Gatoraid?

Is gatoraid all they say it is to be? or is it just another load of bull?   JW

Kind of generic question, really depends on the type, intensity, of exercise you are doing.

Well the question was meant in general... Like does it "replenish & refresh" better than water?

From what I have heard, no, it's no better than water.  Apparently they say that you'd only need gatorade if you were doing extreme exercise

Well generic answer to your generic question is no. More detailed answer:
While doing what? If you are just seating in front of the computer reading this forum, then no. It's empty calories. Remember it's a sports drink, and is meant to be taken during an exercise. Now the question is what kind of exercise. If you are on a treadmill walking 2 miles an hour or on stationary bike barely turning pedals, then it's not necessary. If you go for a 2+ hour bike ride, then it might be a good idea to either have some kind of sport drink or to eat something. There is around 2k worth of glycogen stored in your liver and muscles. Harder the work out more glycogen you use as a percentage of calories you burn. Once you run out bad things start to happen.
By the way this is where the whole "fat burning zone" myth comes from.

for the most part i am generally against sport drinks.

I would say the only time they should be taken is if you're doing a very high intense exercise, and wont be getting a decent break inbetween there.

take for example a 3 day basketball tournament with 2-4 games per day. you'll need it, but if you've gone for a 3 hour hike you should stick with water and some fruit.

 

I think it is better than water, but you can't just drink it lounging about the house. Gatorade has electrolytes in it, which help balance your Na/K (sodium/potassium) levels because when you sweat they become unbalanced. It also has a lot of carbs and sugar, which is needed for a serious athlete whom is working out vigorously.

During my practices, which are 2hr to 3 1/2hrs long, I stay towards water because I don't like gatorade too much. During meets I have it because it does help. If you like gatorade so much, try the new G2 it's lower calorie gatorade.

Gatorade or some type of electrolyte replacement is a must if you are doing any type of sustained exercise for a long period of time (2 hours or more) or if it is particularly hot and you are sweating a lot. If you are just exercising for an hour or two it probably isn't necessary and would just be extra calories. You can tell if your electrolyte balance is off if you are going pee too much, you're body will naturally dump water to try to get back to the right equalibrium of water/electrolytes.

Original Post by swimgirl110:

I think it is better than water, but you can't just drink it lounging about the house. Gatorade has electrolytes in it, which help balance your Na/K (sodium/potassium) levels because when you sweat they become unbalanced. It also has a lot of carbs and sugar, which is needed for a serious athlete whom is working out vigorously.

During my practices, which are 2hr to 3 1/2hrs long, I stay towards water because I don't like gatorade too much. During meets I have it because it does help. If you like gatorade so much, try the new G2 it's lower calorie gatorade.

G2 tastes so gross compared to regular gatorade... strawberry zero cal powerade on the hand... yummy. =D

i used to be pretty anti-gatorade, vitamin water, etc., but now i really like to drink that type of drink when i work out. it helps me get in some of the extra calories i burn working out, plus they're super thirst-quenching in my opinion. other lower calorie sports drinks that are out there that taste good are g2(grape only, though), propel, and powerade zero in the strawberry flavor is great, too.