By its very essence, martial arts are holistic in approach. In other words, all aspects of the human person work together in order to achieve an optimum performance while undertaking martial arts training. Moreover, the mind, spirit and body must be in good condition for training to be beneficial for an individual. If one of these aspects becomes distracted or loses focus, the individual will not be able to enjoy the improvements and benefits he is aiming for.
Because martial arts training require physical exertion, the body’s needs must be met in order for it to function at the optimum level. Aside from food as a source of energy, proper hydration is another important physical need that one must satisfy. As we move, we spend energy. It’s converted as heat by the body. In order to keep this heat from causing damage, water in the body neutralizes it through sweating. As you continue to exert energy, water is also spent. In order to keep up with this demand, you need to replenish the water loss during any physical activity.
In order for you to have a clearer idea of the relevance of proper hydration to your martial arts training, I’ve included the following excerpts that I got from an article posted on mafitness.blogspot.com. This write up specifically discusses the significance of proper hydration while on training.
A large percentage of martial arts practitioners suffer from a small degree of dehydration from the lack of water consumption. Therefore, by drinking water you will no longer be dehydrated and you will be able to feel the great health benefits especially while training in your chosen style of martial arts.
In martial arts (including boxing, kickboxing, mma, etc.), our body is one third of our training alongside the mental and spiritual components. Therefore, you must take care of your body so that you can train and workout to the best of your ability. If your body is dehydrated, you will be unable to train at a high level and not see the improvement you’re working for. Even more so, daily activities will become a burden such as getting out of bed in the morning. Water helps to supply our energy which is reduced when there are not sufficient amounts of water being consumed.
So how much is enough? It varies and usually it is recommended that you listen to your body when your body is thirsty during training grab a sip of water.
It’s vital to remember that drinking water constantly is a must when you are engaging in any form of physical activity. The simple principle to remember is to replace what is loss. If you are sweating profusely for instance, you need to drink water as much as you should in proportion to how much sweat you have lost.
