Hydration on the Golf Course. You'll Never Think of it the Same.

Yeah, yeah, yeah… you’ve been told a 1000 times that drinking plenty of water and staying hydrated on the course is important, but do you know why?

The Effects of Dehydration On Distance, Accuracy, and Decision Making

There’s research that suggests that not drinking enough water before and during a round of golf will negatively affect your distance and accuracy.

Study indicates that golfers hit 12% shorter and 93% less accurately when mildly dehydrated: http://t.co/D2b9GEEkLB pic.twitter.com/oQko2aoGv4

— TPI (@MyTPI) October 22, 2014

For all golfers, this information should hit home! How many times has your game begun to sputter in the back nine? What if the solution wasn’t to up your endurance workouts, or to simply concentrate more, but rather drink more water? Would you hydrate better? YES!

How Much Water Is Enough?

A simple water recommendation, such as 8 cups of water/day, is not the way to go. Surely, a 5’4, 90 lb. junior golfer doesn’t need as much water  as a 6’2, 215 lb. golfer, right?

As a general rule of thumb, drink 50% of your body weight in ounces per day. So the 90 lb. junior golfer should shoot for 45 ounces, and the 215 lb. golfer close to 110 ounces. For most of you, that’s way more water consumption than you’re used to!  

Hydration doesn’t occur instantly. It’s critical that you prehydrate, or drink plenty of water before your round. For some of you, that might require slugging down 20-30 ounces as soon as you wake up. Make this a priority in your hydration plan!

Make it Easy. Make it Available.

If you know you need to drink more water, make it easy and make it available.

– Invest in one or two large (30 oz.) water bottles or tumblers. This way you’ll need to fill up way less often. Bring it with you everywhere you go.
– Make it a habit to take a sip or two after every shot. Get to the point where it becomes routine.
– If you’re golfing first thing in the morning, place your full water bottle on your night stand. Drink it as soon as you wake up.

I Don’t Like Drinking Water. Can I Substitute it for Something Else?

Sorry adult golfers, light beer is not an ideal substitute! In all seriousness, there are very few substitutes for water. Obviously, if you’re looking for better performance on the golf course, avoid alcohol like the plague. Also avoid sugary drinks such as sodas and sports drinks as the sugar content in these drinks will cause “crashes” just as bad as not drinking enough water.

A sugar free electrolyte replacement powder may be beneficial for your endurance and focus. Many of these powders even provide flavors that the “I don’t like drinking water” people would enjoy, without the sugar spike. Here’s a link to a “sugar free electrolyte powder” Google search. You’ll see there are 1000’s of products on the market.

Bottoms Up!

I’m challenging you to drink more water. Start small. If at this point, you’re only drinking 20% of your body weight in ounces, up it to 30-40%. Make mental notes and see what happens. Then, you can up your water intake from there. Good luck!