Are you allowed to eat more sodium if you exercise often?

[Lowconfidence]

Was wondering if active people are allowed to consume more sodium since they tend to sweat more.

[Bkoguy07]

Sodium tends to make someone look bloated and hold waterweight, so you kinda look heavier/fatter.. thats why you want to keep low sodium in your diet. *that and its not healthy*

[CarnelianButterfly]

You don't need to eat any more than usual in most cases. People generally eat too much unless they are on a specific diet. Salt is in a lot of things and can be a hidden item that you don't really realize how much you take in.

It would be better to drink a sports drink that balances the water and other electrolytes, then to just eat more salt. Its more inportant to keep hydrated then it is to worry about salt. Its much easier to get dehydrated, than it is to get water drunk.

[kuiks8]

You would have to be doing some very intensive cardio to need to replace your electrolytes and I wouldn't recommend doing it with food. Not if your goal is weight loss. Salt makes you retain water and become bloated and puffy.

[greywolf]

Your kidneys are awesome at regulating how much sodium you need. If you need more sodium they'll just excrete less through your urine. During exercise you may need sodium to keep your electrolytes balanced. But with regular meals it doesn't matter because your kidneys will just excrete less to make up for the sodium you lost earlier.

[RayKay]

I work out 2-3 hours a day and make sure to keep a low-sodium diet. Even low-sodium diets give you far more than you need in this day and age.

Unless you are running a marathon or doing an adventure race in extreme heat, you really should not be ensuring you get extra sodium.

[lillie]

Im not sure,but this is an interesting question though. I know its bad for me but im like an addict when it comes to salt & pepper. Over the years my taste buds have seemed to want more & more,i just cant get enough of it. I know its bad for me but i just have to pile it on.

I use low sodium salt now,its a third less sodium. I hope it helps but im not sure if it does..

[jettison]

Originally Posted by Lowconfidence

Was wondering if active people are allowed to consume more sodium since they tend to sweat more.

For most of the population, limiting your sodium intake is important. For extreme endurance athletes, supplementing with sodium is just as crucial. For particularly hot races, 3+ hours or longer, I take a sodium pill mid race, and my food intake is heavily fortified with electrolytes, including sodium.

On weekends, I may train up to 7 hours at a time so, of course, taking in extra sodium is crucial.... along with potassium and magnesium. A few years back, I use to take a shot of this product that was basically like chugging straight ocean water. It was disgusting, but it kept me in check during a race.

[RayKay]

Originally Posted by jettison

For most of the population, limiting your sodium intake is important. For extreme endurance athletes, supplementing with sodium is just as crucial. For particularly hot races, 3+ hours or longer, I take a sodium pill mid race, and my food intake is heavily fortified with electrolytes, including sodium.

On weekends, I may train up to 7 hours at a time so, of course, taking in extra sodium is crucial.... along with potassium and magnesium. A few years back, I use to take a shot of this product that was basically like chugging straight ocean water. It was disgusting, but it kept me in check during a race.

Yes, the only time I take sodium tablets is during adventure races (which can be expeditions of anywhere from a few hours to a few days!) or 24 hour races......most people however don't need to do that, as they get enough during their food & fluid intake in day to keep them going for a couple hours of exercise.

[ghost69]

no. you should only be taking in a certain amount of sodium a day.

that's like saying you will have low cholesterol cause you do lots of cardio so you can eat tubs of butter. that's ridiculous.