nutrition for golf part 1 - hydration

Paul Chamberlain www.beyond-nutrition.co.uk

Nutrition for Golf

Part 1 - Hydration

Consider this. You have been practicing hard, you feel confident and are swinging the club really well. You start strongly and get in position to post a low round. Yet in the final three holes you make a string of errors. Wrong club on 16, tired swing on 17 and poor shot selection on 18. The difference between this scenario, and one where you finish strongly, could be as simple as having a good rehydration strategy – or simply put, drinking more water. If you are dehydrated, even by a tiny amount, you are not performing optimally. Both physical energy and mental function are negatively affected by dehydration, so keeping yourself topped up with water is the easiest nutritional strategy to improve your golf – at what ever level you play. So if the words ‘sports nutrition’ conjure up visions of highly bronzed muscle men knocking back raw eggs, or athletes eating endless bowls of pasta, think again. The science of nutrition is now being applied in virtually all sports, and is having a major impact on performance. So what about golf? Not a sport traditionally regarded as physically taxing, modern professional golfers are blowing away this misconception and are fitter and stronger than ever. Tiger Woods is regarded as one of the most supreme athletes of his generation, with countless hours in the gym, running and stretching all part of his regular routine. In addition to the physical demands golf is also a mental game, played over a long period of time and requiring high levels of concentration in order to execute shots correctly, often under pressure. Optimal mental function is as reliant on good nutrition as physical performance and is as relevant to golf as any other sport. So what easier place coule there be to start your golf nutrition programme than with the most basic of elements – water. The importance of water Most of us know that water is fundamental to life and without it death occurs relatively quickly. Whilst death from dehydration on the golf course is unlikely, what are the consequences of insufficient, or sub-optimal, fluid intake in relation to physical and mental performance?

• Nerve cells become dehydrated and cannot function properly. On the other hand hydrated cells have a more effective nerve firing which results in faster reaction time.

• Loss of electrolytes through sweating can adversely affect mental and physical performance. Electrolytes such as sodium, potassium, calcium and


magnesium play a vital role in the way that electrical nerve impulses are passed along nerve cells.

• Dehydration equals fatigue. Water is the main transport of delivering nutrients into the cells and one of the electrolytes, magnesium, is also involved directly in the production of cellular energy.

• Without water it is impossible to form the hundreds of enzymes that catalyse the millions of chemical reactions that drive the body every day, including those for the production of energy, hormones, immune cells and brain chemicals.

• Water is needed for proper joint lubrication and disc hydration of the spine. So dehydration really can adversely affect your performance, not just on the golf course but in your everyday life as well. To illustrate this point there was a very small, but nevertheless interesting study that aimed to determine the effect of water intake on the lucidity of elderly people in a retirement home. Each of the subjects was given a glass of water that was kept permanently topped up. Researchers found that the subjects kept sipping the water and after a few days noted significant improvements in lucidity among the whole group, suggesting that water was indeed vital for mental performance. This was only a small, uncontrolled trial but the results are still significant. Importance of Electrolytes Electrolytes are free ions, or minerals, that are electrically conductive. That is to say, electrolytes are necessary for the regulation of hydration and blood pH, as well as nerve and muscle function. Electrolytes are lost in sweat (and are the reason that sweat tastes salty). Electrolytes

Electrolyte Function

Sodium Nerve transmission, muscle contractions, oxygen transport

Chloride Nerve transmission, muscle contraction

Potassium Nerve transmission, muscle contraction, oxygen supply to the brain, heart beat regulation

Magnesium Nerve transmission, muscle relaxing, Energy production

Phosphorus Nerve transmission, muscle contraction

Calcium Nerve transmission, muscle contraction


Not surprisingly, fluid and electroyte loss have an adverse effect on exercise performance as illustrated below:

Is feeling ‘alright’ alright? In order to examine the effect of sub-optimal water intake on performance it is important to first understand the concept of homeostasis. This is the name given to the way in which the body maintains balance of certain systems whether this is blood sugar balance, water balance, blood pH balance or body temperature. If any of these variables moves outside the body’s set parameters then death results! Quite important then to keep close control over these by compensating when conditions dictate. Usually you will not be aware of these controls taking place and everything will appear to be normal. However, the problem is that the body is so adept at coping with physiological changes that you will hardly ever feel any different leading you to conclude that you are healthy. A good thing you might think, but just because you feel ok, does not mean that your body is necessarily working optimally, and getting it to work optimally is the whole point of good nutrition. So if you fail to drink enough, your homeostatic mechanisms will alter your physiology so that you start re-absorbing more water from food via the gut

Effect of Fluid Loss on Exercise Capacity

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Fluid Loss (%)

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and hang on to existing fluid by altering kidney function. All of which requires energy and means that you are functioning sub optimally, and because the thirst mechanism is quite primitive it may be some time before you are even aware of your need to drink more. So feeling ‘alright’ on the golf course does not necessarily mean you are functioning or performing optimally. Considerations There are many factors that contribute to dehydration. These include • High temperatures • High work rate (e.g. hilly golf course, hard gym session) • Long periods without food • Alcohol consumption the night before • Excessive tea and coffee consumption (both are diuretic) • Prescription drugs (many have a diuretic action as a side effect) The tables below show the distribution of water intake and how it is lost during an average day at average temperatures. When you consider that up to 1 litre of water per hour could be lost during moderate exercise and that this figure could double in hot temperatures it is easy to see how the 2.5 litres required during a normal day could be somewhat inadequate during a day’s golf. Your exact requirement will depend on work rate and temperature but clearly many people are not drinking enough. Remember, we are not striving to feel merely ‘alright’, we want to feel the best we can feel – optimally hydrated! What goes wrong? The chain of events from dehydration to life-threatening heat stroke is as follows. 1. Thermogenesis (heat) due to exercise + effects of sun 2. Body temperature increases 3. Homeostatic mechanisms trigger sweat glands to secrete sweat (including

electrolytes) which evaporates on the skin – cooling 4. Fluid loss exceeds intake

INTAKE Foods 700ml Liquids 1600ml Metabolic 200ml TOTAL 2500ml

LOSS Urine 1500ml Sweat 200ml Evaporation 400ml Exhaled 300ml Faeces 100ml TOTAL 2500ml


5. Dehydration 6. Premature fatigue and impaired mental function 7. Heat exhaustion 8. Heat stroke The extent of dehydration will determine the severity of the effects on the body, which can range from impaired performance and muscle cramps right through to hallucinations and cardiovascular complications. At its worst dehydration will result in heat stroke and is potentially life threatening. This may not be an issue playing on a February day in Scotland, but is a very real risk in the summer, especially in hotter climes. It is therefore important to be able to recognise the symptoms preceding heat stroke: • Dry mouth and eyes • Cessation of sweating • Increased rate of breathing • Increased pulse rate • Elevated blood pressure • Headache • Numbness and confusion The following table indicates how quickly dehydration can negatively effect the body. Taking an average body weight of 70kg a fluid loss of 3% equates to just 2 litres of water, an amount potentially lost in just 1 hour in hot conditions. Within 3-4 hours of insufficient fluid intake you could be facing heat stroke. Onset of Dehydration

Fluid Loss

Effect

3% Impaired performance

4% Exercise capacity reduced by up to 20%

5% Heat exhaustion

7% Hallucinations

10% Circulatory collapse


Urine colour This is the best way to assess your hydration status. If you are well hydrated your urine will be clear to light yellow and abundant. Less frequent urination than normal, and/or urine that is dark yellow indicates dehydration. Hydration for optimal performance Having discussed the dangers and effects of dehydration lets now look at ways of promoting optimal hydration and therefore optimal mental and physical performance. Before playing golf It is important to arrive at the first tee full hydrated. Make sure that you have drunk enough water the day before and minimise your intake of alcohol the night before. Alcohol consumption is the fastest way to get thoroughly dehydrated. If you do drink the night before ensure that you drink water at least equivalent to the amount of alcohol consumed. Excess tea and coffee should also be avoided as these too are diuretic in action. Instead drink diluted fruit juices, bottled water or herb teas. Snack on fruit, which has high water content and is an easy way to boost your fluid intake. During golf Keep drinking! Remember that an AVERAGE day’s water intake should be about 2.5 litres with about 1.6 litres of this in the form of liquids. So bear in mind that even a slight increase in work rate or temperature will result in the need for more fluids. So even the most sedentary golfers on a cold day should expect to be drinking at least 1.6 litres of water during the day. Drink before you feel thirsty. If you feel thirsty you are already very dehydrated. Take sips regularly rather that gulping down a litre at a time, this will just flush the kidneys and very little will actually be absorbed. A routine of sipping water on every tee is a good strategy. Again try to snack on fruit during the round, which boosts fluid intake and has the extra advantage of maintaining blood sugar levels (the importance of which will be covered in a separate article). Special notes for hot weather In hot weather water is not just important for optimal performance, it is required to prevent heat stroke. You could need as much as 1.5 to 2 litres per hour to keep pace with your fluid loss through sweating and breathing. If you are not urinating regularly or have a dry mouth or eyes then you are seriously dehydrated and need to drink more. In hot weather it is prudent to use an electrolyte replacement drink. Some of these also contain glucose, which has been shown in studies to improve the rate of water absorption through the gut. Proprietary electrolyte drinks are available, and there are powders or liquid drops that can be added to plain water and are convenient to take with you. In studies, electrolytes added to water provide better rehydration than plain water alone, which means you can drink less to achieve the same hydration results.


Summary No matter what level of competition you enter, there is no reason for any one to ignore the impact that nutritional science could have on golf performance. Something as simple as drinking more water could make the difference between winning and losing, finishing on a high, or entering the bar with tales of woe. In order to perform at your best you need full concentration, control of the nervous system and optimal energy production. Water is the foundation of any sports nutrition programme and a good hydration strategy is the first consideration towards optimal nutrition for golf performance.

nutrition for golf part 1 - hydration

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