What’s all the talk about IV therapy for athletic performance? Training, competing, or just taking a strenuous weekend hike are all healthy activities. Still, dehydration can take a heavy toll afterward. Dehydration can also hinder your training and weaken your performance during a competition. IV therapy treatments replenish the body so athletes can recover, train, and perform at their peak.
Signs that you may benefit from IV therapy
As you play your heart out, you can lose between one and two quarts of valuable fluids, minerals, and electrolytes. Eventually, you can feel totally wiped out. Even one or two unpleasant symptoms of dehydration can ruin your day, cause you to cancel tomorrow’s activity, or send you to physical therapy.
You may benefit from IV therapy for athletic performance if you experience one or more of these symptoms:
- Dry mouth or extreme thirst
- Overall fatigue or loss of coordination
- Muscle aches, pains, or cramping
- Headaches or dizziness
- Dark-colored urine or less frequent urination
- Digestive issues
- Anxiety or confusion
Wouldn’t it feel great to get a fast-acting treatment that gets you back on your feet and feeling better than ever? That’s the beauty of IV therapy and why it’s so popular among athletes.
Get faster relief for your dehydration symptoms
You may be thinking, “I always drink a lot of water during sports, especially when it’s hot out.” As you may have found, a glass or two of water—or even a sports drink—may not do the trick. Why? Your body can only absorb a limited amount of fluid before getting nauseous, and necessary electrolytes may only be partially absorbed in the stomach. IV therapy, on the other hand, sends the right nutrients directly into the bloodstream to help your body get back into balance more quickly.
A reputable IV therapy treatment will include a pre-screening to ensure your safety and to prepare an infusion that is tailored to your body. The infusion generally lasts around 45 minutes. You should start to feel better within a few hours, after the full impact of rehydration and replenishing vital nutrients. Like many athletes, you may feel a boost in energy and your muscles may feel less achy. Your mind may also feel clearer and more relaxed.
What IV treatments help athletes the most?
IV infusions provide different mixes of nutrients to help with symptoms most common to athletes. For example, The “Pump it UP” Athletic Treatment used by The IV Nurses for its athletic clients includes:
- Saline Solutions: The main base is sterile water and salt (sodium chloride) for hydration and to lubricate the joints and muscles used during a workout.
- B-Complex: This vitamin B complex features vitamins B (riboflavin), B5 (pantothenic acid), and B6 Pyridoxine. Each plays a role in energy production, metabolism, muscular health, brain and nervous system function, immune function, reducing inflammation, and cellular repair.
- Zinc: This essential mineral supports immune function and energy production, promotes healing, and reduces inflammation that may occur after exercise.
The Myers’ Cocktail is ideal for athletic recovery and performance
One of the most popular IV therapies for athletic performance and recovery is the Myers Cocktail, which can be administered before competitions, to optimize performance, or after an intense workout. In addition to the nutrients described above, the Myers’s Cocktail includes everything in the formula above, plus these nutrients:
- B12: This vitamin helps build muscle mass, reduces muscle fatigue, supports energy function, and improves performance. It is critical in forming red blood cells, which carry oxygen and iron throughout the body.
- Glutathione: This important antioxidant may protect the body from inflammation and disease, repair muscles and joints, and combat damaging free radicals in the body.
- Magnesium: Magnesium is best known, especially among endurance athletes, for helping to relax tight muscles and preventing muscle cramps.
Your med spa or IV therapy nurse will assess your nutrient levels and needs to provide the mix of fluid, vitamins, and minerals that is most appropriate for your body and the activities you participate in.
Look for IV therapy for athletic performance and recovery administered by medical professionals.
Not all IV therapy treatments are equal. Not only do recommended nutrients vary, but there are differences in the process, who is administering the IV fluid, and where the treatment takes place. The most serious levels of dehydration are typically treated at the hospital. Other IV treatments for athletes are typically offered in medical spas or clinics and are administered by clinicians with various levels of medical and bedside experience.
IV therapy from The IV Nurses is unique. You’ll receive your treatment in the comfort of your own home in the Boston or Worcester area. Your pre-screening and custom infusion will be performed by a nurse who has a minimum of ten years of bedside experience, always with strict adherence to safety protocols and regulations. In case of a rare reaction, your nurse will quickly attend to you. We are committed to your continued health and wellness, offering tailored plans to you athletes like you work out, compete, and recover quickly.
The IV Nurses is mobile and serves the Boston and Worcester, MA areas. Learn more about us at The IV Nurses online or call us at (508) 928-7056.