I feel like I’m getting mixed responses when it comes to drinking Gatorade more. I find I feel a little light headed after strenuous exercising in the gym.
Is Gatorade with electrolytes only for if you get very sweaty in the gym or can it be consumed either way? I don’t always get very sweaty after working out but sometimes I do.
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So, Gatorade and other electrolyte drinks are most helpful when you are very sweaty, ie you are losing a lot of electrolytes and water and are very dehydrated.
It doesn’t matter if you’re getting dehydrated from working out in the gym or from working outdoors in the summer.
If that ISNT the case, then chances are Gatorade is still fine, but normal water would be just as good if not better.
Because if you aren’t losing a crap ton of electrolytes and water from sweating it all out, you don’t really need the electrolytes in the Gatorade. They’re not going to hurt you, but they’re not really helping you either. Plus Gatorade also has a lot of sugar in it to make it an acceptable flavor for people. So unless you want that sugar too for whatever reason, normal water I’d probably fine if not better
It can be consumed regardless, but it’s only going to be beneficial if you have lost a lot of fluids. So sweating a lot (or really bad diarrhea).
Even then it is only marginally beneficial and just about anyone besides like professional athletes where every single tiny nearly immeasurable amount of performance they can gain is important won’t get a whole lot out of it.
The reason it doesn’t really matter to non-athetes is that sure even after a big work out you probably need some electrolytes. But water and literally any food would probably get the job done.
Water is best. The problem with gatorade isn’t that the electrolytes are all hype and not necessary…it’s that gatorade has a lot of sugar in it. If you’re exercising to lose weight, a sugary beverage isn’t helping you. Hydrate with water and leave the simple sugar calories out of it. If you’re exercising to gain muscle mass and sculpt your physique, then you need to control your sugar intake. Sugar (glucose) causes your metabolic processes to preferentially consume blood glucose, instead of metabolizing fat cells. You want to build muscle and burn fat. That means eat proteins and stay off the sugars.
The electrolytes can help if you’re *heavy* sweating, but honestly you’re fine just making sure you’ve got a little food in your system. The actual amount of electrolytes you lose is relatively small compared to the amount of water. It doesn’t take much food consumption to replace the mineral content your body needs. The bigger problem is dehydration. Just drink water.
When you exercise your muscles consume the glucose in your blood, causing your blood sugar to drop (which can make you feel lightheaded). Your liver replenishes the glucose levels by breaking down glycogen but the process isn’t as fast as your muscles consume it. People will say “eat a sugary snack” and that’ll spike your blood sugar quickly but it’s defeating the purpose. The human body is excellent at energy management because that’s how we’ve survived thousands of years (and “life” in general has evolved over billions). Energy is a resource and those organisms that don’t manage it well, die off. Let your body’s energy management processes function. Eat healthy and simple foods and stay away from fancy electrolyte drinks and processed sugars. When you feel thirsty drink water. When you sweat, drink even more water. Doing that with modest exercise will result in a body composition (in terms of fatty to lean tissue ratios) that’s tailored well to your activity level. If you want a different body composition, just modulate the intensity/duration of your activities and your body will tell you if it needs more/less food. I’m not a proponent of eating like 50,000,000kg of protein in milkshake form and taking huge piles of supplements while pumping iron constantly. It results in a non-natural physique that sure, looks impressive, but it isn’t sustainable without constant effort and significant financial cost. Just eat healthy and exercise modestly and your natural healthy body shape is plenty attractive enough.
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