Sodium is what matters most in electrolyte powders. Use 300 mg for short cool-weather sessions, 500 mg for warm weather and longer workouts, 800 mg on tournament day, and up to 1,000 mg if you cramp easily in heat and humidity.
This is my electrolyte powder scale. Some of my athletes are going to need the ones here on top, and some of them are going to want the ones here on bottom. It all just depends. So let's break it down. When looking at these electrolytes, the biggest number that I pay attention to is how much sodium it has. The brand doesn't necessarily matter, but these brands are a good representation of the amount of sodium that they contain. First one, cooler weather, shorter sessions, not sweating as much, you want about 300 milligrams of sodium. Second one, moderate temperature, 45 to 60 minute practices, so sweating a little bit more than that, you want between 400 to 500 right here. Warmer weather, more sweat, longer sessions. You want about 500 milligrams of sodium right here. Tournament day, long games, higher sweat rate. You're sweating a lot. It's a little hotter outside. About 800 is gonna be what we're shooting for here. And then if you are really prone to cramping, it is hot, it is humid, you're full pads, it's a longer practice, you wanna be looking at 1,000 milligrams of sodium to keep you from cramping.
