Another week, another newsletter.

My name is Tom Lawrence and each week I present you with:

• Evidence-based training and wellness concepts

• Ideas from the endurance and weightlifting world that you can apply to your own life

• Actionable tips to maximise your physical and mental performance with immediate effect

All of this is presented with a hint of sarcasm from a human who has coached over 12,000 hours, ran more than 2000km last year and lifted an average of more than 2 tonnes per day last year.

My next event - Full Ironman (Dec ‘23)

As always though, before we dive into this week’s newsletter:

TLC

TUNE

I often listen to Hans Zimmer when I type. This is his song: Cornfield Chase.

LESSON

Cold showers in the morning actually work! The only reason you believe they don’t work is that you’re too much of a P##SY to get in it every morning so it’s easier for you to rationalise that they don’t work.

CONTENT

I know you get a lot of Huberman on here, but there is a reason. When he sits down with one of the best conversationalists on Earth - you listen:

Joe Rogan & Andrew Huberman.

This week, I’m slightly late!

But I’m not sorry - because this email is a banger.

Last week, I gave my company a breakdown of hydration. Today, you all get the follow-up email:

Where I come from, understanding the 'why' behind dehydration and what happens in the body is the driver in behaviour change, and the proper application of effective hydration strategies.

With that being said, I want to summarise what we spoke about this morning and share the hydration tool I presented for you to use for yourself or with colleges in the future.

What is dehydration:

Dehydration is fluid loss that equates to 1% of body weight eg. if you weigh 80kg, fluid loss of 800ml is classed as dehydration.

This fluid loss can be the result of behaviours such as sweat, urine, breathing etc. (yes, you lose a large amount of fluid simply just breathing. Don't believe me? Breath on your hand and call me if it doesn't get moist...)

Severe dehydration:

Severe dehydration is fluid loss that equates to 2% of body weight eg. if you weigh 80kg, fluid loss of 1600ml is classed as severe dehydration.

Severe dehydration has been proven to decrease mental a physical performance by 20%. This number can double to 40% in hot temperatures (i.e, on-site). These studies were observed among athletes, and we discovered using reaction tests, in-game/role-play decision-making tests and physical tests such as the 40-yard dash and the beep test.

3 Physiological Effect of Dehydration:

Telling people to drink water doesn't work. If it worked, there would be no need for us to address hydration as an issue in our industry. Helping workers understand exactly 'why' they are drinking water and what happens within the body is key to behaviour change.

1. Dehydration causes an increase in your body temperature. How? The body has its own irrigation system - You sweat, and the external air hits your sweat and cools you as it dries. When you don't have fluid to sweat, you get hotter, and your core temperature rises. It's a double-edged sword.

2. Dehydration causes increases in your Blood Pressure (BP). How? When you have no fluid in your body, and your body has drawn every ounce of fluid from the available muscle tissue, it draws the fluid from your blood. This causes your blood to become thick and viscous (like pushing sludge through a pipe as opposed to clean water). To ensure that you can get oxygen to your working muscles (and brain), your circulatory system has to work harder to push this 'sludge' - this causes your BP to rise significantly.

3. Dehydration causes an increase in your Heart Rate (HR). How? Your hearts’ job is to pump blood and oxygen through your body. If your blood is thick, it's harder to circulate. Therefore, in conjunction with a hike in your BP, your heart has to work harder to circulate your blood i.e. your HR rises.

4. A bonus fact: When fluid is taken from your muscle tissue, as mentioned above (before the body takes water from your blood), your muscles are less lubricated. This increases your risk of musculoskeletal injury, due to the friction caused by 'dry' muscle tissues sliding on top of one another during muscular contraction.

How much water should I drink?

You've heard 8 cups and/or 2L as a general rule - yet we're all different. Knowing this, a personalised water need can be established by:

• (your body weight in KG) x 0.03 = daily water need in Litres

So, you've seen the Sqwincher & Thorzit electrolytes on-site, but why/how should they be used?

When you sweat, it is not just water you are losing. As you sweat, you lose sodium (salt) and other vital minerals. This is why when sweat dries on your skin, it leaves a fine, white film - this is Sodium.

Why is this important to acknowledge? It is important because on a cellular level within the body, Sodium and Potassium work together to carry energy into the cell via Sodium and Potassium Pumps. If you have a lack of Sodium due to excessive sweat, water will not rectify this issue. This is where the electrolytes come into play.

Electrolytes are designed to replace vital minerals in the body lost through sweat. A good guide for workers out in the field for ~12 hours per day with heavy sweat:

• 1x electrolyte sachet per 6 hours;

• 1x electrolyte Icey Pole per 4 hours.

Any other questions you have regarding hydration, please feel free to reach out. Otherwise, save this email for future reference and use within your departments.

I hope y’all learned something today team :)

Until next week - take care, but be risky!

xoxo