# Gatorade, I pit thee. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 11, 2005, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321 "2005-05-11T01:19:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/1 "2005-05-11T01:19:47Z")
I’m fairly athletic. I spend a lot of my time involved in endurance type of sports: Swimming, cycling, running. Not ironmand distances but long enough to make hydration something to take seriously. I’ve tried Gatorade a number of times, as well as some other sport drinks including Accelerade and the like. The only thing these drinks leave me craving is more of the same. Not because they give me a noticeable performance improvement but because they give me the worst case of pasty mouth. They’re like a fucking drug. No matter how much you drink, you crave more. They tell you it’s because your body is craving it… lies. The only thing that drinking this stuff gives me is bad cramps from over hydration. Solution: Water. Nothing works like water. That and a carb shot for a longer distance. On a really hot day, I make some iced mint tea for the fresh cooling/soothing feeling in the mouth and stomach. Fuck you Gatorade. Fuck you and your latest commercial that blatantly and falsely claims that “most athletes don’t know how much water they loose”. Most athletes know exactly how much they lose and how much they need to replenish and when. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/2 "2005-05-11T01:44:47Z")
Gatorade is for hangovers. Fuck you, athlete-type person! Start drinkin’, then talk shit about the “Liquid of Life”. Ass! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/3 "2005-05-11T01:57:29Z")
Maybe it makes you thirstier because it’s full of salt? ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/4 "2005-05-11T02:15:43Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Maybe it makes you thirstier because it’s full of salt? Well, yes. I didn’t think I need to do a chemical analysis to pit effectively. Salts, fructose sugars, food colouring… whatever… it just makes things worse during exercise. Now after… even for a hangover… maybe. ---
**Author:** ![Kiros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/439d5e/32.png) [@Kiros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kiros)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/5 "2005-05-11T02:39:43Z")
I find that drinking just a couple swallows of Gatorade maybe half an hour before a big soccer match or distance run can give me a little bit of an extra kick. But to hydrate during an event? Water, please! ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/6 "2005-05-11T02:42:41Z")
What the hey, I am sick with a cold and I have some time, so here is AWFTS: [http://rgp.ufl.edu/publications/explore/v08n1/gatorade.html](http://rgp.ufl.edu/publications/explore/v08n1/gatorade.html) > [@](#): > > As they researched the effects of heat on the human body, Cade and his colleagues began to realize that all that sweat was taking with it the players’ energy, strength and endurance. The researchers speculated that the electrolytes — primarily sodium and potassium — the players were losing in their sweat were upsetting the body’s delicate chemical balance. > > To test their hypothesis, Cade approached then-Gator football coach Ray Graves about letting him use several players as subjects. “One of the reasons I have respect for Coach Graves was that when we explained to him what we had found he professed no ability to really understand what we were saying, but he accepted it,” Cade recalled in an interview he gave in 1996 for the UF Oral History Project. “But he hedged his bets a bit. He said we could try it only on the freshman team.” Figures, the freshman always get to be the guinea pigs! > [@](#): > > In early September 1965 Cade and his colleagues began collecting all manner of samples from 10 UF freshmen football players. They were most cooperative, Cade once told a reporter, but they had their limits. > > “They would not consent to having practice stopped so we could measure their body temperatures rectally,” Cade recalled. Thank og for the digital temperature readers of today! > [@](#): > > The results were eye-opening. The players’ electrolytes were completely out of balance, their blood sugar was low and their total blood volume was low. The impact on the body of this upheaval in chemistry was profound. > > “Each of these conditions, by itself, would to some extent incapacitate a player,” Cade says in his oral history. “Put them all together and you can have real problems.” > > With hard data in hand, Cade’s team began pursuing a remedy to address all these issues. > > “The solution,” Cade says, “was to give them water, but with salt in it to replace the salt they were losing in sweat. Also, give them sugar to keep their blood sugar up, but not so much sugar that it would upset their stomachs.” > > By all accounts, the first batch tasted so bad none of the scientists could stomach it, but when Cade’s wife suggested adding lemon juice, the drink that would soon become known as Gatorade was born. > According to legend, the first on-the-field tests of Gatorade came in a scrimmage between the Gators B team and the freshmen. > > “At the end of the first half, the B team was ahead 13-0. They pushed the freshmen around pretty good,” Cade says. “In the third period, the freshmen, who had been given the solution, came out and began pushing the B team around. They scored two or three touchdowns in the third period and five or six more in the fourth period.” > > Cade says Graves witnessed the turnaround and was impressed enough to ask him if he could make up a supply for the varsity to use the next day in its game against heavily favored Louisiana State. > > Cade and his colleagues worked through the night, scavenging their labs for the ingredients and hand-squeezing lemons. Somehow the scene from the original movie “the absent-minded professor” appears in my mind, the one where he is preparing the shoes for the team. > [@](#): > > The next day, Florida came from behind to defeat LSU in 102-degree heat when the Tigers wilted in the fourth quarter. Regarding the OP: Overhydration, is a condition in which the body contains too much water, in this case I would not be so quick on blaming Gatorade, IANA doctor but it seems that missing your sodium and potassium is the main reason why one can get cramps during exercise or at night. As several cyclists recommended in this feedback: [http://www.cyclingsite.com/collected\_wisdom/touring\_info/concerns/electrolytes.htm](http://www.cyclingsite.com/collected_wisdom/touring_info/concerns/electrolytes.htm) If you dislike Gatorate, try V-8. ---
**Author:** ![scout1222](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@scout1222](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scout1222)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/7 "2005-05-11T19:09:44Z")
I’ve run 5 marathons, and I agree wholeheartedly. All these sports drinks just make me thirsty as all get out. Carb Boom and water, baby. It’s what gets me through. ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/8 "2005-05-11T19:15:42Z")
Google hyponatremia. That’s a condition where you sweat out so much sodium, and just replace with water that you dilute your blood or some shit like that. It’s not as uncommon as you may think for endurance atheletes. First warning sign: INSTANT DEATH! ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/9 "2005-05-11T19:17:24Z")
Seriously, sometimes I’ll just use a little salt and sugar dissolved in water. Sometimes I use this Electrolyte drink that doesn’t taste too good. It’s important to replace salt. You don’t need a lot of it but you do need it. Keep in mind, I’m talking about bike rides in the 2-5 hour range. That’s a lot of electrolyte loss. ---
**Author:** ![scout1222](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@scout1222](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scout1222)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/10 "2005-05-11T19:21:30Z")
Agreed. This is what bugs me about those drinks. I know there are things in there I need, but man. What’s the electrolyte drink you use? I had a training buddy use something like that, but I’ll be dipped in shit because I can’t remember what it was called. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/11 "2005-05-11T19:24:19Z")
> [@Trunk](#): > > First warning sign: INSTANT DEATH! What is the second one? ---
**Author:** ![Tabby\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Tabby\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tabby_Cat)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/12 "2005-05-11T19:28:59Z")
_BRRrrrrrrrrrrrrrraaaaaaaaaaaaaaaiiiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnnsssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss_ ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/13 "2005-05-11T19:30:00Z")
Persistent body odor. ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/14 "2005-05-11T19:33:43Z")
I’ve always used Cytomax when cycling, and have never noticed this phenomenon. Maybe they use a little less salt? However, you have to mix it up yourself before each ride, so it’s kind of a pain. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/15 "2005-05-11T19:37:03Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > Solution: Water. Nothing works like water. That and a carb shot for a longer distance. On a really hot day, I make some iced mint tea for the fresh cooling/soothing feeling in the mouth and stomach. I believe they purposely engineered it so that it wouldn’t slake your thirst. Apparantly when people drink water their bodies send signals that they’re no longer thirsty even though in actuality they might need more liquid. Or maybe that’s just Gatorade propaganda. Marc ---
**Author:** ![Boldface\_Type](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b5e925/32.png) [@Boldface\_Type](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boldface_Type)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/16 "2005-05-11T19:45:46Z")
I also use Cytomax (when running), and it works well for me. With all these drinks, you need to make 'em at the correct concentration, which is weaker than one might think. I don’t use Gatorade on principle - it’s basically just sugar, at eeek! times the price. Ultra runners will often eat real food, e.g., boiled potatoes with salt, soup, pretzels, bananas, etc. Hyponatraemia is basically caused by people forcing liquid down them according to real or imagined optimal fluid intake rates (rather than drinking ad lib). Shouldn’t happen over shortish distances, nor with ad lib drinking with intake of adequate electrolyte amounts. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/17 "2005-05-11T20:00:46Z")
Plus, you don’t actually sweat in pastel. Their commercials are giving false hope to those of us that wish to perspire in green and purple. ---
**Author:** ![tremorviolet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@tremorviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tremorviolet)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/18 "2005-05-11T20:26:56Z")
> [@MGibson](#): > > I believe they purposely engineered it so that it wouldn’t slake your thirst. Apparantly when people drink water their bodies send signals that they’re no longer thirsty even though in actuality they might need more liquid. Or maybe that’s just Gatorade propaganda. Medical folklore. The body isn’t so horribly engineered that you’d be in desperate need of more liquid yet not be thirsty. That’s what thirst is _for_. I find Gatorade and the like only make a difference if I’m exercising in 95+ weather (not uncommon here) for an hour or so. Just drinking water will give me a headache. But, I think commercial Gatorade is far too strong. I usually buy the powdered stuff and mix it at half strength. ---
**Author:** ![Cemetery\_Savior](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/439d5e/32.png) [@Cemetery\_Savior](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cemetery_Savior)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/19 "2005-05-11T21:19:18Z")
When I wa playing competitive juniors tennis (and nowadays, too), I always used one of those ubiquitous green Gatorade bottles, but I used a combination of 1 part good old OJ to 3 parts tap water. Between the two, I found that I was pretty well-hydrated, and didn’t get noticeably weaker. Anecdotally, most tennis pros have endorsement deals they have to support, so they have the logo-ed bottles, but most of them are filled with straight water. If you spend enough time on a nice, hot tennis court, you learn what works. When I played soccer, we sucked orange segments and drank water. I try to eat an orange or a banana before a match to load potassium to avoid cramping. ---
**Author:** ![Dag\_Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@Dag\_Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dag_Otto)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321/20 "2005-05-11T21:22:05Z")
> [@scout1222](#): > > Carb Boom and water, baby. It’s what gets me through. I agree. In my experience, things such as energy gels and power bars provide plenty of what I need, as long as I also drink water with them. The worst part about energy drinks is that they tend to leak out of the bottle and dribble down to the bottom bracket shell (where the shifter cables run). The resulting stickyness makes the bike shift poorly. The other bad thing about them is when you forget to rinse out the bottles after a ride and let them sit around for a few days. Yuck. Never happens with plain water. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gatorade-i-pit-thee/303321.md?page=2)