How Much You Sweat During Sport
Have you ever wondered how much you sweat during your sport?
The average person sweats between 0.8 – 1.4 litres per hour (L/h) of exercise. However individual sweat rates vary. The rate of sweating also varies depending on the type of activity, the intensity of exercise and environmental conditions (air temperature, humidity and body exposure to sunlight).
A change in body weight due to water loss of 1% is a marker of early dehydration. At 2% water loss, athletes will experience a decline in physical and mental performance. If water loss is greater than 2% it can become life threatening..
With sweat rates of up to 2 Litres per hour amongst active sports people it does not take long to become dehydrated. For example, a 70 kg athlete undergoing intensive training, with a sweat rate of 2 Litres per hour, will hit the 2% dehydration level within the first hour of exercise.
The optimal sports hydration strategy begins with calculating your individual sweat rate. Your sweat rate tells you how much fluid you have lost, and therefore how much fluid you need to consume per hour of exercise. This can be difficult to do ‘on the run’.
Use the following table as a guide to calculate mean fluid losses under varying conditions for different sports and training, and therefore how much fluid you need to consume per hour of exercise:
Exercise type | Sex | Intensity | Sweat rate (L/h) | Ambient temperature (0C) | Relative humidity (%) |
| Running | |||||
| 10 km | f | 12.8 km/h | 1.49 | 19-24 | – |
| m | 14.6 km/h | 1.83 | 19-24 | – | |
| 30 km | – | – | 1.25 | 9-17 | 30-90 |
| 2 hours | m | 63% VO2max | 1.41 | 22 | 40-45 |
| 42.2 km | – | 9.3-15.5 kg/h | 1.1 | 21-26 | 50-60 |
| 42.2 km | f | 9-12 km/h | 0.54 | 6-24 | 45-85 |
| m | 9-12 km/h | 0.81 | 7 | 45-85 | |
| 42.2 km | m | 8.7-16.1 km/h | 0.96 | 10-12 | 73 |
| 42.2 km | m | 15.9 km/h | 1.52 | 20 | 37 |
| 42.2 km | – | 9.8-15 km/h | 0.69-1.27 | 12-23 | – |
| 56 km | – | 10.4-14.8 km/h | 0.96-1.00 | 11.3-25.8 | – |
| 80 min | m | 70% VO2max | 1.43 | 20 | – |
| Cycling | |||||
| 80 min | m | 70% VO2max | 1.1 | 20 | – |
| 3 hours | m | 60% VO2max | 1.21 | 31 | 22 |
| 3 hours (intervals) | m | 33-44% VO2max | 0.62 | 33-44 | 28 |
| 2 hours | m | 50% VO2max | 1.25 | 30 | – |
| 40 km | f | 30 km/h | 0.75 | 19-25 | – |
| m | 32 km/h | 1.14 | 19-25 | – | |
| 1 hour | m | 50% VO2max | 0.39 | 25 | 53 |
| 17 min | m | 35-45% VO2max | 0.29 | 30 | 45 |
| Soccer | |||||
| f | Competition | 0.8 | 26 | 78 | |
| m | Competition | 1.2 | 25 | 41 | |
| m | Competition | 1.0 | 10 | 56 | |
| f | Training | 0.8 | 30 | 35 | |
| m | Training | 1.0 | 25 | 41 | |
| m | Training | 0.7 | 9 | 61 | |
| m | – | 2.1 | 33 | 40 | |
| m | – | 0.8 | 13 | 7 | |
| m | – | 2.0 | 13 | 7 | |
| m | – | 1.3 | 19 | 55 | |
| Netball | f | Competition | 1.0 | 22 | 66 |
| f | – | 0.9 | 16 | 43 | |
| f | Training | 0.7 | 28 | 36 | |
| f | Training | 0.7 | 19 | 30 | |
| Basketball | m | Competition | 1.6 | 23 | 41 |
| m | Competition | 1.6 | 19 | 36 | |
| f | Competition | 0.9 | 26 | 60 | |
| f | Competition | 1.0 | 17 | 58 | |
| m | Training | 1.4 | 27 | 34 | |
| m | Training | 1.0 | 20 | 24 | |
| f | Training | 0.7 | 25 | 43 | |
| f | Training | 0.7 | 17 | 56 | |
| Waterpolo | m | Competition | 0.8 | 27 | – |
| m | Training | 0.3 | 27 | 17 | |
| AFL | m | – | 1.4 | 12-15 | 55-88 |
| m | – | 1.8 | 27 | 52 | |
| Rugby Union | m | – | 2.2 | 18-20 | 18-20 |
| m | – | 1.7 | 21-23 | 78-85 | |
| m | – | 2.2 | 20-22 | 74-82 | |
| m | Forwards | 2.6 | 24-25 | 30-32 | |
| m | Backs | 1.6 | 24-25 | 30-32 | |
| Cricket | m | – | 0.5 | 23 | 65 |
| m | – | 0.7 | 33 | 22 | |
| m | – | 1.4 | 33 | 30 | |
| Rowing | m | Training | 2.0 | 32 | – |
| f | Training | 1.4 | 32 | – | |
| m | Training | 1.2 | 10 | – | |
| f | Training | 0.8 | 10 | – | |
| Volleyball | m | Training | 0.8 | Summer | – |
| f | Training | 0.8 | Summer | – |
Adapted from: Rehrer, N. J., and L. M. Burke. Sweat losses during various sports. Australian Journal of Nutrition and Dietetics. 53;4: S13-S16, 1996.
Cameron West
Cameron is the Director of Pro Training Programs