What Happens to Your Body When You Become Dehydrated?

Dehydration in its simplest terms is defined as an excessive loss of body fluid. For any of you sports athletes out there, you all know the detriment dehydration can do to your body. But what exactly is going on with your body, physiologically, when you become dehydrated?

There are three main types of dehydration. Hypotonic, the loss of electrolytes. Hypertonic, the loss of water. And isotonic, the loss of both electrolytes and water. The most common type seen in humans is isotonic dehydration.

Bascially, your body is not getting the amount of water and electroytes it needs for proper functioning. And when this happens, your body literally begins to shut down. If not remedied, this can lead to neurological complications like seizures and eventually death. Yikes.

Symptoms of dehydration start to occur before you may even realize you are dehydrated. You may experience headaches, muscle cramping, dizziness or fainting. Other symptoms include dryness of your skin, an elevated heart rate, loss of appetite and constipation. Most people will start to realize once they get to this point that they are dehydrated. They usually will just start to feel thirsty before it even gets to this point. Sometimes though, people will experience headaches and muscle cramping, before realizing that they are thirsty. A lot of times, if you find yourself not feeling right, drinking water will always help.

It is best to always drink as much water as you can throughout the day and avoid substances like caffeine, alcohol and too much sodium.

Vitalyte Tri-Phase Endurance – New Product Launching Soon!

We at Vitalyte have been actively engaged in keeping you healthy, nourished and hyrdrated now for a long time and we are proud to announce a new product coming soon. Vitalyte Tri-Phase Endurance is formulated for maximum effectiveness for serious athletes. All of the ingredients, flavors, colors and sweeteners are 100% natural. This ground-breaking, healthy sports drink is formulated to provide sustained energy, cognitive focus, stimulate recovery, fight free radicals, and replenish and re-balance the electrolytes you lose in extreme athletics.

Vitalyte Tri-Phase Endurance is a refreshing sports drink that uses a combination of Vitamins B6 and B12 for sustained energy and mental focus. Natural Crystalline Fructose and Maltodextrin are fast-acting carbohydrates that provide immediate energy, while Palatinose™, a patented endurance carbohydrate, provides sustained energy to get you through the last mile.

This amazing sports drink also contains Branched Chain Amino Acids and CarnoSyn™ Beta-Alanine, which provide muscles with needed amino acids, help speed recovery and buffer lactic acid. The advanced electrolyte blend is the same high-performance mix Vitalyte is known for and these electrolytes are needed to keep your neurotransmitters firing and reach your maximum performance potential. Lastly it’s important to know that extreme exercise increases free radical damage in your body. Vitalyte Tri-Phase Endurance contains Selenium to boost Glutathione, the “master antioxidant” and one of the most powerful free radical fighters in your body.

An amazing new sports nutrition drink, Vitalyte Tri-Phase Endurance is the complete performance product for the modern athlete. We can’t wait to share it with you.

Vitalyte the Official Sports Drink of the Surf City USA Marathon

Ahh Southern California and your picturesque beaches, your gorgeous weather, and turquoise waters. What better place to run a marathon than along the gorgeous Pacific Coast Highway, or the PCH as locals call it. Well it just so happens that February 6^th is the Surf City USA Marathon and Vitalyte is proud to announce that we will be the marathon’s official drink!

The marathon course heads through Huntington Beach, past it’s pier and it’s scenic Central Park, and then heads down a beachfront running path at Bolsa Chica State Beach. The runners will definitely need a lot of nourishment along the way and Vitalyte is excited to be their number one sports drink supplier. With average highs at 68 degrees, it is beyond important that the runners stay hydrated.

The marathon is so popular that it is already sold out. Last year, the Surf City USA Marathon broke all attendance records with over 16,700 finishers in the marathon, half marathon & 5K events. This year, 18,000 runners will be there to give it their all under the wonderful Southern California sunshine.

Every year, the Surf City USA Marathon teams up with the Free Wheelchair Mission. Runners are encouraged to use the marathon as a way to raise funds to send specially engineered wheelchairs to needy and developing nations. The alliance forged in 2006 has allowed Surf City USA Marathon runners to raise more than $1,600,000 to date.

Vitalyte is so proud of the runners and their fundraising efforts and amped to support them on February 6^th!

Sports Drinks vs Energy Drinks

Sports drinks and energy drinks

Sports drinks are the best thing to water for their hydration and performance-boosting benefits. In general, sports drinks provide an athlete with the following benefits: they hydrate your body, provide you with a quick boost of energy from the quick-burning carbohydrates in the mix, and finally, replenish your potassium and sodium stores needed for muscle contraction through the electrolytes.

With many brands of sports drinks out there, many softball players often ask which brand provides the best benefits. The truth is that behind all the marketing hype and other additional products, Vitalyte performs the best.

Then there's also the wide use of energy drinks among athletes. Some people find it surprising, even shocking, that kids as young as eight drink these as substitute for water, but what's even more surprising is that many athletes do the same thing.

Energy drinks only work as a stimulant, giving players a temporary mental and physical boost, and nothing more than that. In fact, energy drinks can also work as a diuretic, meaning they can actually make you lose body water a lot faster. Therefore, energy drinks are a pretty bad substitute to water, even to energy drinks, when it comes to keeping your body well-hydrated.


So if given a choice between sports drinks and energy drinks, opt to drink a sports drink instead. It provides you with real benefits when it comes to you game, not just keep you alert and awake.

Vitalyte Sports Drinks Are Reccomended

During vigorous physical activity, a lot of water from the body is lost in the form of sweat.

Therefore, for good athletic performance, intake of plenty of fluids is a must. This will help to replenish the body fluids which are in turn, important to maintain an optimal salt balance inside the body. Homeostasis should be maintained for proper metabolic functioning of the body.
Vitalyte sports drinks are well known to athletes.

You must be wondering why it is so. The answer is simple. No other liquid other than Vitalyte has a good profile of macronutrients and electrolytes.

Do not take any sports drink that has extra calories in it. Though milk is an exception with its high amounts of protein and moderate levels of sugar, it is considered as a 'good drink' as it contains a lot of nutrients.

Proteins shakes can, however, be considered. Vitalyte sports drinks are the best fluids to grab for an intense workout!

Reach for Vitalyte After Your Workout

You have just completed your work out knowing that you have just burned up a bunch of calories but it has left you in serious need of fluids. What do you reach for; Vitalyte sports drinks. What you choose at this point can make or break your fitness efforts.

What you choose to drink after a work out depends on your type of work out and your goals.

Are Vitalyte sports drinks the Best Option? Your first instinct might be to reach for a sports drink. Commercials and advertisements bombard us for sports drinks. They claim to rehydrate you better than anything else and replace minerals that your body may have lost during your workout. Is it true though?

Well actually it is true; Vitalyte sports drinks are a great way to rehydrate if you don't mind the calories. Sports drinks do have all the electrolytes and minerals needed to replenish what you lose in an extensive workout. An additional advantage of Vitalyte sports drinks is that they are flavored which encourages most people to drink the amount of liquid need to replenish after working out.

However, with 50 calories and approximately 13-15 grams of sugar per 8 ounce serving, you can totally sabotage your diet if you are working out to lose weight. most people do not need the extra calories from sugar.

Recommendation: If you are doing extensive physical activity for 60 minutes or longer use Vitalyte. Sports drinks are a good option if you are an athlete and you are not trying to lose weight.

Fixing Sore Mucles With Electrolytes

Like everyone else who is hitting the workouts harder and starting to run a bit more to get in shape, your probably feeling the pain. Sore muscle are usually a good sign if you've been working out for awhile. The soreness is caused by tiny tears in the muscles, which the body repairs and makes stronger.

This post workout pain is felt as a general dull pain. However if you haven't been working out, you have probably strained your muscles to the point of a specific ache and have some tenderness. As we get older, we feel these pains a bit more. Here are some ideas to help prevent and heal sore muscles.

Stretching - Make sure you stretch each muscle group for at least 60 seconds before and after your workout. Stretching is one of the most underrated parts of sports and workouts. It's a must if you want to stay active.


Anti-Inflammatory - Take an anti-inflammatory such as Inflamo after your workout to help with the pain and inflammation.

Hydrate - Make sure to drink plenty of water prior to you workout. Your body needs the water to help deliver oxygen to you muscles and helps with clear toxic build up -so you don't cramp. You may also try a sports drink, such as Vitalyte, to replenish the body's electrolytes.

Replace Electrolytes You Sweat Out

For most of us who perform regular workouts, sweating is not an uncommon phenomenon. In fact, it is the evidence of our hard work and it signals growth. Through sweating, our bodies cause us to lose water and other essential electrolytes to prevent the body from overheating. Sweat glands soak water from the blood vessels and transfer it to the skin with some salts. These droplets of water evaporate taking away some bit of energy from the skin in the form of heat. Scientific research has proven that we could lose as much as three liters of water from our skin during one hour of a heavy workout session!

Well there's nothing to be afraid of, but you must assure that your body receives enough liquid before, during and after exercises. To keep a good check on your water levels, weigh yourself just before the workout session and immediately after it. Deduct the amount of water that you take during the session. You must have 16 ounces of water to replenish the amount of water loss for each pound. For example, if you lose 3 pounds of weight during the session, you must drink at least 48 ounces of water. Another good way to assure that your body is properly hydrated is through the color of your urine. A lemonade-like color of your urine indicates that the body is well hydrated while a darker tone indicates water requirement. .

In order to ensure optimum water levels, you must consume water 15 minutes before you start your workout session. After every 20 minutes of exercise, try to gulp at least 8 ounces of water. Water is the best hydrating agent during your exercises but a sports drink can help you as well. Sport drinks not only replenish the water content but also contain electrolytes such as sodium and potassium, which address necessary salt needs

Human Batteries Need Electrolytes and Salt

Salt is an essential nutrient for everyone and is vital to attaining optimum health, so why has the media and the mainstream regarded it as the devil of the dinner table for so long?

Our cells all contain salt. We sweat salt. Our tears contain salt. Our blood is salty. If we don't eat salt, where will it come from?

The question should not be "Do we need salt". We absolutely do. We cannot live without it. The questions should be "What kind of salts are good and bad for us?".

Generic table salt is indeed the devil of the dinner table and should be avoided as much as possible because it is highly refined and processed resulting in pure sodium.chloride and nothing else; no trace minerals, nothing. This is toxic and harmful.

99% of the world's research on salt is done on commercial table salt. This is the only salt they know of. They think all salt is the same - but they're wrong. You can't function without salt. You can't digest food without salt. Your heart can't function. Your adrenal glands can't function. Your liver can't function Your kidneys can't function.

If salt was so bad, why do they feed intravenous saline solutions in hospital patients? They do that because the body runs on salt. Without salt, we run out of electrolytes. Without electrolytes, our human batteries die out.

A salt-free diet speeds up aging. Your cells must be bathed in a sodium-based, extracellular fluid. When the cells are not in this fluid, they will explode. This has been proven biologically. The cells of a mammal deprived of sodium literally explode.

Drinking and Electrolytes

This isn't intended to be medical advice as you should know your own body and know your own limits. With that being said, here are some helpful suggestions for ways to aid you in the future:

- Drink a small bottle of water in between each alcoholic beverage while you're out. This works two-fold: Slows down your intake and dilutes what is already in your system.

- Take two tylenol tablets before going to sleep. But, use this cure sparingly as it can result in kidney damage when taken in heavy doses over long periods.

- Take a high strength B-vitamin supplement. The vitamin will involve a little more planning as it should be taken beforeyou go to sleep but taken immediately when you wake can also help as well. It works because B-vitamins are essential in assisting the carbohydrate (alcohol) metabolizing process and in expanding blood vessels. That should help regenerate your energy level.

- Before going to sleep or when you wake up, down a drink containing electrolytes. Electrolytes will replenish what the kidneys have excreted during drinking which will made you feel much better. Vitalyte is the most ideal drink, but don't forget about the drink made for children - Pedialyte. some people think it's even more effective than standard sports drinks.

Workouts and Hydration: A Connection

When a person exercises, the internal body temperature tends to increase and this causes the body to release its internal fluids out through the sweat glands and through the process of respiration. Once this high temperature sweat gets evaporated, it takes the heat with it and the body cools down once again.

Although the internal temperature regulatory system is vital for good health, it is not good to loose too much fluid. High intensity exercise can cause a person to lose up to three quarts or more of fluid per hour. With the loss of bodily fluids, performance also tends to decline.

When the body loses excessive fluids, it can have adverse effects on the cardiovascular system and one can suffer from muscle cramps,dizziness and even heat strokes as a result of it.

Health experts recommend that in order to replace the lost water and electrolytes such as sodium and potassium once should consume a sports drink before, during and after a workout. The amount varies depending on a persons weight, their tendency to sweat, the temperature of the environment outside and several other factors.

On an average one should consume roughly 18 ounces a couple of hours before beginning their workout, then another 10 ounces about 15 minutes before starting their warm-up. For every hour that you work out, make sure to consume at least 30 ounces and then another 20 ounces after the workout once you have completed a few minutes of cool down.

One should try and avoid caffeinated drinks prior to the workout as they have a diuretic effect especially while re-hydrating. Even consumption of alcohol for a few hours after the work out is not recommended because it hampers the smooth rate of cool down because the body temperature keeps fluctuating.

An Interesting Study About Staying Hydrated

According to a study conducted by scientists at the Gatorade Sports Science Institute (GSSI) in Barrington, IL, athletes consistently underestimate how much water they need to stay hydrated. The study concluded athletes could not estimate their sweat losses and fluid consumption during a 10-mile race. Eighteen seasoned runners participated in the study. The results showed that the runners drastically underestimated how much sweat they lost and consequently drank too little to stay well hydrated. The runners underestimated their sweat losses by an average of 46 percent and their fluid intake by an average of 15 percent, resulting in the runners replacing only 30 percent of their fluids lost through sweat.

"These data show that even the most experienced runners are unable to accurately estimate their sweat losses and cannot subjectively judge how much fluid to drink to prevent dehydration," said Mary Horn, M.S., co-author of the study and exercise sensory scientist at GSSI. "If seasoned athletes such as these do such a poor job of judging their fluid needs, the potential for dehydration may be more severe for the average exerciser, especially during the hot summer months."

Be sure to drink plenty of fluids throughout the week, and make water a permanent and consistent part of your day. After all, it's good for you.

Fluids to Drink

You can include other fluids like juices, lemonade, milk, buttermilk and coconut water in your mid-meals. Cold sports drinks are the best fluid for keeping hydrated when it's warm outside. Cold sports drinks are absorbed much more quickly than warm fluids and may help to cool off your overheated body. If you're going to be away from home or outdoors, make sure that you keep a sports drink close by.

Make a habit of keeping sports drinks or other non-caffeinated beverages with you all day long. Keep a large bottle of water next to your bed, so you can sip it without getting up. One should drink at least 10-12 glasses of fluid every day. Keep a sports drink at your work space, in your backpack or in the car for easy access.

There are foods you eat that can contribute fluid to your diet. Some foods contain 80 per cent or more of their weight in water. So, you can eat more of these foods to stay hydrated if you just don't like water.

Foods with at least 80 per cent water include tomatoes, papaya, peaches, pears, yogurt and oranges. Cucumber and watermelon contain 90-95 per cent (highest) of their weight in water. You should drink two glasses of water for every alcoholic drink as this helps the body to stay hydrated. Drinking beer or alcoholic beverages is not the right way to rehydrate yourself.

Alcoholic beverages contain little carbohydrates and the alcohol can actually work against you by causing your body to lose fluid and get dehydrated more quickly.

Caffeine-based beverages like tea, coffee or colas are diuretics. Therefore when you are having these kinds of beverages be sure to stay well-hydrated.

Monitoring How Much Water You Need

Ways to monitor your fluid status: You can easily keep an eye on your hydration status.

Monitor your urine output: If you are hydrated, you should go to the bathroom frequently. If you don't produce much urine or if it is very dark in color, chances are that you are dehydrated. Ideally urine should be pale or colorless. Remember some medicines, vitamins and dietary supplements may also change the color of your urine.

Within two hours of a workout or competition, aim to get back to your pre-exercise weight: Weigh yourself before and after workouts to ensure that you are not losing too much fluid. Remember losing weight by losing fluid or becoming dehydrated is not the way to get the pounds off.

Every person perspires at different rates depending on their biological make-up. If you are a heavy sweater, make sure that you use a beverage containing sodium during workouts. Eat and drink foods and fluids with sodium after your workout to replenish the sodium lost in sweat.

To stay hydrated: Drink at least two glasses of water when you get up in the morning.

Drink two glasses of water 1-1 1/2 hours before your workout. Keep sipping fluid after every 10-15 minutes during your workout.

Don't wait until you are thirsty to decide to drink. Your thirst sensation runs quite a bit slower than your body's need for water. By the time you realize that you're feeling thirsty, your body will already be suffering from drought. Most experts suggest that you drink before you get thirsty. Even if you're just pushing a long distance - drink water before, during, and after.

People doing intense or long-duration workouts are prone to heavy, repeated sweating, then lose a high amount of electrolytes (sodium, potassium, magnesium). These people can replenish the body by having salty fluids and foods like energy/sports drinks, tomato juice, orange juice, grape juice, milk, potato, bananas, spinach, canned soups and beans.

Softball and Sports Drinks

Sports drinks are the best thing combined with water for their hydration and performance-boosting benefits. In general, sports drinks provide an athlete with the following benefits: they hydrate your body, provide you with a quick boost of energy from the quick-burning carbohydrates in the mix, and finally, replenish your potassium and sodium stores needed for muscle contraction through the electrolytes.

With many brands of sports drinks out there, many softball players often ask me which brand provides the best benefits. The truth is that behind all the marketing hype and other additional products, they do the same thing: keep you well hydrated. However, Vitalyte has a proven track record with athletes for superior hydration, low sugar levels, and natural ingredients.

Making Running Easier

You may want to try to find a cooler, and perhaps easier, running route. Choose those streets, or roads, that are lined with shady trees, or buildings offering shade, on at least on one side of the street. You can check your local street directory or road map to find, or work out, your new running route. Perhaps you could even drive the route beforehand to ensure it does fit into your selection criteria, and then you will also be able to check the mileage quite accurately so that you will know how far you are going to run each time! This will be great in knowing your timing recording too.

You will most definitely need to hydrate with Vitalyte during these, or any, long periods of exercise, and it is absolutely critical to not only replace any fluids lost to sweat, but also the excreted electrolytes. By not doing so, can result in a very serious health condition called hyponatremia which, if left untreated, can lead to death. ( Hyponatremia is an electrolyte disturbance -a disturbance of the balance of salts in your blood - in which the sodium concentration in the plasma is lower than normal (hypo in Greek), specifically below 135 mEq/L. The large majority of cases of hyponatremia occurring in adults result from an excess amount or effect of the water retaining hormone known as Antidiuretic Hormone commonly abbreviated as ADH) - thanks again Wikipedia

Performance Nutrition

Carbohydrates, which rapidly break down to blood sugar (glucose), are the body's primary and favorite energy source. The brain, nervous system and muscles are fueled mostly by glucose. Therefore, a continuous supply of carbohydrates is necessary to prevent body stores from being depleted. Inadequate carbohydrate intake leads to low energy levels, fatigue and impaired performance. Proper management of the amounts, types and timing of this nutrient is required to fill and refill the main "gas tank". Key carbohydrate guidelines are listed here:

- Carbohydrates should make up approximately 60 percent of your child's diet.

- Starches and grains (breads, pasta, rice, potatoes, etc) should be eaten at each major meal throughout the day to provide a lasting energy source. Major meals should be eaten three to four hours apart.

- Carbohydrates such as fruit, energy bars/shakes, and sports drinks are ideal for rapid fueling before activity and immediately after exercise to optimize recovery.

- Depending on the sport, the growing athlete should consume 3 to 4.5 grams of carbohydrates per pound of body weight per day.

Drink Plenty of Fluids Before Your Go on a Run

1. Be sure to always drink plenty of fluids some hours before your run as you will tend to be sweating excessive amounts of fluids. Water or electrolyte-balancing (isotronic) drinks are the very best fluids of choice. Avoid all other drinks such a soda or coffee, as sodium and caffeine do act as dehydrating agents. ALWAYS take a full water bottle with you as you run. There are plenty of running accessories available that will make carrying a bottle easy.

The electrolytes are important chemicals in our blood that help to regulate so many different functions within our body. Any imbalance of electrolytes can cause different symptoms, depending on whether the electrolyte levels are either too high or too low. You will need to be able recognize any of the symptoms of your own electrolyte imbalance, and what causes it. This way, you will be able to obtain the correct treatment when it becomes necessary, and therefore help to prevent any electrolyte imbalance in the future. Using Vitalyte can prevent these problems!

Keep Your Sweat in Check

For most of us who perform regular workouts, sweating is not an uncommon phenomenon. In fact, it is the evidence of our hard work and it signals growth. Through sweating, our bodies cause us to lose water and other essential electrolytes to prevent the body from overheating. Sweat glands soak water from the blood vessels and transfer it to the skin with some salts. These droplets of water evaporate taking away some bit of energy from the skin in the form of heat. Scientific research has proven that we could lose as much as three liters of water from our skin during one hour of a heavy workout session!

Well there’s nothing to be afraid of, but you must assure that your body receives enough liquid before, during and after exercises. To keep a good check on your water levels, weigh yourself just before the workout session and immediately after it. Deduct the amount of water that you take during the session. You must have 16 ounces of water to replenish the amount of water loss for each pound. For example, if you lose 3 pounds of weight during the session, you must drink at least 48 ounces of water. Another good way to assure that your body is properly hydrated is through the color of your urine. A lemonade-like color of your urine indicates that the body is well hydrated while a darker tone indicates water requirement.

In order to ensure optimum water levels, you must consume water 15 minutes before you start your workout session. After every 20 minutes of exercise, try to gulp at least 8 ounces of water. Water is the best hydrating agent during your exercises but a sports drink can help you as well. Sport drinks not only replenish the water content but also contain electrolytes such as sodium and potassium, which address necessary salt needs. Moreover, the body absorbs carbohydrates quicker through sport drinks than any other way. This means that energy restores faster through a sports drink than through plain water. Fruit juice can be good option during your workout session, as it rich in simple carbohydrates and is a natural way to replenish.

Running and Hydration

Dehydration, or heat exhaustion can happen very easily during excessive or strenuous physical activity, which are excessive sweating causes. Running or jogging happen to be the two main causes of heat exhaustion. Even though your body temperature is very likely to become high it does not mean that you cannot enjoy your running.

Millions of people run or jog every day, and there are extremely few incidences of death or permanent injury from heat exhaustion. The major key to preventing heat exhaustion is to take the necessary precautions before you begin your run...always. If you do not think it is safe, then it probably isn't. The best idea is to use a sports drink like Vitalyte to stay hydrated. Not only is Vitalyte an all natural sports drink it also contains the necessary electrolytes and minerals to keep you going!