Abstract
Much research and many guidelines exist relating hydration and sport, yet many athletes don’t understand the role it plays with training and performance. Athletes often come to practice or competition dehydrated. Hydration education has been shown to reduce dehydration in land-based athletes, but hasn’t been studied in swimming. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine if an educational intervention improves the hydration status of collegiate swimmers. METHODS: Participants (N=14) were collegiate level swimmers (n=6 female, n=8 male). Hydration status was determined using urine specific gravity (USG), urine osmolarity (UO), and change in body mass. Measurements were taken before and after practice during week one. Athletes deemed dehydrated by any of the measures (n=9) were given an educational intervention during week two. The intervention provided information based on position statements from the American College of Sports Medicine and the National Athletic Training Association. The same hydration measures were made in week three after the educational intervention. A dependent t-test was used to determine any significant differences in pre-post intervention hydration measurements using the dehydrated swimmers to determine the program’s effectiveness. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in USG or UO (p>0.05). Pre and post-practice USG and UO values from week one were compared to week three. CONCLUSIONS: While no significant differences were present as a result of the educational intervention, previous research has suggested educational interventions can improve the understanding of hydration and how it impacts performance and elicits positive performance outcomes. (Cleary et al., 2012; McDermott et al., 2009) In the present study, daily fluctuations in hydration and practice time, subjects misunderstanding/disregarding information provided during the intervention, or using a single determinant of hydration status, may be possible reasons for no change. Further investigations may want to both account for these variables and extend the educational intervention.
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