Water makes up 60% of our body weight. It’s not surprising that drinking enough H20 is pivotal for performance, endurance, and just plain surviving exercise. But with differing hydration advice floating around, how much water is optimal before, during, and after workouts? Let’s dig in.

Pre-Workout Hydration: Prime Your Performance Engine

Ideally, we’d drink consistent volumes of water all day, not just choke it down before our workout. But if you haven’t sipped steadily leading up to the gym, pre-hydrate! Drinking 16 to 20 oz of water or electrolyte-enhanced beverage 30+ minutes before training ensures your body has enough time to absorb the fluid influx.

Downing a substantial drink and then waiting lets your cells bask in the hydration. Blood volume expands, body temp regulates better, and hardworking muscle gears up for impending demands with ample moisture. Properly fueling for the task ahead prevents hitting the gas on an empty tank!

In-Workout Sipping: What You Sweat Out Matters

Even perfectly pre-hydrated athletes lose a substantial amount of water through sweat during demanding sessions. Progressive dehydration and fluid-electrolyte imbalance can quickly damper endurance and strength while upping fatigue.

Aim to replace at least 30-90% of sweat losses in the session, depending on workout length and climate conditions. For a medium-intensity 60-minute class, 16-20 oz consumed throughout is reasonable for most. Electrolyte blends (like sports drinks) offset sodium lost in perspiration compared to water alone.

Use your sweat rate, thirst cues, and urine color as personal guides for dialing in hydration. Keep sipping accessible by stashing a water bottle during class within arm’s reach on a nearby bench, in the cup holder of a cardio machine, along perimeter walls in group studios, etc. Staying on top of fluid needs prevents workout woes!

Post-Workout Rehydration & Recovery Refueling

You finish class drenched and feelishly smug about crushing your workout. High five! But don’t relax just yet – post-workout rehydration and refueling lays the foundation for bounce-back readiness.

Within two hours of toweling off, strive to replace any remaining fluid deficits, and electrolytes lost through heavy sweating. Water and electrolytes first, then eat a well-balanced snack or light meal to optimize recovery. The post-workout window is primetime for restocking muscle glycogen and repairing stressed tissue. Don’t squander it!

For most moderate sweat sessions, consuming another 16-24 oz water in the few hours post-exercise sufficiently rehydrates. But for longer, high-intensity workouts draining >3% body mass in sweat, more substantial rehydration, and replenishment is wise.

Weighing yourself pre- to post-workout gauges losses. For every pound dripped off in perspiration, drink at least 16 oz over the next 4-6 hours. Pair it with a small carb-protein snack to prompt muscle repair and growth. When in doubt, sip extra fluids and fuel up!

My Hydration Journey

In my early running years, I constantly battled dehydration and hyponatremia (low blood sodium) because I drank exclusively water. I’d hammer long summer runs minimally hydrated, then wonder why I felt awful! Only after educating myself on sports nutrition did I balance fluids and electrolytes properly before, during, and after workouts. It made training feel infinitely more sustainable.

These days, I rely on both thirst and quantified sweat rate data to personalize my hydration. I know roughly how much to drink hourly based on workout duration and intensity, then tweak based on sweat losses, climate, and my actual thirst cues. It’s the ideal fueling formula for feeling energized through demanding sessions instead of drained!

The Takeaway

Nailing hydration for exercise is all about planning and pacing. Adequately pre-hydrate in the 30+ minutes before starting. Stay on top of fluid-electrolyte needs throughout a workout. Then, remember that refueling afterward makes gains in strength and performance possible. Sip consistently in and around workouts, then the rest of the day, too. Here’s to great hydration and even better training!