Hydration and Heat Acclimation

Summer is almost here, which in New Jersey means hot days and humidity we all dread hearing about.

As we head into the warmer months of the year, it’s time to start thinking about proper hydration and modifying workouts to stay safe but maintain their stimulus.

How Much Water Should I Be Drinking?

A good starting place is ½ of your bodyweight in ounces each day.

So a 180lb male is shooting for 90 ounces and a 120lb female is aiming for 60 ounces. This is of course just a starting point. Heading into the hot summer months, we need to start considering how hot our workouts, runs, or outdoor activities will be. If you work outdoors, that number increases even more to combat the exposure to stress.

NOW I KNOW WHAT YOU’RE THINKING. “THAT’S A LOT OF WATER AND MUCH MORE THAN I USUALLY DRINK.”

Here are some tips to help you ensure you’re hitting your ideal H2O intake:

1.) Keep a water bottle with you! Glass or ceramic are the healthiest reusable materials, steel is next in line, and plastic is last but better than nothing!

2.) Know how many times you need to finish your bottle to hit your total!

PRO TIP – put multiple rubber bands around your bottle and move 1 band from the top to the bottom after completing a bottle. Now you won’t lose track throughout the day!

3.) Get your morning glass of water!

Make sure to have a glass of water in the morning (sea salt and lemon make this tasty and good for your adrenals.) This is going to make sure you don’t fall behind and feel like you need to chug a gallon of water after dinner.

Things that do and DO NOT COUNT towards this total:

Things that count:
Water
Water with fruit/veggies infused by you at home
Water with lemon, sea salt and a small splash of apple cider vinegar (for the AM)
Carbonated water with NO additives (home carbonating machines are available if bubbles are your thing)

Things that DO NOT count:
Coffee/tea (sorry, caffeine junkies!)
Fruit juices, veggie juices, smoothies
Sport drinks
Energy drinks
Soda
Alcohol of all kinds
Pre and post-workout drinks (BCAAS, protein shakes, Fitaids/KillCliffs/Jocko/Etc.)

The Benefits of Hydration!

– Increased organ function: Happy organs make us feel better and live longer lives.
– Increased athletic performance:  Better workouts lead to better results which leads to increases in health and fitness.
– Optimal detoxification of the body: We break up a lot of junk in our body when we do intense exercise and it’s important to be able to mobilize and get rid of that junk!
– Improved gastro function/digestion: The more of our food we can absorb, the better we feel, perform, and recover!
– Better mental acuity in the afternoon: Have some tasks to finish late in the day? Want some energy for a late workout? Need energy to spend quality time with friends or family? Drink that good ol’ H2O!

The Negatives of Dehydration:

– Chronic bloating and holding water are common: this bloating is also connected to detoxification so can’t get that waste out of our body.
– Increased stress on the body (cortisol): your body can only handle so much stress (good or bad, it makes no difference); save that stress tolerance for other things (maybe your WOD)
– Lowers efficiency in performing mental tasks (especially in the afternoon): mental power probably keeps you safe at work, makes you money at work, or makes your life more fulfilled with your loved ones. Less of this mental power can lead to problems in these key areas of life.
– Heart rate will spike doing even the most simple physical tasks: feel like you’re a fit person but you just walked the laundry up your stairs and it feels similar to getting off the air bike? Drop the laundry and have a glass of water.
– Waking up feeling groggy or almost hung over: no one wants to start the day on the wrong side of the bed. Getting hydration in line is one less thing that can lead to a slow start to your day.

If you feel like you have no idea where to start, just drink a glass of water. If you need help establishing better habits around hydration and nutrition, WE CAN HELP! Head over to to our Nutrition page to learn how!

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