Hydration Tips: Staying at the Top of Your Game

Hydration is one of the most overlooked aspects of health and high performance. Whether you're a pro athlete, executive, or fitness enthusiast, staying sharp and performing at your best can sometimes hinge on something deceptively simple: proper hydration. 

True hydration isn’t just about drinking more water either. As you will learn in this post, just drinking more water may hinder rather than help you. Instead, there’s a little more nuance to hydration, and it’s worth understanding a few other factors, such as how your body regulates water balance and recognising how hydration is influenced by dose and timing. The importance of electrolytes (Kinetica Sports Electro-C) in all of this can’t be overstated.

This blog breaks down everything you need to know. We’ll cover why hydration matters, the hidden signs of suboptimal hydration, the timing of hydration strategies, individualisation, plus some of the most common myths about hydration.

Let’s jump in.

Why Hydration is a Performance Multiplier

Water is the foundational medium for virtually every physiological process in the body:

·       Cognition: Dehydration can significantly impact focus, working memory, and decision-making speed (Dube, Gouws et al. 2022, Nishi, Babio et al. 2023)

·       Cardiovascular function: Lower plasma volume stresses the heart, increasing fatigue during exercise or even during mentally demanding work (Watso and Farquhar 2019)

·       Digestive and immune health: Fluid balance supports membranes and gut motility, vital for immune defence and nutrient absorption (Fortes, Diment et al. 2012, Sato, Hara-Chikuma et al. 2024)

·       Thermoregulation: Efficient sweating and cooling are essential during physical exertion and hot environments (Baker 2017)

In this context, hydration isn't a bonus to consider on occasion—it's a core lever for unlocking the next level of clarity, stamina, and resilience.

Dehydration Versus Hypohydration

Before we go any further, it’s important to differentiate between two terms that can get mixed up in any conversation about hydration: dehydration versus hypohydration. They are similar but not the same, and it’s worth knowing the difference.

Dehydration = Losing water:

Dehydration is the process of water leaving your body. It happens through sweat, urine, breath, or illness (e.g., vomiting, diarrhoea). It’s an active loss.

Hypohydration = Being Underhydrated:

Hypohydration is the state of having less body water than you need. It’s a condition, not a process. You can be hypohydrated without currently losing fluid, and many athletes are (Chapelle, Tassignon et al. 2020).

The Hidden Signs of Suboptimal Hydration

Most people don’t realise they’re hypohydrated because they associate it only with thirst. In reality, the signs are more subtle:

·       Fatigue despite rest

·       Mood swings or irritability

·       Headaches or ‘brain fog’

·       Poor recovery post-training

·       Increased sugar or caffeine cravings

·       Dark, smelly or infrequent urine

·       Higher resting heart rate upon waking

·       Lower HRV upon waking

These symptoms are often blamed on stress, diet, or sleep, but hydration status is a foundational factor (Early, Earnest et al. 2018, Young, Cousins et al. 2019, Zaplatosch and Adams 2020). Fixing this often-overlooked pillar is one of the fastest ways to elevate your baseline wellbeing.

The Hydration Equation: More Than Just Water

Proper hydration depends on several factors, such as fluid intake, electrolyte balance, hormonal regulation (e.g. aldosterone), and sweat losses.

1. Fluid Intake Needs

A general rule of thumb for adults is to drink 2 litres for women and 2.5 litres for men of fluid per day as a baseline (EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products and Allergies 2010). Fluid can come from various sources, such as mineral water, herbal teas, watermelon, etc.

Once you have this baseline in place, you are likely to need to adjust it for other factors such as:

·       Hard training

·       Sauna use

·       Hot climates

·       High-protein or high-fibre diets

·       Caffeine or alcohol intake

·       Air travel

·       Illness

These factors drive more water and electrolyte loss. How do you get around this? In elite sport, a few methods are used to quantify sweat rate and sodium loss (Baker 2017, Ayotte and Corcoran 2018, Li, Early et al. 2024). However, this requires organisation, support and technology, so it may not be right for you. With this in mind, I recommend you keep it simple and start with basic changes to begin personalising your approach:

Before training: Drink 500–600 ml of water or a sports drink about 2–3 hours before your workout. Then, top up with another 200–300 ml around 10–20 minutes before you begin.

During your session: Aim to sip 200–300 ml every 10–20 minutes, especially if you’re sweating heavily. The goal is to stay hydrated without losing more than 2% of your body weight through sweat.

After training: Rehydrate by replacing any fluids you lost during the session. A promising sign you’ve done this well is clear or pale-yellow urine and feeling refreshed, not depleted (Amawi, AlKasasbeh et al. 2023).

2. Electrolyte Needs

In addition to drinking water, it’s essential to understand the importance of electrolytes, like Kinetica Sports Electro-C. First, what are they?

Electrolytes are charged minerals, like sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium. In short, they help your body send electrical signals. As you can imagine, this is important. Those electrical signals control everything: your heartbeat, your muscles, your brain, even your ability to stay calm under pressure. Think of your cells like tiny batteries. Electrolytes keep them charged. Without the correct charge? Nothing works properly.

There are three key jobs performed by electrolytes that are worth mentioning here:

First, electrolytes move water where it’s needed.

Sodium and potassium help to move water in and out of your cells. That’s real hydration. Without them, drinking water might just make you urinate more. You stay thirsty, and your cells remain dry.

Second, electrolytes fire up muscles and the brain.

Put simply, calcium helps your muscles contract, magnesium helps them relax, and potassium keeps the rhythm. Get low on any of them, and you’ll feel it in the form of fatigue, cramps, twitchy muscles, and brain fog.

Third, electrolytes help you handle stress.

Your nervous system needs a steady supply of electrolytes to stay balanced. Under stress (whether from training, work, or lack of sleep), you burn through them quicker. No buffer? You crash.

Sodium, potassium, magnesium, and chloride are lost in sweat and urine. If you’re only drinking plain water, you risk diluting your sodium levels—a condition called hyponatremia, which can cause fatigue, dizziness, and confusion.

3. Timing

The timing of water and electrolytes also matters.

Morning: Start the day with 500ml of water and add a high-quality electrolyte, like Kinetica Sports Electrolyte Tablets Overnight, you lose water through breathing and sweating. Morning hydration restores plasma volume and kickstarts circulation.

Pre-performance (1–2 hours before): Drink 300 ml of water with a pinch of sea salt, especially if you are training hard and are at risk of sodium loss. Avoid large volumes of water right before intense sessions to prevent feeling heavy and bloated.

During training: For sessions over 45–60 minutes, sip 150–300 ml of water with electrolytes every 20 minutes. In heat or with high output, perhaps aim for 400–800 ml/hour, depending on sweat rate.

Post-training: Weigh yourself before and after your workout. Follow a simple rule: for every 1 kg lost, ~1 L of fluid is required for rehydration. Add sea salt and some carbohydrate to optimise absorption and glycogen replenishment.

Evening: To prevent nocturia, avoid excessive fluid intake in the last two hours before bed. Instead, hydrate consistently earlier in the day.

Advanced Tools: Measuring Your Hydration Status

If you want to take it a step further, there are various tools to understand your ongoing hydration status:

·       Urine Specific Gravity: You can buy dipsticks to measure hydration status via urine concentration.

·       Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA): Some smart scales estimate intracellular vs extracellular fluid (Adedia, Boakye et al. 2020).

·       HRV trends: Chronically low HRV or poor recovery may be compounded by underhydration (Porto, Benjamim et al. 2023).

Hydration Myths to Avoid

Let’s debunk a few common myths:

·       “If I’m not thirsty, I’m fine.” Thirst lags behind need. By the time you’re thirsty, you may already be 1–2% dehydrated.

·       “You can’t drink too much water.” Actually, you can. Overhydration without sodium can cause hyponatremia, especially in endurance athletes.

·       “All fluids count.” Alcohol, coffee, and sugary sodas aren’t fully hydrating. Prioritise water, herbal teas, and balanced electrolyte drinks.

Final Word: Hydration as a Strategic Advantage

Hydration is more than a checkbox—it’s a strategic performance enhancer. When personalised and properly timed, it supports:

• Faster recovery
• Improved focus
• Lowered cortisol
• Better sleep
• Higher HRV
• Emotional stability
• Greater resilience under pressure

A great place to start is with morning filtered water and a clean electrolyte mix, such as Kinetica Sports’s Electro-C, which is available in both lemon and berry flavour. Be sure to use it on high-output days, such as travel, tough workouts, long meetings, hot weather, or bad sleep. If you feel sharper, calmer, or more energised after taking it, take note because that’s good feedback about your personal needs.