Hydration Needs, Kidney Function And Natural Bodybuilding Tr

By Author: Kevin Doberstein CFT
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Article Description: With proper hydration being critical to the natural bodybuilding, this article describes what happens if the bodybuilder doesn't drink enough fluids. How much fluid is needed and how to determine how much you need. The kidney function on the body's regulation of fluids. The condition of Hyponatremia and the results.

Hydration Needs, Kidney Function and Natural Bodybuilding Training Performance. What is Hyponatremia?

By Kevin Doberstein CFT
Copyright 2005 Nature Boy Bodybuilding

As a rule, most trainees don't drink enough fluids while training. To make matters worst, the further the trainee becomes dehydrated the more impact it has on performance. The heart rate starts to elevate, the blood starts to thicken and the body's temperature will start to rise. This especially true if you are training outdoors during hot temperatures. Heat exhaustion can start to develop. And if you continue to push it, it can turn into a heat stroke in severe cases. Even a slight decrease in body fluid (dehydration) can jeopardize performance.

Water makes up 55 to 75 percent of ...
... your body weight. Your blood is 90 percent water. If you become dehydrated the blood will thicken and also slow down and become less efficient for processing. Water helps the body store energy by gathering with the glycogen. Your muscle tissue is made up with 70 to 80 percent of water. With water making up a majority of your total body, you can see how important staying hydrated is to performance.

Calculating you body's hydration needs.

It is rather a simple way to determine how much you need while training. Before working out weight yourself without clothing. Then weight yourself again in the same fashion after working out. If you lost weight this means you didn't drink enough fluids to maintain.
For example if you weighted 200 pounds before working out and after weighted 198 pounds you have lost 2 pounds of fluid weight. To make up the 2 pounds of missing fluid weight you will need to drink 32 ounces of fluid additional to what you are already taking in.
In respect to body fluids, you want to replace 100 percent as a rule to aid the body in processing.

What is Hyponatremia?

Taking in too much water at one time brings on this condition. The over hydration of blood causes very low blood plasma sodium levels. The imbalance causes the rapid flow of water into the brain. Severe cases can result in seizures, comas and death.
Athletes trying to dilute the urine enough to hide drug detection sometimes use the practice of excessive drinking of fluids.
In general, excessive drinking of fluids and or sodium loss can cause Hyponatremia.

Kidney Function and Body Hydration.

The human kidneys are bean shaped and about the size of a closed fist. Twenty to twenty-five of the blood that is pumped through the heart flows through them each minute. They are comprised of three sections. The outer area is the cortex. Under that is the medulla. And inside the medulla is a hollow chamber called the pelvis.

The kidneys regulate your body's fluids by increasing or decreasing the flow of urine. If your body becomes dehydrated it will hold back the production of urine and the amount that excretes will be dark color. If you become somewhat over hydrated it will increase the production of urine. And this urine will be clearer.

The kidneys also work to control normal levels of sodium and other electrolytes. Electrolytes are ions like sodium, potassium or chloride help regulate the flow of water molecules across the cell membrane. This is done through the urine. If the body is becoming dehydrated the kidney will filter out the sodium from the urine and keep it in the body to help retain water. If the body becomes hydrated it will excrete the sodium through the urine.

Overall the kidneys play a vital role keeping body's fluids in balance. Especially after intense exercise or extreme climatic conditions like very hot weather.

Resources:

Fred Hatfield PhD. 2004 Fitness The Complete Guide
Bob Murray, PhD Preventing Dehydration
Bob Murray PhD Hyponatremia in Athletes.
John W. Kimball, 1983 Biology

Feel free to use this article as long as this bio and the links must be working.

By Kevin Doberstein CFT. Nature Boy Bodybuilding. "www.nature-boy-bodybuilding.com"
Other articles about bodybuilding you can check out
"Platform shoes to build Gastrocnemius (calves)" (http://www.nature-boy-bodybuilding.com/id192.html)
A study on using strength shoes and plyometrics to build calves. Also a thesis on
"Escalating Muscle Glycogen Stores" (http://www.nature-boy-bodybuilding.com/id191.html)
Proclaimed as the natural steroids for the natural bodybuilder, using carbohydrates for fueling muscle for workouts and recovery.


About the Author By Kevin Doberstein CFT. Other articles about bodybuilding you can check out. Using strength shoes and plyometrics, Platform shoes to build Gastrocnemius (calves) and Escalating Muscle Glycogen Stores carbohydrates for fueling muscle for workouts and recovery.