What is an electrolyte? What overweight beginners need to know

You’ve seen the ads for the special drink that replaces electrolytes you lose when you sweat. For many, they just accept the fact that an electrolyte is important and that we need to replace them.

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But what the hell is an electrolyte?

Is it just a marketing ploy devised by the Gatorade people to sell more sugar water?

The short answer is yes.

Electrolytes are real.

Think of the human body as a complex machine; a superhighway of cells, tissues, and fluids responsible for directing a ton of electrical impulses throughout the body. For those impulses to perform at peak levels requires that the superhighway is in peak condition. That’s where electrolytes come in.

Electrolytes help those impulses reach their intended destination correctly and quickly.

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Do I need an electrolyte-rich diet?

Lack of electrolytes or an electrolyte imbalance can actually be detrimental to your health. A good example for runners is muscle contraction, which requires calcium, potassium, and sodium. A lack of these electrolytes can result in muscle weakness or even cramping. Electrolyte levels are determined by food and water consumption, and maintaining the right balance comes down to proper nutrition.

Breaking down an electrolyte

You’ve probably done that experiment in science class where you dissolve table salt in liquid.

What happens?

The salt, on the molecular level, begins to break down, and this creates an electrically conductive solution.

Sodium (Na+) and chloride (Cl-) are the components of table salt. Any fluid that breaks down in liquid the way that salt does will conduct electricity. And that is what makes an electrolyte. Your body has several electrolytes.

This includes sodium, chloride, potassium, magnesium, calcium, phosphate, and bicarbonate.

Each electrolyte plays a vital role in your body’s chemistry. Here’s a quick breakdown:

Sodium is an important electrolyte

This is an essential electrolyte responsible for controlling:

The total amount of water in the body
Regulating blood volume
Maintaining nerve and muscle functionality

The optimum level is about 2.5 grams of sodium chloride (salt) per day. Excess salt intake can lead to dehydration, and too little can cause headaches, fatigue, muscle cramps, and spasms.

Chloride

On the cellular level, chloride works with sodium to help maintain the proper balance of pressure and fluid within the cells, as well as the acidity balance. So, the best way to get chloride into the body is through salt intake.

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Potassium

Potassium is a major player inside the cells and vital in muscular function and heartbeat regulation.

Milk, meat, fruits, and vegetables are great sources of potassium. You may think that since there are bunches of them at the finish line, bananas are a good source of potassium.

They are pretty good, but a medium-sized avocado has 20% of your recommended daily intake (RDI), and a large baked potato has 34% RDI, whereas bananas come in much further down the list at 12% RDI.

Magnesium

Magnesium is necessary to perform over 300 biochemical reactions in the body, including DNA/RNA synthesis within the cells, maintaining normal nerve function, stabilizing blood sugar, and promoting bone and teeth formation.

You can get magnesium in:

Nuts
Spices
Leafy greens
Coffee
Tea

Calcium is an electrolyte with so many functions

Most people know that calcium is good for bones and teeth, but calcium is also important in:

Nerve transmission
Muscle contraction
Blood clotting

It is the most prevalent mineral in the human body, 99% of it found within the skeletal structure. It is also important in the bloodstream; a lack thereof over time will begin to be supplemented from the bones, which can lead to osteoporosis.

Drink milk for calcium, your mom used to say. Turns out mom was right. Although milk is a good source of calcium, according to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, these are also good sources of calcium:

collard greens
canned sardines
even almond milk

Phosphate

Phosphate works together with calcium to help strengthen bones and teeth. But it is also essential for energy production inside the cells, which is vital in tissue repair and growth.

Bicarbonate

Proper pH levels, the right levels of acidity, in the body are vital. Because during workouts, your muscles produce lactic acid, your kidneys release bicarbonate into your system as a counter.

Bicarbonate’s role is to maintain a proper balance to prevent things like tissue damage around the central nervous system.

Final thoughts on electrolytes for overweight runners

Each of these electrolytes plays a critical role in keeping your body running well. Most people don’t understand that it’s all in the balance. And that any disruption to this equilibrium, either to toxic or deficient levels, can lead to damaging effects.

Now that you know exactly what electrolytes are and the proper balance, the solution is simple.

Eat a balanced, healthy diet, and if you feel the need, go ahead and down a Gatorade.