The Performance Zone Part 2

This is part two from yersterday The Performance Zone 45W15-30

Today I am going to outline briefly how to prepare a homemade sports drink for training and competition.It really comes down to the hydration and the type of nutrition the athlete consumes on a regular basis but especially during track season or any other sport for that matter to maximize performance effort.

I have seen the change in athletes workouts and competition with these strategies.You can see immediate change in mood and behavior when the athlete is prepared with the right fuel and proper hydration .You would never put water in a car and expect it to go anywhere.Why do we put junk food,soda,HFCS drinks etc. (including Gatorade yep I said it) and expect great performance and attitude. You are doing your coaches a great disservice if you are bringing your child to practice with nothing or not the proper food as fuel on board. Attention span is there,ability to work hard…I think you get the point.

The major consideration for any hydration beverage is the provision and retention of water in the body. If you are exercising only moderately vigorously, and in mild weather, the form in which the water is provided is less important than for high activity/hot weather: plain water, flavored water, commercially-available sports drink or home-made sports drink (made according to the criteria below) are all adequate.

However, there is good evidence that a cooled, flavored sports drink of suitable composition encourages drinking and so may be better than plain water as a means of preventing dehydration, even for low-moderate physical activity in mild conditions.

For more vigorous and/or sustained exercise, particularly in the heat, the evidence is even stronger that the addition of carbohydrate and sodium (eg as salt) to water will assist significantly in preventing dehydration. A satisfactory drink can be made cheaply if it conforms to the following criteria:

With the availability of a multitude of pre-mixed, flavored sports drinks, or powders to which you simply add water, it is only the very dedicated (or money-conscious) sports person who is likely to bother with mixing their own sports drink. Always check the label of any drink you buy to make sure that it does not provide more than 8% carbohydrate

Here is just one recipe of many I offer free with a subscription to

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TrackMom Sports Drink

1 caffeine-free lemon tea bag

16oz of Water

2 tablespoons sugar or Agave syrup(my favorite)

1/8 teaspoon salt

4 tablespoons orange juice