Sports Drinks and/or H2O?
 

Do we have believers here than sports drinks (Powerade, Gatorade, et al) or energy supplements (i.e. 5-Hour Energy) enhance performance? Or is good ol' water sufficient?

I believe in them yes, I've seen them with my very own eyes. However, I do not believe in consuming energy supplements (i.e. 5-Hour Energy) for any reason. As for sports drinks and water, it depends on the length, conditions, and many other factors of the activity. If you're doing one game in 70 degree weather, then you could easily get away with only drinking water. If you're doing 2 games in 100 degree weather, you will sweat more and you may need to go with sports drinks to replenish your body.

As I runner, I'm constantly drinking water but when I umpire I gauge my beverage choice on the weather, how well I feel I'm hydrated, and how long I expect to be out doing that activity. Sometimes I drink sports drinks, sometimes I drink water. I usually have a good feel of what I need to drink.

-Josh

Edit: Dang, I really thought I was reading the baseball forum; hence I was talking about weather. I mainly decide what I drink on the temperature/humidity of the gym, how well I'm hydrated, and how many games I'm doing.

Someone approached me about something called "cPrime" the other day. Anyone know if this is a power drink or some other type of energy deal?

I usually take Powerade Zero (no sugar, since I'm diabetic) with me to games in my bag. However, since our local kids rec league has a rule that no food or drink except water in plastic water bottles is allowed in the gyms (school district rule at the elementary and middle schools where we play those games) I just take bottled water for those. If I'm working a lot of games in one shift, I also take granola bars in my bag and go outside the gym to eat them. Have to maintain that blood sugar level.

At least the sports drinks works. They actually hydrate faster than water alone. I use them for that purpose all the time when I am working games in the summer. Not so much during the season.

I think they should be banned as we cannot have anything that enhances performance. They are unethical. :D

Peace

Soooo....you admit you've been cheating all this time? Shame shame shame. :D

Only in the summer for recovery purposes. :p

Peace

I used to drink Gatorade all the time when I was working, but then it started to make me feel sick for some reason during games. I switched over to something called Smart Water, it's just water with electrolytes in it like Gatorade has. Not sure if it works as well as Gatorade does, but it does the trick for me.

ROTFLOL! +1
I'll add that weather can be a factor for hoops, too. More accurately, gym temperature; which is often dependent upon the season.

Tastes Great, Less Filling ...
 

According to most studies that I've read about, unless you're a top notch athlete, like a marathon runner, or a triathlete, plain water is a great choice to keep most weekend athletes properly hydrated. However, studies did indicate that because of the flavor in sports drinks, athletes are more likely to drink a sports drink, and stay properly hydrated, than they are to drink just plain water and stay properly hydrated.

Now if you're a world class marathon runner, then the carbohydrates, and electrolytes, in a sports drink will improve your performance.

I concur. Water should suffice for your normal 1, 2 or even 3 game outings. Beyond that, then a sports drink will help replenish some carbs. Although I am not a "world class marathon runner", I do run and will hardly drink sports drinks unless it is a half marathon or longer in order to get some carbs.

Overall, there is not necessarily anything wrong with drinking sports drinks during officiating, it is probably not necessary. My $.02.

I pack a Gatorade or two when doing 3 or 4 game sets or more i.e. a 2 on 1 off day that might call for 8 to 10 games in a day.

As a rule, I will "sip" on those all day long as opposed to guzzling a large amount at any one time, or else I end up feeling bloated and/or a little nauseous.

When drinking smaller amounts throughout the day, though, they are quite refreshing and hit the spot perfectly.

I don't always drink sports drinks but when I do, I will try to dilute them by 50% to reduce the amount of sugar.

Pedialyte is also great for rehydrating and has less sugar but you may want to put it in a different container.

Ya' know, after all these posts on this thread, no one has admitted they carry a brewski in their bag. Hummmmm. :rolleyes:

It seems as though you more or less just did. lol. ;)

Nope - don't drink alcohol mostly because of my diabetes. Haven't had so much as a beer in over 20 years. Also don't drink coffee or tea because of a different medical condition. I do drink a lot of diet pop.

OK- that's my medical report for the day. I don't even want to discuss my brain deficiencies. There's probably not enough space on Brad's server. :o

I was just giving you a hard time. :)

btw...what is "pop"? :p

I think he realizes that as he does this to a lot of people. :D

To some ice cream. :D

Peace

Thanks for the thoughts, guys. I haven't seen much of a difference between water and the sports drinks, but maybe someone else has.

I'm with DLH, though. I can't go more than 6-8 ounces of water at a time (halftime, between games) without feeling bloated while running.

BTW, I was talking with someone about "academic doping" recently, when SAT takers pop some Ritalin to increase their focus during the test. Someone joked maybe we officials should try that. I sure as hell don't want to be the guinea pig!

It's what people who were brought up outside the Chicago area call soda.

We here in the Pac NW call it pop as well. Soda in California and the NE, Soda-pop in the mid west and Coke (dosen't matter the variety) in the south.

Jasper

We do?

I have gone to G2 or Powerade Zero. Some flavors aren't good even when they have sugar, but I stay away from red in case of spillage. Enough abuse without "Hey, ref! You got blood on your shirt!" In summer & spring with 4-6 AAU games here in FL, I will usually go through a quart of the stuff. But I will take water if offered and it is cold. But the straight Gatorade/Powerade is so full of sugar that I just stay away. Getting older does things to insulin resistance etc. Made that switch a few months ago. Dropped over 15 lbs in a few weeks, too, which was a side benefit.

Might be from the north.

I agree with Camron. I've noticed everyone around here (Oregon) calls it soda. And...as I said before, everyone I ever knew while growing up in Chicago called it pop, not "soda-pop".

I'll Be Here All Week Folks ...
 

When my kids are drinking soda, they will often say to me, "Hey. How about some soda, Pop?".

My folks moved to Western NY while I was in college. [I did find their address, though.] People there called it "pop", though it sounded more like "pahp" when they said it. Never heard anyone in Northern New England call soda anything other than "soda" or "coke".

Actually, there was a very big study done in the last few years that showed drinking milk of all things was the best thing to drink when finished exercising. I thought it was odd, but read the summary and it made sense. Thus the outbreak of products such as "Muscle Milk". I have tried it a few times and while it does actually make me feel 'recovered' more I still miss the taste of a good Powerade.
Isn't that a commercial? "I don't always drink sports drinks, but when I do, I drink...." oh wait....

Im a Gatorade/Powerade Guy
 

Maybe I've got to try the "no/low sugar" substitutes again, if for the weight issue alone......but initially, I couldn't stand the taste. Blech!

PS - I did however switch to diet soda/pop yrs ago though and made the taste adjustment. :o

The chemical aftertaste is horrendous on the G2's.

one with a nipple?

The green G2 & blue G2 is okay. Same with Powerade Zero. The orange is bad and the grape is even worse. In fact, I think the guy who came up with that grape one should be forced to drink a quart of it while being filmed for youtube.

I can (and do) go either way on this. I buy a big can of Gatorade powder at the start of the season and take a quart bottle with me to games. I mix it about 50% strength because any stronger and it leaves my mouth feeling all sticky. I don't obsess over hydration and drink as I begin to feel thirsty. So some days I'll bring half the bottle home with me, and some days I'll finish it and refill it with water from a drinking fountain.

Some days, for whatever reason, I'll forget to pack my sports drink. I'll just have water from the drinking fountain or the home team's water cooler. And I usually do just fine that way too.

So if there's some significant benefit to sports drinks, I haven't noticed it. Perhaps one must be capable of actual performance? ;)

PS. The studies I've seen on post-workout recovery drinks have suggested chocolate milk. And being a big fan of the stuff anyway, I highly recommend it :)

BITS, where do you keep your bottle, at the table? The reason I ask is that several on various fora have "frowned" on the practice of having a bottle of water at the table. In my area, for sub-varsity anyways, it is common practice to have water at the table. Just curious how its viewed in your area.

Just saw this...I'd recommend that only if you're Padgett.

Depends on the type of game. For HS games, it's in the dressing room. If I need a drink during the game I'll sneak over to the team cooler during a time out or quarter break.

For rec/AAU stuff, the bottle's at the table.