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B1 May 27–June 2, 2016
Fitness Apps to Boost Your Workout on B2
SALT
THE ONLY MINERAL YOU NEED TO REPLACE DURING EXERCISE Rafael Nadal during the Italian Open in 2014. People who are going to exercise vigorously for more than three hours continuously should take some salt while they are exercising.
By Gabe Mirkin
T
he only mineral that you need to replace during exercise lasting longer than three hours is sodium, found in common table salt. You do not need to take extra potassium, magnesium, or any other mineral during exercise.
The definitive studies on minerals and exercise were done during World War II. Dr. James Gamble of Harvard Medical School paid medical students to lie on a raft in his swimming pool, take various amounts of fluids and salt, and have blood drawn to measure salt and other mineral levels. He showed that you have to take a lot of salt when you
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exercise for several hours, particularly in hot weather. For many years after that, every student at Harvard Medical School heard Dr. Gamble give his lectures on minerals and exercise, and today, most serious medical students still read the Gamble lectures published in 1958, since nobody has improved on his research.
Taking extra salt just prior to competition can help you exercise longer and harder.
Salt but Not Salt Tablets After Dr. Gamble published his studies, people who worked or exercised in the heat were given salt tablets. Then doctors became concerned because they thought that a person could have his blood pressure raised by taking in too much salt. Some people would vomit from the high concentration of salt from salt pills in their stomachs. However, salt restriction can cause people to suffer heat stroke and dehydration during hot weather exercise.
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