Dehydration in Athletes
- gwynethhadasa
- Dec 3, 2021
- 1 min read
Going through research methods class after working as a summer research assistant seemed redundant to me. Part of me wished I had taken this class before that job, but I'm also thankful that it happened this way. The class was a breeze. I mean it sucked that I could not do my research with my summer research partners; my prof wanted us to be mentors for others. Oh the struggles. Now I understand that teaching is hard. But I learned how to be patient, how to guide (not do everything on my own), and to strategically yet equally divide up work.
For our research project, my partner and I decided to investigate about hydration among OBU female athletes since she herself is a softball player.
This is our conclusion:
1. Athletes really need to be mindful about their consumption. You would think drinking water is enough, but it all depends on their work output, sweat rate, temperature and humidity, and also the need to put electrolytes and energy in the drinks.
2. Athletes tend to know the information but neglect to modify their behaviors. Encouragements from their coaches or friends go a long way.
3. Pre-activity hydration is super important. Fluid balance helps with cognition, nutrient transport (blood flow), electrolyte balance, etc. All of these impact movements and performance. So many athletes go to practice and competitions already dehydrated. So many people work out already dehydrated and get frustrated that they are experiencing constant fatigue.
FYI, the paper and the poster have similar styles to the ones I worked on over the summer. I just could not publish them as part of my work contract as a research assistant. But yes, imagine writing 2 of those and making 3 of those posters in 2 months, while the ones here are finished in 4 months.
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