Hydrating
 

Just to pick-up on what Steve stated in another thread.

Those working a national on Labor Day weekend should start hydrating about Monday, 8/25.

Same for any other tournament. If you are one who drinks a load of water on a regular basis, you should probably start drinking at least an additional gallon of water a day three days prior to the start of the tournament. If you drink coffee or alcohol on a regular basis, you might want to increase the amount of water intake.

And don't think that this is just for those in the South or Southwest. It doesn't have to be extremely hot for someone to dehydrate especially at the higher altitudes about sea level.

Very good post, especially considering that this is an extremely hot summer
in most of the US. I will be working the 18U Elite 43' Nationals in Sulphur, La.
Everyone knows La.'s humidity is higher than most and what with the soaring
temperatures, you really have to be careful. This will be my second major
tournament in La. this year. In the first, we almost lost one umpire for good.

I found that drinking G2, whichever flavor you prefer, and sipping water every
half inning really does give a boost. I have already started the hydrating
process. Portions of the tournament start Sat. That is if we can divert this
hurricane that is presently in the gulf.

Good Luck everyone, and as Mike stated, start hydrating.

And on a related note, I just received my shipment of Mike's favorite: ammonia spirits! Ten 2 ounce bottles at my doorstep. I'll be ready. :D

10 2 ounce bottles???? Jeez...that's enough to last for a decade or more. Are you planning on sharing some with other officials?? You know that it just takes a capful or two for every gallon of water, don't you?

Blame Mike's formula: 1.5-2 ounces of ammonia spirits per gallon.

That's just ten gallons.

D'oh!!!!

Too much?

I use a 12-pack cooler.

Fill halfway with cubed ice. Add 2 oz of Ammonia Spirits and top off with water.

If that may be more than needed, same cooler, 1/3 ice, 1 oz AS and about of quart of water.

This is what works for us and helps the umpires. It is not a substitute for hydration and proper rest between games, but it certainly helps bring you back from exhaustion caused by heat quicker to "enjoy" the needed recuperation.

Key is wiping down before placing towel on head/face/neck to avoid transfering the dirt and sweat to towel. Always wring out towel well before placing in "Florida" water.

I'm not a doctor, but as an engineer, this advice does not pass the common sense test. We are not camels; the human body has a very limited ability to store excess water. A young, fit athlete's body is about 80% water by weight. Less fit and/or older people have less of their body weight made of water (muscle is about 70% water; blood plasma about 90% water. An obese older person may be only 50% water).

But, considering the young 200# athlete, he will be considered dehydrated if he has lost 1-2% of body weight through water loss, or about 2-4 pounds, or about 1/2 gallon of water (64 fl oz). The body absorbs water at a rate of about 1 pint per hour.

So, even if we assume this athlete is significantly dehydrated, say 5% of body weight loss - or 10 pounds - (where he might very well be experiencing the onset of heat exhaustion), this could be completely re-absorbed within 24 hours by drinking over that time a little more than a gallon of water + whatever fluids are continued to be lost through perspiration, etc., during that time.

I don't understand the need nor the benefit of drinking such large amounts of water so far in advance, especially if the individual is not dehydrated to begin with.

Sports doctors recommend a pre-event hydration regimen for exercise in a hot environment to be more on the order of 1 to 1.5 gallons of fluid above normal intake the day before the event. Consume another quart or so of water 2 hours prior to the event, eliminate the bladder 15 minutes before, and drink another pint of water 5 minutes before, and then drink cold water during the event.

3-4 days early? No harm, but no benefit, either, based on my research.

I absolutely refuse to eliminate my bladder, but evacuate the bladder I will consider a good idea. :confused:

:eek: Ha! Good point! :o

Mike's favorite: ammonia spirits ??? OK I am going to look online, but what are these?

I start drinking the day before, but not too much, or it is 2-4 trips in the middle of the night.

After working 3 times in 100+ index behind the plate, I am going to event a cool water chest protector.

This thread explains ammonia spirits and explains my comment about Mike's formula.

Just to be sure you know... ammonia spirit water (aka Florida Water) is only for external cooling - you do NOT drink it!

Thanks, I found info on it, but was like do you drink it too? and this does work well? Never heard of it, being a Yankee for the north.

Yesterday was the last game of the year for me, as far as I know. Unfortunately, it was the first ever when I struggled with the heat. Even with my usual pre-hydrating, lots of water both internal and external, starting Gatorade sooner, eventually an icy towel on my neck; I gave up after 5 innings of the third game as PU, because I was afraid of missing a play. Luckily, another ump on the next field had finished and could cover the last two innings. Ironically, the other hottest weekend a month ago, I was the one covering for others and being at full strength that game and some long hot games the next day. And last week, eight games versus this week's five games.

The point is that I'm usually more heat-tolerant than most around here, always prepare, condition myself to the heat all spring and summer, preach and do max hydration, referee soccer doubleheaders starting late August; but still struggled.

Now, I'm wondering if spending Thursday at the beach had an effect.

There were a couple of guys who had some heat issues there. I'm sure that was the hottest weekend I've seen this year. I was satisfied with 4 games a day - 'though the 3 in a row to wrap things up was draining.
It was good meeting you Cecil - good to have a face to put with the name.

Which is part of my slant on it. A sudden change in the bodies water intake can have a short-term negative affect on one's body.

Everyone is different. I have an umpire in my area that drinks more than 2 gallons of water a day, every day and that is not enough even though the doctors insist there is nothing wrong with him.

Unless you are the type that drinks plenty of water regularly, IMO, twenty four hours just isn't going to do it. The 3-4 days gives the body a chance to adjust. Is it the same for everyone? No

Could be. I generally drink about a gallon of coffee and close to a gallon of water each day. During weekend tournaments, the coffee is dropped to 1 large mug and the water is doubled - at least. I'll go through 2 bottles (about 24 oz each) with each plate game.

I hydrate always through the week.. ie I'm a pretty big water drinker anyway (I doubt a gallon a day though). I dont extra hydrate before tournaments. I work usually 100-110 although admittedly this year has been comparatively mild staying in the 90s. I drink plenty of water.. during my breaks I drink a gatorate. I stick to cold sammiches and lots of fruit especially grapes and bannanas.

I've never had a problem with dehydration, knock on wood.

Watch your pee... if its yellow you are dehydrated.. the darker the worser.

"Watch your pee... if its yellow you are dehydrated.. the darker the worser."

That's a really good point - I'll watch both the volume and the color.

Yup. Spirits of ammonia is one of those things where a little goes a long way. Like I said, a capful or two per gallon is enough, unless you think you will have to repeatedly add ice during the day. I carry a six pack cooler that I fill half way with ice, then add a cap of ammonia spirits and water to almost the top. I then put in two towels and that usually will do great for me for a whole day.

When I was in the Army and in the desert I had a senior NCO tell me that if my men were not peeing they needed to be drinking. It is obviously not possible to drink during the game, but every inning you need to make sure that you have water. I always do the Gatorade or sports drink thing between games and then a lot of water during.

Of course today I leave for Ohio where the high was 80 yesterday after working in 105 all weekend. I will be wearing a jacket every morning, and loving it!:D

Spirits of ammonia mean nothing except for ruining some good ice. It is hogwash. Surely someone has some sort of evidence that this is helpful other than east coast blather and fairy tales. I know I've looked high and low for some reputable evidence. If someone has some evidence I'd love to be corrected on this.

Oh well. Then I'm stocked for life. :D

I don't care if it's true or not. If it feels good, is refreshing and has no adverse effects, why not do it? :)

Lets see..

Youre hot, you put a cool iced towel on your neck.

Then say "wow that spirit of amonia is refreshing".

:D

Yep.

Back off, man. I'm a scientist. ;)

LOL!

OK I'm off, hey if it works for you!

I'll let you borrow my towel... :D

Boy, that sounded a bit creepy...

Not being a scientist, I'm going to take a stab at this....

The amount of heat needed to change a given amount of liquid to a gas without a change in temperature is its HEAT OF VAPORIZATION, sometimes referred to as latent (hidden) heat. The heat of vaporization for water is 540 calories per gram (9720 cal/mole) and the heat of vaporization for ammonia is 327 calories per gram (5559 cal/mole).

As we all know, it is the evaporation process that makes you feel cool as heat is required for evaporation. Since it takes less heat to make ammonia evaporate (327 c/g), more ammonia can evaporate faster thus creating a cooler sensation than just water alone (540 c/g). Using an ammonia/water solution lowers the heat of vaporization of water (I'll leave that to the scientists to tell you the exact numbers) thereby making this solution 'cooler' than just water alone.

Back off, wade. He's a scientist. ;)

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/dru...9A50DAD5881C05

It's an inhalant. The dilution in water helps protect the user. If you prefer, they sell this in snap capsules, if you prefer, but that is fret with more reactive side effects and dangers.

Maybe if you actually bothered finding out what you are talking about before you type.

Spirit of Ammonia is 35% alcohol, but even so, such a tiny amount is mixed with the water, I seriously doubt the lower evaporation temperature has much to do with the effect of Florida water as a refreshing / cooling agent. I suspect its main effect over plain ice water is just like smelling salts (which has the same active ingredient in a capsule).

Another factor is that your ice/water/ammonia (or rubbing alcohol) mixture will maintain a lower temperature than a simple mixture of ice and water. The freezing/melting point is lower, so the mixture in your ice bucket and on your towel comes to your neck at a lower temperature ... and it smells good, too. :cool:

And yes ... I am a scientist.

This thread is the epitome of this board.

Someone posts something that is common and helpful. And like damn near half the posts in recent memory, others do their best to try and out-think the OP and try to find a negative to it.

Great country, America. A land where no one knows anything and everyone else knows everything.

And if you don't believe that, just wait until you wake up on Nov 5 and read the newspaper headlines! :eek:

Wait a minute, Larry - I thought you were just an old squid.

It's amazing.. a couple of people spent more time debating hydration and ammonia spirits than it would have taken them to just try it....

But, why can't we do both? Are you two trying to ruin this for all of us?? ;)

Hey genius, you gave me a link that says dont get it in your eyes or on your skin.

Your little link says nothing about using it in ice for "cooling". And by the way, last time your myth was mentioned, I did TONS of googling to find out about. DOnt forget, where I am, it actually does get hot, unlike delaware... so if there was a magic potion, I wanted it. But alas, it was not to be... for it is a myth.

Now if you run along and find me a good link, I would be much appreciative.

Me and NCAA came to an agreement in which we were both enjoying this thread, wasnt a big deal, (for me personnally, whatever someone uses to stay cool and survive what we do, good for them).. so you go take a nap.

"so you go take a nap."
Ha!
-------------------------------------------------
It gets damn hot in Vacaville. Like Gates of Hell hot.

Give me some water to drink, a wet towel for the back of the neck and some fruit for electrolyte replacement and I'm good-to-go.

Try reading all of it.

Yeah, just like your umpiring skills. :eek: Did you miss the part about it being an inhalant which is used to prevent or treat fainting.

And I know where you live. It is the same place to which Delaware and 48 other states have to send firefighters every year because you aren't smart enough to control your environment.

Yeah, I can see someone like you thinking the Mayo Clinic is not qualified to present this information.

Good, I'll keep some on hand in case I ever see you walk on a fast pitch diamond to call a game. But that wont help me keep cool.


You cant hurt my feelings telling me CA is run by liberal idiots with their head in their @ss about the environment.. simply because its true.

We're talking about ICE.

I need a link about adding it to ice.

Even you should be able to grasp that. Mayo clinic is fine.. hell, delawaremyths.com would be fine.. any link.

With a tax-payer funded education! :cool:

Let's see, I worked baseball for 22 years. Due to my knee replacement, I've only worked once this year and it was in our JO states (FP). Working FP is no big deal, it's just not my preferred game.

Wasn't trying to hurt your feelings 'cause I really don't care about your feelings. Just responding to your mentioning of knowing where you live.

No, we are not. We are talking about adding an inhalant to an already proven source of cooling one's body temperature on a hot day. I know as a fact that there are at least three umpires on this board for whom I have provided this relief. I also know there are thousands more that will tell you it helps.

But what would we know, you are the one making absurd declarations, not us.

Hell, this is nothing new to me. This stuff used to be sold at soda fountains as an additive for whatever ails you.

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/in...6111622AAGCfNf

http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf602427.tip.html

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?...=.jsp&c_id=bal

http://search.aol.com/aol/search?inv...onia+towels%22

I'm really amazed that on the internet, where everything true and false is found.. nothing substantive on this can be found. Very strange indeed.

Then again, you have to actually open up the files and search for the info. I guess I was expecting too much.

I'm done with this waste. Believe and do what you want. I will continue to do whatever I can to help the umpires on the field.

So let's talk about hydration...

What's your favorite drink on a hot day while doing 10 games in a row? Or does anyone have any creative hydration cocktails (banana shakes)?

Me? I prefer Gatorade or Powerade. Powerade tends to be a little cheaper, but every now and then, I (ahem... more like my wife) will find a good sale on 32 ounce bottles. $0.79/bottle ain't too bad.

G2, grape, $0.50/bottle at Wally World. Contains electrolyte. Also drink
water with it and use the ammonia spirits as prescribed by MOST on this
subject. In other words use it in ice and water mixture with a couple of
towels. Keep it from the eyes.

You are so transparent. You couldnt find a single decent link but you still talk smack as if there are decent links to read on this. I do think its a good idea you Run away from this with so little to offer.
if someone does happen to run into a link about this, i would like to see it. I know I've searched, obviously irish has come up empty.. its not a easy search, but it must be out there.

Gatorade or powerade or the tiger woodsade.. all good stuff.

Lots of Iced water.

A lot of fruit... bananas, grapes, fruit salad.

Cold sammiches.

Propel.

Yeah, that's not too shabby, either. :)

Anybody got a banana milkshake recipe? I think that'd go great in a cooler. Separate from the Florida water cooler, of course.

Not a true banana milkshake, but a tasty treat nonetheless:

STRAWBERRY BANANA MILKSHAKE

2 bananas
10 oz. box frozen strawberries, partially thawed
2 c. milk
2 pts. strawberry ice cream

Slice the bananas. Combine the bananas, strawberries, milk and 1 pint of the ice cream in blender, in batches. Blend until smooth. Pour milkshake into 4 glasses, top each with a scoop of the remaining ice cream. Garnish with a fresh strawberry.

If you don't want the strawberry flavor to be too dominant, use some vanilla ice cream in place of the strawberry ice cream.

You forgot the vodka.

Gotta admit, thats sounds like a heck of a between game snack. :D

You can never, never, get to strawberrieee. :D

I was drooling as I read the post.