Drink Up! It is Super Bowl Time!

We are just days away from the biggest game in professional football; the Super Bowl. February 3rd at 6:00 pm E.T. the San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens will compete for the title of Super Bowl XLVII.

Photo Courtesy of Microsoft Word

Whether you watch the game for the expertly performed plays or the outrageous commercials you will notice one thing: Water is in ALL of it! You may be rushing to the grocery store Saturday night to stock up on the necessary food and drinks for the day's festivities but the players are on a much different schedule.

The night before any physically active day, it is EXTREMELY important to hydrate (ask any athlete!). NFL players know their sweat rates and hydrate themselves accordingly. A sweat rate is more than simply drinking according to thirst. An individual's sweat rate can range from 1 to 4 pounds per hour; the variation is attributed to the sport, an individual's weight, and environmental conditions. You will notice 10 minutes prior to kickoff athletes are not drowning themselves in water in order to get hydrated. It is hugely important the night before a big game, or even a few hours before the start, that athletes are hydrating themselves properly  so that the kidneys are able to process the water in a efficient manner and muscle strength can be improved. Water is used throughout all of the our body; blood is about 93 % water, muscle is about 73% water and body fat is about 10% water.

Now that you know just how important water is to an athlete's performance you may be wondering how these players are able to take in that much water. The water straight from your tap is a great way to hydrate but it isn't the only way!

Many foods have a high water content. Some examples of this are:
Coffee: 99.5 percent water
(new research has found that coffee taken in normal doses hydrates as well as water)
Broccoli is 89 percent water
Lettuce is 96 percent water
Watermelon is 92 percent water
Strawberries are 92 percent water

You can not function without water whether you are on the field or in the stands. As the highly anticipated day comes upon us, make sure to drink up!

~Nicole
ACC Water Conservation Intern