Fig. 8

The time-course analysis of 20-week contest preparation of hydration status assessed with urine specific gravity (USG) with accompanying mean average (mean ± SEM; 95% CI) comparison between the BC and MBC during a) Contest Preparation (20 weeks) and (b) Competition week time course analysis assessed with over 5 d (D1-D5). The mean hydration status during contest preparation showed that the MBC had a higher value (1.025 ± .001; 95% CI: 1.023–1.027 g⋅mL^− 1) compared to the BC (1.021 ± .001; 95% CI: 1.018–1.024 g⋅mL^− 1). During the competition week, the MBC also had a higher value (1.022 ± .001; 95% CI: 1.018–1.026 g⋅mL^− 1) compared to the BC (1.020 ± .001; 95% CI: 1.016–1.024 g⋅mL^− 1). The dashed red line and circle denote the competition. The solid blue line denotes the euhydration threshold (1.020 g·mL^− 1)