Alison & Louise, 2013 “What Do Athletes Drink during Competitive Sporting Activities” offers a substantive review on various issues aligned with rehydration practices amongst athletes. Amicably, the main point of the authors in the current article is that despite the fact that there exists standard guidelines on how athletes should rehydrate themselves while partaking in any sports events, the applicability of these guidelines has and continuous to remain a question of concern in the sporting realm. In fact, the article notes that rehydration preferences of athletes vary depending on personal choices; hence, these guidelines may be viable to some athletes, but not viable to others.
Summary of the author’s claims
In a nutshell, the article delves on the fact that there exist wider variations in fluid requirements/consumption and loses amongst sports personalities. These variations are determined by the intensity of the athletic events and the prevailing weather conditions during these events. In conclusion, the author’s question the applicability of the rehydration recommendations devised as a guide for fluid intake amongst athletes.
How the author’s support their claims
Alison & Louise, 2013 utilized a number of strategies in supporting their claims. More importantly, the author’s carried out a comprehensive literature search on the topic on fluid intake during sports. As such, the authors utilize findings and recommendations from credible academic literatures in substantiating their claims. Despite this, the authors exhibit bias based on the fact that they focus more on refuting the guidelines on fluid intake, which it is apparent that the guidelines were devised based in standard fluid requirements of a healthy athlete. Indeed, the guidelines may have some discrepancies, but the authors should have appreciated the fact that the guidelines are just an average recommendations, which can be streamlined to suit various athletes and sports.
My position/opinion
Despite the bias exhibited by the current author’s I concur with their notions based on primary fact that the fluid requirements every single athlete is guided by a wider array of factors. Above all, the nature of athletic events have an immense influence on the fluid intake during an athletics event. As an example, there are sports events whereby consumption of fluids is not allowed. In such cases, fluid intake is beyond the control of the athletes; hence, the athletes may not be in a position to adhere to the stipulated guidelines on fluid intake. Overall, water balance and content varies amongst athletes. For this reason, fluid requirements and intake amongst athletes participating in a similar sports event will certainly vary.
Reference
Garth, A., & Burke, L. (2013). What do athletes drink during competitive sporting activities?. Sports Medicine, 43(7), 539-564.
