DRINK. DRINK. DRINK. Everyone tells you to drink water when you work in the pool. But, dang it, you are never thirsty. So the day rolls on with nary a sip.
Well guys, your body is tricking you into a low grade, long term dehydrated state with serious consequences.
Why? Well, we all understand the effects of hydrostatic pressure on edema control in the legs.We even get the fact that this volume shift creates an extra pre-load on the heart ... in effect making each contraction more powerful.
What we fail to realize is that this same shift in volume creates a sustained stimulation of the cardiopulmonary baroreceptors and reduction of a dipsogenic (ahem... fancy term for thirst) stimulus.
This volume-induced stimuli of fluid receptors sends a message to your brain saying
"Hey Central Command. We've got too much volume here. Pee it off, pee it off."
And the last thing the brain is going to do during this period is to allow your hormones to signal thirst. You need less volume (so your brain is tricked into thinking) not more.
Voila! No thirst even though your kidneys are excreting like crazy (known in some circles as having to pee like a racehorse).
So, how do you check to see if you are dehydrated and need to drink more? Next time you void, turn around and take a peek. If your urine is medium yellow, you are behind the drinking curve. Mellow Yellow color? You need some serious water, kid.
The science behind the info? http://ajpregu.physiology.org/content/268/3/R583
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