How Much Water Should Beginners Drink for Strength Training? A Physical Therapist Explains the Importance of Hydration
"How much water should I drink while strength training?"
"Shouldn't I just focus on protein if I want to build muscle?"
Many people likely have these questions.
In fact, hydration is a crucial factor that significantly impacts strength training performance and muscle recovery.
No matter how good your training or diet is, if you are dehydrated, you will struggle to perform at your full potential.
In this article, from the perspective of a licensed physical therapist, I will clearly explain the importance of hydration that strength training beginners should know, as well as the amount of water you should drink per day.
Why is hydration important for strength training?
Approximately 75% of muscle is made up of water.
Therefore, if you are dehydrated, your muscles may not function properly, which can lead to a decrease in the quality of your training.
Water plays the following roles:
Transporting nutrients to muscles
Eliminating waste products from the body
Regulating body temperature
Lubricating joint movement
Supporting muscle contraction
Strength training beginners tend to focus on "protein" and "supplements," but it is important to first make adequate hydration a habit.
How much should you drink per day?
The guideline is
Body weight (kg) × 30–40 mL
.
For example,
Body weight 50kg: approx. 1.5–2.0L
Body weight 60kg: approx. 1.8–2.4L
Body weight 70kg: approx. 2.1–2.8L
In addition to this, on days you do strength training, it is recommended to add about 500–1,000mL to replace what was lost through sweat.
The key is to drink small amounts frequently throughout the day rather than a large amount at once.
Recommended timing for drinking water
Before training
Aim to drink about 300–500mL approximately 30 minutes before starting.
This helps prevent you from becoming dehydrated from the start of your workout.
During training
About 150–250mL every 15–20 minutes is recommended.
Be conscious of drinking before you feel thirsty.
After training
Replenish with about 500mL as a guide.
This replaces the fluids lost through sweat and supports recovery.
Is water alone enough?
For a typical strength training session of about 60–90 minutes, water alone is sufficient.
However, if you are:
Sweating heavily in midsummer
Doing long-duration training of 90 minutes or more
Outdoor exercise
In such cases, using sports drinks that contain electrolytes is one option.
What happens when you are dehydrated
When you lack sufficient water,
it becomes harder to exert muscle strength
concentration decreases
you become tired more easily
performance drops
the risk of heatstroke increases
and other such effects may occur.
On days when you feel like you just don't have any strength, dehydration might be the cause.
What I want to convey as a licensed physical therapist
Hydration is the absolute fundamental for maintaining your physical condition.
Strength training beginners tend to focus only on weight and repetitions, but you cannot perform at your best if you are dehydrated.
Being mindful of daily hydration also leads to injury prevention and consistency in your training.
First, let's build the habit of drinking before you feel thirsty, rather than drinking only when you are thirsty.
Summary
The key points for hydration for strength training beginners are as follows:
Aim to drink 30–40 mL per kg of body weight
Add about 500–1,000 mL on training days
Hydrate frequently before, during, and after your workout
For standard strength training, water is generally sufficient
Dehydration can reduce the efficiency of your strength training
To grow muscle, hydration is just as essential as training and nutrition.
Please try to be mindful of this starting today.
100-Article Roadmap for Strength Training Beginners
If you are wondering, "What should I read next?", please check out the 100-Article Roadmap for Strength Training Beginners.
We have systematically organized everything from basic knowledge and equipment selection to nutrition and rest so that beginners can learn in order.
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Thank you for reading until the end.
In this note, I share useful knowledge for strength training beginners in an easy-to-understand way from the perspective of a licensed physical therapist.
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