Better Health and Fitness
Better Health and Fitness

Fitness Tip - Water in your Diet

Water is your most important nutrient. Everyone knows that the majority of our body is water. Here are some facts. babies are 70% water, adults are 50-60% water and in breaking your body down, Blood is made up of 83 percent water, bones are 22 percent water, and muscle is 75 percent water. Every process in our body occurs in a water medium. We can exist without food for 2 months or more, but we can only survive for a few days without water.

So water is really important.

Most people do not drink much water if any at all. In fact both Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig both have their customers drink between 8 and 10 glasses of water a day and most people find that they lose 2-10 pounds in the first week on their diet, primarily from the water loss.

Among its other benefits, water plays a major part in weight loss. Since water contains no calories, it can serve as an appetite suppressant, and helps the body metabolize stored fat, it may possibly be one of the most significant factors in losing weight. In the article "Water Bearers", (Shape magazine) Elizabeth Austin notes that "water is the single most important nutrient you take in every day. It's fat -free, cholesterol-free, low in sodium, and completely without calories." Also, drinking more water helps to reduce water retention by stimulating your kidneys. Studies have recommended that if you are overweight according to average height and weight comparison charts, you should add one glass of water to your daily requirement (of eight glasses) for every 25 pounds over your recommended weight.

Brain tissue is 85% water. Although the brain is only 1/50th of the body weight, it uses 1/20th of the blood supply.

With dehydration, the level of energy generation in the brain is decreased. Depression & chronic fatigue syndrome are frequently results of dehydration.

Migraine headaches may be an indicator of critical body temperature regulation at times of "heat stress." Dehydration plays a major role in bringing on migraines. Dehydration causes stress & stress causes further dehydration.

Dehydration leads to excess body fat, poor muscle tone & size, decreased digestive efficiency & organ function, increased toxicity, joint & muscle soreness, & water retention. Water works to keep muscles and skin toned.

Hydration is a very interesting thing. If you do not drink enough water your body seems to retain it to protect itself, once you start to drink a LOT of water you will find that for the first few days you will be running to the bathroom every hour but your body quickly adapts and you regulate quite well. When drinking your water you will also find that your concentration gets better and you are more attentive. I have also found a very interesting attitude amongst others around me, when they see you increasing the water in your diet they will in a very condescending tone tell you that yes in fact drinking water is good for you. You are going to see this with many of the new habits that you pick up that people will seem to know these things and sometimes feel guilty to see someone else follow through on them.

There is always a few strategies for getting yourself to make these changes that are so important. I do not just drink a lot of water in the morning and then forget about it until the next day. Instead, I drink three cups of water first thing in the morning and then at 10, 12, 3, 5, and later in the evening I try to have a big glass of water. I time this water so that I drink it at the same time as I have a meal. Some say that you should not drink water with a meal as it will hamper your digestion of that meal but I have not run into this myself.

Finally just one thing that I have found is that I kick start my day by drinking about 3 glasses of my water first thing before I get on my bike to start my day.

Copyright 2005 Bill Nadraszky
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