optic yellow
Legend
Is this something I should be doing? I often find myself with an irresistible craving to drink soy sauce after I make a serious effort to hydrate with water so I'm wondering if that is what I am trying (clumsily) to do.
Electrolyte supplementation
- Thread starter optic yellow
- Start date
optic yellow
Legend
Honestly I meant more in general than specific to when I'm playing tennis matches.
socallefty
G.O.A.T.
I drink coconut water a lot and eat bananas if I want to load up on electrolytes before a match in hot/humid weather. Occasionally I will even take a Salt pill before a match to prevent cramping - I do it before going diving also.
LuckyR
Legend
Ah so. The average American diet has an abundance of sodium, but you know best what your diet is like.
ollinger
G.O.A.T.
....and other electrolytes as well. Abnormal electrolyte levels in relatively healthy people who aren't on medications that affect electrolyte levels are quite rare and not worth concerning yourself with.
i drink one of each of these a day (typically in a 64oz growler of water when i play tennis and/or on days i fast):
Drink LMNT. | | Paleo-Keto Friendly Hydration | Zero Sugar Electrolytes – Drink LMNT.
An electrolyte drink mix with everything you need & nothing you don't. No sugar. No artificial ingredients. No fillers. LMNT kickstarts your day, suppor...
drinklmnt.com
SNAKE Juice – SNAKE Diet Electrolyte Drink
snakebrands.com
side note: i eat a clean diet (veggies & protein - no sugar, few carbs, no "vegetable" oil, no/little processed foods ) & exercise daily
optic yellow
Legend
I have heard coconut water many times before but I've always struggled a bit with the taste of it. I do like bananas though so I will remember to prioritize those more in general for my diet. I never struggle with cramping during matches but hearing you take a salt pill to supplement your own diet gives me confidence I'm on to something with what I'm doing.
I do tend to eat things made at home and I don't salt heavily. Sometimes I find myself craving crackers or potato chips or other sodium laden food like deli cold cuts for the salt as much as for the other flavors, but I don't typically overindulge. It does feel like I currently have to drink a ridiculous amount of water and eat a ridiculous amount of food to stay healthy and functional so I wonder if part of the issue is simply volume. If I pause and take a deep breath I can often notice my body telling me "this water is great but its missing something" and then afterwards if I do something like drink the soy sauce or even some Gatorade I tend to feel much better at least for a bit. I've done enough yoga and meditation training to know that what I'm noticing internally is correct and electrolytes were the only thing I could think of that these other liquids were contributing that water wasn't.
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optic yellow
Legend
It sounds like I need to research whether the medications I am on affect this.
Thank you for the suggestions. I will look into these products. Why do you put vegetable in quotation marks? Do you mean you exclude low quality "vegetable" oils like those made from GMO soybeans?i drink one of each of these a day (typically in a 64oz growler of water when i play tennis and/or on days i fast):
Drink LMNT. | | Paleo-Keto Friendly Hydration | Zero Sugar Electrolytes – Drink LMNT.
An electrolyte drink mix with everything you need & nothing you don't. No sugar. No artificial ingredients. No fillers. LMNT kickstarts your day, suppor...drinklmnt.comSNAKE Juice – SNAKE Diet Electrolyte Drink
side note: i eat a clean diet (veggies & protein - no sugar, few carbs, no "vegetable" oil, no/little processed foods ) & exercise daily
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It's possible to dilute the sodium out of your body or to a low concentration by drinking a lot of plain water.
I recently started using gatorlytes (unflavored), you are supposed to add to gatorade. I usually add to water and use lemon or lime juice for flavor. These work great.
Nuun also works well or liquid IV.
I always drink one of these above when playing. I live in FL and sweat a lot
I recently started using gatorlytes (unflavored), you are supposed to add to gatorade. I usually add to water and use lemon or lime juice for flavor. These work great.
Nuun also works well or liquid IV.
I always drink one of these above when playing. I live in FL and sweat a lot
IS vegetable oil bad for health: Why should you stop using vegetable oil now?
Cow GheeGhee contains fats that have a high smoke point, thus making them very hard to oxidise and change into unhealthy fats. It helps the stomach release acids that aid digestion. It is also rich in antioxidants that enable proper absorption of minerals and vitamins from other foods and thus...
megamind
Legend
+1 on LMNTi drink one of each of these a day (typically in a 64oz growler of water when i play tennis and/or on days i fast):
Drink LMNT. | | Paleo-Keto Friendly Hydration | Zero Sugar Electrolytes – Drink LMNT.
An electrolyte drink mix with everything you need & nothing you don't. No sugar. No artificial ingredients. No fillers. LMNT kickstarts your day, suppor...drinklmnt.comSNAKE Juice – SNAKE Diet Electrolyte Drink
side note: i eat a clean diet (veggies & protein - no sugar, few carbs, no "vegetable" oil, no/little processed foods ) & exercise daily
I’ve tried other brands (Relyte / bare performance nutrition), and they don’t taste as good. Just got a $5 LMNT sample pack, and was surprised at how much better it tastes
Chas Tennis
G.O.A.T.
A reference for nutrition and sports will discuss what is needed.
One important thing is sodium in the blood that we get from salt, especially salt added to foods and drinks. Salt is lost in sweating. On hot days, some players flake off later in the match. Why?
Salt is a necessary part of the usual sports drinks. (Gatorade, Powerade) My nutrition reference below explained that they determined the percentage of salt in a sports drink by what is still OK for the taste. That level is often close to the percentage sodium in sports drinks (Gatorade 7%). I recommend sports drinks for some calories and salt at the right time, during a tennis match. The reference below has a chapter on Nutrition and Fluid Timing.
I recently read that if you should become dehydrated and you begin drinking plain water quickly to correct that, you can cause the sodium in your blood to drop too much. That has some adverse effect on your body. (I forget.) If you get dehydrated consider reading up on drinking too much plain water.
A bottle of soy sauce in my refrigerator labeled "Reduced Sodium" has 19% daily requirement in 1 tablespoon. Maybe you are craving sodium in salt after loading up with water. ?
In any case, listening to forum posters should always be backed up in a second independent way. The 1st addition had the story of how salt is added to sports drinks and is much less expensive. It also discussed the body's need for sodium.
Advanced Sports Nutrition, 3rd edition 2021, D. Benardot
The 1st addition (2006) has a lot of information, is probably cheap used, and the 3rd addition has more detail.
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happyandbob
Legend
This electrolyte mix works for me: https://www.latimes.com/health/la-xpm-2012-may-26-la-he-try-this-sports-drink-20120526-story.html
movdqa
Talk Tennis Guru
I take 500 -1000 mg of magnesium daily depending on how much I'm working out and whether or not I am getting cramps. I got cramps when I woke up this morning, chugged a 500 and am fine. I too 1000 additional along with my other supplements. I add a fair amount of table salt to food too.
optic yellow
Legend
Will look into both of these, thank you.
What do you use when you want something with a neutral flavor?personally i switched to extra virgin olive oil & ghee.IS vegetable oil bad for health: Why should you stop using vegetable oil now?
Cow GheeGhee contains fats that have a high smoke point, thus making them very hard to oxidise and change into unhealthy fats. It helps the stomach release acids that aid digestion. It is also rich in antioxidants that enable proper absorption of minerals and vitamins from other foods and thus...timesofindia.indiatimes.com
Definitely will try to obtain a sample pack if I have multiple recommendations for it.
optic yellow
Legend
Yeah thank you for further confirming this. That is exactly what is happening. I recognize I am dehydrated and overcompensate by chugging water, then get to the point I feel depleted and lifeless unless I intake salt from soy sauce or eating it straight. The way I have explained it to myself intuitively is that all life came from the ocean so water needs proportionate salt.
I also agree that sports drinks have their place. Sometimes they truly taste like an elixir of life. But I am trying to get my weight back down to a reasonable place so I know they cannot be the bulk solution for electrolyte supplementation.
Would you say the detail in the 3rd addition is worth the extra cost or not?
I already supplement with magnesium daily. I find it helpful for sleep (along with melatonin), reducing anxiety symptoms, and managing the side effects of the medications I am on. Usually 600mg in morning and 600mg at night though I sometimes just wing it because I can tell when I need it. Which form of magnesium you do use?
movdqa
Talk Tennis Guru
I'm taking Nature's Bounty right now but I find that the brand doesn't really matter.
RDA is 500 mg so I thought that 1,000 mg is a lot but you're obviously taking even more than I do.
One other thing that magnesium does is that it speeds up your GI system. One of the other electrolytes (not sure which) slows it down. The thing that I like about magnesium is that it's cheap and readily available.
PhxRacket
Hall of Fame
If you are looking at a sports drink, take a look at Biosteel or HEED as well as LMNT. You can’t go wrong. Look for no sugar, higher levels of electrolytes and no artificial color.
optic yellow
Legend
I mean which molecule it is bound too. Also I actually overestimated my intake. It is closer to 300 at each time than 600. (This is what I get for saying things without looking them up first!) If I take too much the GI acceleration effect becomes problematic; sensing how my gut feels is actually generally how I determine when I need to deviate from the standard intake routine. Will look up the electrolyte that slows it down when I can since I am curious to know what it is.
movdqa
Talk Tennis Guru
Magnesium Oxide.
megamind
Legend
You drink wine…on court! During changeovers?!
LOBALOT
Hall of Fame
If you don't have any Single Malt Scotch what else are you to drink on a changeover?
Fintft
G.O.A.T.
I do have, but only for winter time. Lagavulin 16?
Fintft
G.O.A.T.
No, at home, in the evening.
I crave salty foods when I’m exercising a lot. When I’m only playing 2-3 times a week, I don’t have the craving. It’s interesting that the body can tell you what you need. I usually have a low blood pressure so I’m naturally inclined to eat salt. I normally appreciate salted nuts, they do the trick for me.
movdqa
Talk Tennis Guru
Kyrgios took a sip of a fan's beer during a match.
Cage Rattler
Rookie
Precision Hydration ... plenty of world class athletes use their stuff .. I've used it for a number of years during international tournaments, etc. Works brilliantly and nothing else comes close in terms of sodium concentrations.
Permitlady
Professional
Pickle juice. If you're serious about electrolytes you're going to drink it. If your body needs electrolytes youre gonna love it
ollinger
G.O.A.T.
No thanks. Lots of sodium, relatively little potassium, not much of anything else useful
Permitlady
Professional
i thought this was about electrolytes, not goldilocks
finalfantasy7
Semi-Pro
Best source for potassium for an electrolyte its Creme of tartar - should be able to gets these in a sachets - just add around halp teaspoon to 1.5ltres water - shake - drink. Creme of tartar is absorbs super quickly.
I used to leave typical salty reidue on my face when finished tennis match - pure white crystal power on my face/kneck, hasnt occured once ive added the above
I used to leave typical salty reidue on my face when finished tennis match - pure white crystal power on my face/kneck, hasnt occured once ive added the above
SystemicAnomaly
Bionic Poster
Huh?
optic yellow
Legend
He left out the part about electrolytes needing to be in balance.
SystemicAnomaly
Bionic Poster
He implied it, did he not?.
Perhaps combining coconut water (high in K) with some pickle juice (high in Na) would be a bit better than either one w/o the other.
optic yellow
Legend
Yes but that is not necessarily going to be picked up on by people who don't know. It's not a super well popularized topic.
PURETENNISsense
Professional
#1 don't ever drink Powerade, gatorade, any of the other packaged sugary drink!
#2 possibly try something like Nuun tabs
#3 Best option.... check out your nutrition input (see if it works to your benefit or killing your potential) and make your own electrolyte mix. Do some research and test out your own mixes.
#2 possibly try something like Nuun tabs
#3 Best option.... check out your nutrition input (see if it works to your benefit or killing your potential) and make your own electrolyte mix. Do some research and test out your own mixes.
LuckyR
Legend
Uummm... why? Do you know something the NFL and the NCAA doesn't?
movdqa
Talk Tennis Guru
PURETENNISsense
Professional
Yes, I don't want Hormone blocking, cancer accelerating substances in my body. Especially when I can make my own electrolyte mix and eat from foods that are more nutrient dense than sugar-ade.
I seriously doubt thus guy pays as much attention to his health if he knew what's in that stuff.
Do you know what Rafa is drinking? If so please share.
PURETENNISsense
Professional
Im assuming have a monetary deal by endorsing these companies (I could me wrong and wouldn't mind being educated on this). I guarantee you Djokovic, Federer, Rafa, elite runners, and other high level athletes who care about their body and what goes into it won't consume simple products like Gatorade and Powerade. There's more science to proper hydration and nutrition. Powerade and Gatorade are not the answer... plain and simple, too much sugar.
movdqa
Talk Tennis Guru
Well, that's wrong. Elite runners and cyclists do drink flat soda.
PURETENNISsense
Professional
Guess I stand corrected.... probably should pass around flat sodas in the 2nd week of a slam during matches and let the players have at it.
Maybe also at the end of marathons and Ultra races too.
PURETENNISsense
Professional
Where have you seen, read or watched this?
Also, does it happen in every competition they do?
If it is, then great. If not, why not...
movdqa
Talk Tennis Guru
Runners and cyclists drink it for practical reasons. It's readily available along race routes around the world. A tennis court is a lot simpler because it's at one location so you can pack what you want in your bag or the tournament provides a standard array of drinks that the players can choose from. I know that Pop Tarts are also a popular pre-race food for runners.
