TAZFIT

Hydration: Why It's So Important

April 10-11, 2010

Hello Kingborough Community from Darran Petty and Dan Lemoto (Boot Camp Kingston).

This column is about Hydration. How much water have YOU consumed today? 500mls? 1 Litre? 2 Litres? One small reason for keeping hydrated is that a human will only survive for 10 days in a temperature of 21 degrees without water. Having said that, hydration is the most crucial element to human survival. Why is this the case?

Well, for the simple reason that water represents approximately 60% of our total body weight. Even our lungs and brain are made up of 90% and 70% water respectively.

We believe that hydration has become overwhelmingly complicated due to the endless sports related drinks on the market today. Are they all necessary? Well, no... Here's why. When we lose water through sweating or crying, it makes perfect sense to replenish the water that was lost with, you guessed it …water.

While the body not only loses water, it also loses valuable electrolytes of which most important are sodium and potassium. You are able to replenish these through foods such as bananas, melons, apricots and many vegetables.

Hydration is not as complicated as the marketing of the major sports drinks companies tell us. Here is an easy way to sort the good from the bad. If what you are drinking has a nutritional label then you don't need it. Turn on the tap or better yet, cup you hands and drink from a flowing stream to hydrate yourself the very same way people did millions of years ago, before Coca Cola or Schweppes existed.

YES, eight classes of water is great, but the golden rule is, while you are constantly losing water even while sleeping, sip throughout the day and night to stay properly hydrated. If active, drink heaps of water! Just like our Boot Camp Kingston participants who know that if they don't have water, they don't train!

Happy hydration...

Carbohydrates – essential for good food balance

June 19-20, 2010

This week DAN LEMOTO from Bootcamp Kingston provides Kingborough Chronicle readers with another great article about something that is vital for our body to produce energy – Carbohydrates.

Most of our energy comes from Protein, Fats and Carbohydrates (Carbs). Today we will look at Carbs and how they benefit us.

Broken down, Carbs are made up of elements known as carbon, hydrogen and oxygen ie (H2O or water). Carbon is arguably the single most important element as it plays a major role in building large biological molecules necessary for human life. If you did not have this element you would be just a pile of loose atoms – Not a good look.

As you are aware of how important water is from our previous Hydration article, we are made up of at least 60 per cent water, hence we must keep hydrated daily. Carbs are also known as macronutrients. Macronutrients are nutrients the body requires in large amounts as opposed to micronutrients (small amounts) such as vitamins and minerals.

Primarily, Carbs fuel the body’s energy to power muscular contractions and proper organ function. In other words, they contribute to the energy we need to perform our daily activities, exercise and/or sport.

Carbs are found in a wide range of foods we eat such as bread, pasta, cereals, potatoes and rice. Other sources of Carbs include fruit and vegetables and some dairy products. Categorically, there are two types of Carbs - Simple and Complex.

Simple Carbs are sugars such as lollies, fizzy drinks and juice. Complex Carbs are starches, fibre, glycogen and dextrin. Some examples of Complex Carbs include whole grain products, vegetables, and fruits.

Regardless of the type of Carbs we consume, they are both broken down when digested and are converted into energy. Simple Carbs are quickly digested and can therefore give you a boost in energy (blood-glucose levels) in a short time. This can be ideal before an intense workout, but not desirable as a snack/meal as you may become hungry and tired.

Complex Carbs on the other hand take longer to be released into the body (slow changes in blood-glucose due to taking longer to digest). Consequently, this gives more sustained energy consumption over a longer period of time. They are also low in fat, high in fibre and contain vitamins and minerals.

In terms of energy from Carbs, a guide known as the Glycemic Index (GI) is used for determining how quick blood-glucose levels may rise from consuming various carbohydrates. Although it is only a guide, Simple Carbs (Hi GI) usually score above 70 and Complex Carbs (Low GI) are foods below 55. If you consume too much sugar we therefore store it as fat, thereby increasing body weight. The reason for this is that the body can only store so much energy (stored Carb reserves ie glycogen).

If we use all of our energy that has been stored in the body from Carbs, then our body uses fats and proteins to provide our energy. Going one step further, once these stores begin to diminish as in starvation, there is potential to lose muscle tissue.

It is important to therefore maintain a balance of Carbs based on your daily activities and health goals. Energy in is energy out. Even when considering LowCarb diets, it is vital you are still getting enough Carbs to maintain optimum health. In addition, eating adequate portions and being in control of what you eat will help you make better decisions about your Carb intake. Some healthy Carbs include spinach, lettuce, broccoli, potatoes, brown rice, cucumbers, onions, tomatoes, zucchini, muesli, whole oats, low-fat yoghurt, skim milk, apples, oranges, strawberries, pears, kidney beans, lentils, soy beans and multi-grain bread.

Here are some of not so healthy Carbs you want to keep to a minimum – table sugar, corn syrup, fruit juice, fizzy drinks, lollies, all baked goods/pasta/bread made with white flour, most packaged cereals and cakes. Basically if the label lists sugar, sucrose, fructose, white/wheat flour, corn syrup, they contain simple carbohydrates.

So again, ensure you maintain a balanced healthy nutritious meal/hydration plan throughout the day to meet your physical and mental demands and remember - Good Carbs are better than no Carbs! Here is a quote from Olympic and Commonwealth Swimmer, Sharron Davies: “Carbohydrates are essential for good food balance"