In today’s sports world, it seems like there are endless options for energy-boosting products and few ways to distinguish which ones may actually help. Athletes need to pay special attention to the source of these products to ensure they are not tainted with harmful ingredients or packaged in factories that may also produce banned substances. Navigating the world of supplements can be daunting. It’s important to remember that you can maintain higher energy levels with a few simple changes to your daily habits. Let’s take a moment to discuss what you can do right now to boost your energy throughout the day.
It’s so simple a solution we often neglect it. In fact, your body is pretty good at telling you when you’re dehydrated, but we often ignore the impulse. Dehydration can manifest itself in more than just thirst. You may feel fatigued, dizzy, irritable, unable to focus, and even hungry. When you deny your body water, it sends a hunger signal to your brain. This drives you to eat as a secondary, albeit inefficient, way of obtaining water contained within food. The next time you’re feeling tired and in need of a snack, reach for your water bottle first. You’d be surprised how often you may simply be dehydrated when your energy levels are dipping.
For the athletes who are great at drinking water consistently throughout the day, remember that good hydration and energy maintenance also comes from replacing lost electrolytes. Sweating during workouts leads to a loss of salt from your body. Hydrating with water can help replace some fluid, but it can also further dilute your salt concentration within the body. This sodium is critical for regulating normal body processes. In addition to water, you can incorporate an electrolyte beverage into your daily routine. This can be maximally effective during or after workouts.
The conversation around caffeine and sports continues to grow. I encourage you to think about your caffeine intake and sleep in a more integrated way. As an elite athlete with heavy training, you are guaranteed to be exhausted at multiple times throughout your season. If you choose to drink tea, coffee, or energy drinks regularly, try to keep a sleep log. While caffeine has been shown to improve performance during competition (see my post on Caffeine and Sports Performance), it can also become a bad habit for athletes whose energy levels dip often during the day. Your habit can become a “band-aid” solution, masking the underlying problem of insufficient sleep and perhaps poor recovery methods. Taking a sleep log will help you visualize how much sleep you are actually getting each night and how consistent you are with your bedtime. Caffeine cannot replace the positive effects of sleep even though it temporarily stimulates your mind by inhibiting drowsiness. For the long-term solution you are looking for, consistent sleep is the ultimate answer.
Like any habit, it may take a few weeks for these tips to become part of your routine. Your training and performance will improve as you begin to maintain more energy throughout the day. Trust your body and the simple tools at your disposal to help you stay energized and ready to train.
ABOUT BRIDGEATHLETIC
BridgeAthletic works with elite professional, collegiate, and club swimming programs to provide a turnkey solution for dryland training. Led by Nick Folker, the top swimming strength and conditioning coach in the world, our team builds stroke-specific, custom-optimized dryland programs for each of our clients. The individualized workouts are delivered directly to athletes via our state of the art technology platform and mobile applications. Check Nick and BridgeAthletic out as recently featured in SwimSwam.
ABOUT NICK FOLKER
Nick Folker is the Co-Founder and Director of Elite Performance at BridgeAthletic. Nick’s roster of athletes includes 35 Olympians winning 22 Olympic Medals, 7 team NCAA Championships and over 170 individual and relay NCAA championships. Megan Fischer-Colbrie works as the Sports Science Editor at BridgeAthletic. Megan was a four-year varsity swimmer at Stanford, where she recently graduated with a degree in Human Biology. The Championship Series by BridgeAthletic is designed to empower athletes with tips from the pros that will help them reach peak performance come race day. We will be covering competition-focused topics such as nutrition, recovery, stretching, and mental preparation.
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