When you play sports you have to drink enough. In soccer, it's exactly the same. But why do you need to drink enough? In this blog, we explain to you why you need to do this.
Why do you need to drink as a soccer player?
During soccer, you ask a lot of your body. You will sweat and lose water as a result. The muscles in the body consist of 75% water. When you don't drink enough, the muscles dry out. This makes you more likely to cramp up and your performance declines. When you don't drink enough, you also have a chance of dehydration.
When you read on, we explain in detail why you should drink enough as a soccer player. We also explain why you should drink before, during, at halftime and after the game and what is best to drink.
There are several reasons why a soccer player should drink. In the introduction to this blog you already read this in a nutshell. Below we go into this in more detail.
To prevent dehydration
During soccer, you are running, jumping and making slidings, among other things. All of this causes you to be working intensely and to sweat. Sweating causes your body to cool down naturally and keeps you from overheating.
However, sweating also causes the body to lose water. When you lose too much water you become dehydrated. When you become dehydrated you get thirsty, may become dazed, feel weak, get confused and even faint.
Staying hydrated enough prevents this. It also ensures that you can continue to urinate properly and sweat enough. Both are important to get the toxins out of your body.
To prevent cramping
Did you know that the average percentage of water in an adult body is 65%? And did you know that your muscles are 75% water? When you don't drink enough and start sweating, you also lose water in your muscles. If you lose too much water you can cramp up.
To prevent injuries
When you don't drink enough you are more likely to get injured during a game. There may be too little water in the muscles, making you more likely to tear a muscle. Acute cramping can cause you to fall unexpectedly and possibly land incorrectly. These are just a few examples of injuries that can occur during a game if you don't drink enough.
To perform well
As you read above, you can become dehydrated and suffer cramps if you don't drink enough.
This affects your performance on the field. If you do not drink enough, your performance will decrease because muscles will not function as well. You may become (slightly) confused and not be able to "read" the game properly, or you may be so thirsty that you cannot focus on the game properly.
It is important to drink enough before the game. By drinking beforehand, you ensure that the body has enough water in your system to play the first half.
Sometimes it is not possible to drink during the game because there is simply no opportunity to do so. When there are no injuries or (few or short) set-piece moments, there is no opportunity to provide your body with new water.
By drinking well beforehand you can be sure, despite not being able to drink during the game, that you have enough water in your body.
It is best to drink water or a fruit juice before the match. Do this about two to three hours before the match begins. Take about 2 to 3 large glasses (this is equivalent to 400 to 600 ml).
It is also good to drink something just before the match starts. Do this about 15 minutes before the match starts. Again, you can choose water or a drink with fruit sugar such as Aquarius. This time take about 150 to 250 ml.
Drink the thing you drink just before the match in one go. This will prevent you from getting a sloshing sensation during the match. Drinking all at once also promotes hydration.
If the opportunity arises during a soccer match, it is a good idea to drink something. When there is an injury, for example, you have the chance to rehydrate your body. This will keep you well hydrated throughout the match.
During a soccer match, it is best to drink water. However, do not drink too much to avoid a sloshing feeling.
Tip!
Put several water bottles around the field. Even the goalkeeper can place several water bottles next to his goal. This makes it easy to get a quick drink.
Matches paused during hot days
When it is extremely hot, referees may choose to insert extra drinking breaks. This happens in both professional and amateur soccer.
Extreme heat causes the body to lose water so quickly that it is sweated out within 45 minutes. For the safety of the soccer players, it is therefore chosen to have a drink, for example, after about 22 minutes (halfway through the first half). The referee then stops the game so that everyone at the sideline can have a drink at the sideline. This same ritual is often applied again midway through the second half.
Halftime is the perfect time to have a drink. During the 15 minutes of rest, you have plenty of time to replenish your water supply.
Again, water is the one thing you can always drink. Some soccer players like to drink a sugary sports drink such as Aquarius or Dextrose Energy (Isotonic sports drink). This re-energizes the body because it is provided with sugars.
You hear a lot of stories about that soccer players should drink tea at halftime. Because tea is warm, you drink it less quickly so that your stomach would bother you less.
Although tea is often drunk in amateur soccer, this is no longer the case in professional soccer.
Professional footballers rather choose water or an isotonic drink such as Aquarius, AA drink (not the High Energy, orange variety) or Dextrose Energy. As mentioned earlier, this ensures that the body is supplied with sugars, allowing you to perform better and longer.
After 90 minutes of soccer, you've asked a lot of your body. Chances are you have quite a few miles in your legs and have sweated a lot.
It is important to drink enough even after the match. This prevents dehydration. As you have read above, dehydration can have several unpleasant consequences.
Within an hour of finishing the game, you should get enough water. Therefore, drink at least one bottle of water. It is also important to keep drinking enough after the hour.
Note!
After the game, you do not need to take an Isotonic sports drink.
Note!
Especially amateur soccer players choose to go into the sportscafe after the match. They often choose to enjoy a beer (or a lot more). However, drinking alcohol is counterproductive. This is because it causes your body to lose water instead of getting enough water.
So it is very important to keep drinking. Do this before- during, at halftime and after the game. Doing this will prevent you from dehydration, prevent cramping and help you perform better. It also reduces your risk of injuries. Fortunately, you now know what to drink and how much to drink.
Besides staying hydrated enough, there are plenty of other methods to prevent injuries and play soccer safely. We have written more blogs about these. Curious? Then click here.