Dear Athletic Support: It’s too hot outside to breathe. Seriously. I bet I’ve already taken four showers today, and it’s not even suppertime yet. Luckily, my son is between sports right now. His travel baseball league just ended a week or so ago. We’re waiting for football to gear up. If it’s this hot when it gets started, what are we going to do? I don’t want him to have to miss football. He’s a tough kid. So is there anything I can do to prepare him for this heat? — Sweatin’
Dear Sweatin’: When it comes to heat exhaustion, “tough” doesn’t have anything to do with it. In fact, it’s that sort of thinking that can get a kid in trouble, fast.
There’s no toughing out the heat.
But there is a lot that can be done when it comes to preparing for the heat. That’s the ticket, and it’s good news for you and your son because you can start getting ready for those extremely hot early practices right now.
The first, and most important step, is hydration.
Your son needs to drink enough water (yes, sports drinks are fine too, but I’d try to balance this out) so that when he pees his urine is clear. The same color as the water in the toilet bowl.
I know this may sound gross, but it’s the absolute best indicator for hydration. Like many other things when it comes to human anatomy, everybody is different.
That’s why I can’t tell your son he has to drink nine Gatorades a day to be properly hydrated. But I can tell him — and you — to check the toilet bowl.
You want multiple days of clear urine in the days leading up to extreme heat exposure. We used to tell our players you don’t drink when you’re thirsty, you just drink.
In college, we had these big water bottles we had to carry around with us everywhere and charts taped above the toilets in the locker room. The charts were reminders to check out pee for proper hydration levels. As strange as all this may sound, those two procedures instilled in me a lifelong habit of drinking plenty of water.
The only other thing you can do leading up to the hot practices is making sure your son gets acclimated. This just means he needs to be off the couch and out in the heat on a regular basis before football season starts.
To sum it up, if your son drinks until his urine is clear and gets used to being out in the heat, then the dog days of summer should be a breeze.
Final note: If your son experiences any signs of heat illness, you should seek medical attention immediately.
Eli Cranor is a former professional quarterback and coach turned award-winning author. His debut novel, Don’t Know Tough, is available wherever books are sold. Send in questions for “Athletic Support” by using the “Contact” page at elicranor.com.
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