You should understand the purpose of Gatorade. It's a replinishment system for electrolites. Water just rehydrates. The question is whether or not you need the replinishment.
Depending on how your body reacts to intense workouts should be the determining factor. The simplist way that I was able to determine what I needed was to notice just how much sodium I lost during a workout.
Sodium is very important in hydrating the body, without it you body will not absorb any liquids. Gatorade gives you that, but also a salty snack like chips or nuts and water.
I swear by the stuff, but my workouts involve riding a bike anywhere from one to six hours. I usually go through at least 16 ounces each hour. Prior to my rides I do make sure I am well hydrated by making sure I drink enough water.
I'm not sure if it is necessarily worthwhile if you only work out for 15 minutes or so. The heat does play a part but first and formost is how much sodium/water (sweat) you loose during the workout.
Just for giggles, I'm going to share a secret cyclists have known for a while; the recipe(s) for making your own sports drink.
The basic recipe is not complicated and homemade sports drinks can provide all of the same benefits when mixed properly. Gatorade (tm) is formulated to give the following per 8oz serving:
-14grams Carbohydrate (5.9%)
-110 mg Sodium
-30mg Potassium
-52 Calories
Alternatives to this commercial product can be made using one of the following recipes:
Recipe #1
10 tbs. sugar (5/8 cups or 120 grams)
.75 tsp Morton Lite salt (4.2 grams)
1 package of unsweetened Coolade mix for flavor
Water to make 2 liters
Nutrition Information (per 8 ounces). The recipe will give a total of 124 grams of solute which in 2 liters water gives a total of 6.2% concentration.
14.2 grams carbohydrate (6%)
53 calories
103 mg Sodium
121 mg Potassium
You'll notice that the amount of potassium is quite a bit higher than Gatorade, but the rest is pretty close. As excess potassium is eliminated from the body by the kidneys, and some experts feel a high potassium helps to minimize muscle cramps - and hypertension if taken long term - this is not necessarily bad. However, if you wanted to reduce the potassium to the level of a Gatorade product, another option would be to use 1/2 tsp. each of regular salt and the Morton Lite Salt. This would change the composition to:
104mg sodium
40mg potassium
Recipe #2
(if you wanted to reduce the amount of potassium, or simply didn't want to buy some Morton Lite Salt
1/2 cup orange juice
9 tbs. Sugar
3/8 tsp Salt
Water to 2 liters
Nutrition Information (per 8 ounces):
14.4 grams carb (6.1%)
104 mg sodium
28.4 mg Potassium
(you could substitute 2 tbs. of lemon juice for the orange juice and it would come out the same - or at least close).
Recipe #3 (using cups and quarts)
4 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup boiling water
1/4 cup orange juice (not concentrate) or 2 tablespoons lemon juice
3-3/4 cups cold water
1. In the bottom of a pitcher, dissolve the sugar and salt in the hot water.
2. Add the juice and the remaining water; chill.
Yield: 1 quart
Nutrition Information (per 8 ounces):
Calories - 50
carbohydrate 12 grams
sodium 110 milligrams
potassium 30 milligrams
Recipe #4 (if you prefer an all fructose drink)
125 mL (1/2 c) orange juice (or other sugar-containing beverage)
125 mL (1/2 c) water
0.25 mL (pinch) salt
Nutrition Information (per 8 ounces):
Calories - 59
carbohydrates 14 grams
sodium - 118 mg
Recipe #5 Lemon-orange sports drink
1 caffeine-free lemon tea bag
Water
2 tablespoons sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons orange juice
Bring 16 ounces of water to a boil.
Steep lemon tea bag.
Dissolve sugar and salt in the tea and let cool.
Combine the tea and orange juice and chill.
Nutrition Information (per 8 ounces):
Calories - 60
carbohydrates - 15g
sodium -130mg
I still use Gatorade on occasion just because you can buy the huge, powdered mix that makes 8 gallons of the stuff. It's just more convinient than making the mixture for each workout.
