydrated. Set yourselves a goal or treat it as an experiment to see if you train better and compete better when you are hydrated.

 

WHAT TO DRINK?

 

WE SHOULD BE DRINKING DILUTED CORDIAL/ HIGH JUICE, WITH A PINCH OF SALT ADDED TO A LITRE BOTTLE OF FLUID. (NOT TOO MUCH THAT YOU ARE ABLE TO TASTE IT, WHILST TRAINING WE NOT ONLY LOSE WATER BUT SALT AS WELL).

WHAT NOT TO DRINK.

 

MOST DRINKS ARE FINE BUT YOU SHOULD TRY TO AVOID DRINKS THAT CONTAIN CAFFIENE, SUCH AS COLA, COFFEE, TEA AND HIGH ENERGY DRINKS (RED BULL), AS THIS WILL MAKE YOU ‘WEE’ MORE AND ONLY ADD TO YOUR DEHYDRATION. FIZZY DRINKS AND SPORTS DRINKS SHOULD ONLY BE DRUNK AS A TREAT AND NOT AS A BASIS TO PROVIDE HYDRATION.

DRINK THROUGHOUT THE DAY

 

IT IS GOOD PRACTISE TO DRINK THROUGHOUT THE DAY AND NOT JUST WHEN YOU START YOUR TRAINING SESSION. HOPEFULLY YOUR SCHOOLS SHOULD BE AWARE THAT YOU ARE A COMPETETIVE ATHELETE, IF THEY DO NOT, PLEASE INFORM THEM (MANY HAVE A GIFTED AND TALENTED PROGRAM). A DRINK SHOULD BE TAKEN INTO SCHOOL (NOT JUST YOUR LUNCH-TIME DRINK!) AND DRANK THROUGHOUT THE DAY (IF NOT PERMITTED DURING A LESSON THEN AT EVERY BREAK TIME, AND REFILLED IF POSSIBLE).

 

‘WEE’ TEST

 

A SIMPLE TEST TO SEE IF YOU ARE HYDRATED OR NOT, IS THE COLOUR OR YOUR ‘WEE’! THE DARKER YOUR ‘WEE’ COLOUR THE MORE DEHYDRATED YOU ARE. THE GOAL OF THIS TRIAL IS TO GET YOUR ‘WEE’ CLEAR THROUGHOUT THE DAY. ONCE YOU START THIS TRIAL YOU MAY FIND THAT YOU NEED TO ‘WEE’ MORE OFTEN (SO IT MIGHT BE AN IDEA TO START YOUR TRIAL DURING THE HALF TERM HOLIDAYS), THIS IS PERFECTLY NORMAL AS YOUR BODY GETS USED TO THE CORRECT AMOUNT OF FLUID IT SHOULD BE GETTING.

 

GOOD LUCK.

 

BRIAN STEVENS

HEAD COACH

CROSBY SWIMMING CLUB.