September 4, 2012

Drink at least cup (4 ounces) of water every 15 minutes during

heavy exercise

Your body can only process 2 cups (16 ounces) every hour

Male dancers need ~13 glasses of fluids/day

Female dancers need ~9 glasses of fluids/day
Weigh yourself before and after to figure out average
sweat rate

Sweat rates range between 1-4 lbs./hour

For every lb. lost, drink ~80-100% of that while training
1 lb. = 16 ounces = 2 cups of H2O


When you sweat, you lose significant amounts of H2O
from your blood
Remaining blood becomes more concentrated and has
high sodium levels
Sodium triggers the thirst mechanism
Thirst mechanism can be an unreliable signal to drink:
Blunted by exercise or overridden by the mind
By the time you do feel thirsty, you may have lost ~1% of body
weight
Heart beats an extra 3-5 times/min.
2% loss = dehydration
3% loss can impair performance
Check the color and quantity of urine
Pale yellow = normal balance
Urine eliminates metabolic waste
products. Darker the urine, the
more concentrated the wastes.

Sweat has electrolytes help keep H2O in the right
balance inside and outside of cells
Electrolyte Average Amount
for 2 lbs./sweat
Food
Comparison
Sodium 800 mg 4 cups Gatorade
= 440 mg sodium

Potassium 200 mg 1 med. Banana =
450 mg
potassium

Calcium 20 mg 8 oz. yogurt = 300
mg calcium

Magnesium 10 mg 2 tbsp. peanut
butter = 50 mg
magnesium
2-3 ml./lb. of body weight
**4 hours before training
Ex: 120 lbs. x 2/3 ml = 240-360 mls.
or
1 to 1.5 cups water

Replace what you lost by 1.5 times

Sipping fluids over time preferable

Ex: If you lost 2 lbs. of water during one hour of training,
how much would you need to drink after?

2 lbs. = 32 ounces = 4 cups of water + 2 cups extra = 6 cups
TOTAL!
Stresses the body by:
Body temperature rises
Heart beats faster
Burns more glycogen
Brain has trouble concentrating
Exercise feels harder


Helps prevent hypoglycemia (low blood sugar)

Helps settle your stomach and ward off hunger

Fuels your muscles, with the carbs you eat far in advance
to get stored as glycogen and the carbs you eat within an
hour before to provide circulating blood sugar
During the night, you can deplete your liver glycogen
(which maintains normal blood sugar), thus starting out
your class with low blood sugar makes you fatigue earlier

Good results:
1 hour before class:
0.5 g CHO or 2 kcals/lb. of body weight
Ex: 120 lbs. x 2 kcals = 240 kcal meal

4 hours before class:
2 g CHO or 8 kcals/lb. of body weight
Ex: 120 lbs. x 8 kcals = 960 kcal meal

Pre-class snack should be mostly carbohydrate ~1 hour before
Ex: banana, oatmeal, granola bars, English muffins, crackers,
*fruits instead of candy
**Add a little amount of protein and fat to your carbohydrate for more
sustained energy: hard boiled egg with toast, bagel with peanut butter,
oatmeal with low-fat milk

Eat limited amounts of protein and fat; they take longer to digest

Allow adequate time for digestion: high-calorie meals take longer to
leave the stomach than do hearty, lighter snacks
~large meals = 3-4 hours
~small meals = 2-3 hours
~small snack = <1 hour

Xtranormal.com
7:30 pm performance What do I eat all day long and

before?
High CHO breakfast and lunch

Dinner by 4:30 pm or have a lighter meal between 5:30-
6:30 pm

Popular choices:
Pasta with tomato sauce
Chicken with a serving of rice or potato
3 meals/day are important!
~include high carbohydrate sources, some lean
protein and small amounts of fat

**Snacks should be eaten as pre-exercise and post-
exercise snacks to boost energy and refuel for the next
class!

**Increase stamina by consuming about 100-250
calories/carbohydrate per hour of endurance exercise
(really hard/non-stop classes)
Ex: sports drinks, fruits, granola bars


Muscles breakdown after a hard day of training

Take advantage of the 45 minute post exercise window of
opportunity

CHO stimulates the release of insulin, which helps build
muscles as well as transport CHO into the muscles,
replenishing depleted glycogen stores

CHO with a little Pro (~10 to 20 g) even better! Helps muscles
refuel/repair/buildreduction of cortisol hormone which breaks
down muscle mass
~10 grams Pro:
10 ounces milk
2 eggs
2 tbs. peanut butter on a banana
1 cup yogurt with granola
Cramps occur when muscles are fatigued
May be related to:
Dehydration
Nerve malfunction creates an imbalance between muscle
excitation and inhibition, preventing muscles from relaxing

Rule out these possible causes:
Lack of H2O
Lack of Calcium
Lack of Potassium
Lack of Sodium
Lack of Magnesium
Eat enough before, throughout,
and after dancing!

Drink plenty of fluids to avoid dehydration!

Dont postpone eating until you are done dancing.
Remember that you need to fuel yourself during the busiest
parts of your day.
Fuel adequately all day long!

Fueling properly will enhance and maintain your energy levels!