Water: The “Other” Drink

Even though summer is over, I thought it would be a great time to remind everyone to continue to drink plenty of water!  Our bodies are comprised of 70-75% water and it is extremely important to replace that everyday.  On average, your body loses approximately 10 cups of water everyday as it helps to regulate body temperature, transports nutrients and oxygen; carries away waste; and help detoxify your kidneys and liver.

Here are some healthy water tips:

~  “Eight” is not always the magic number for water.  Of course, you have probably heard that eight 8-oz glasses of water is the rule of thumb.  I don’t necessarily agree with that philosophy. My recommendation is that you base your water consumption on your weight and your level of exercise.  For example, take your body weight and divide that number in half.  Whatever the result is, that is how many ounces of water you should drink in one day.  Example:  You weigh 140 pounds…therefore you should consume approximately 70 ounces of water a day.  If you exercise, that number should increase.  Doesn’t it make sense that if people are different sizes and have different exercise routines they should consume different amounts of water?  The standard of “everybody” needing 8 glasses of water a day, simply doesn’t apply to everyone.  I think it makes more sense to treat individuals as such, therefore everyone’s requirement will be different.

~  Drink plenty of water throughout the day.  Carry some water with you when you run errands, travel to and from work, keep water on your desk at work and instead of having a coffee break at the office, switch to a water break!  Developing consistent plans to drink water, will help you develop a healthful habit!

~  There is no substitute for water.  One of the main surprises that some of my clients get is when I tell them that tea and coffee don’t count towards your water consumption each day.  But they have water in them you say?  Yes, they do, along with chemicals that affect the body and in most cases actually cause a diuretic affect in the body because of increased urination, which causes dehydration.  So in other words, water is water.  Drink it, not coffee or tea.  Alcohol also is extremely dehydrating so for every glass of alcohol, consume an extra glass of water to help with the dehydration.

~  When exercising, you need to increase your consumption of water.  Take frequent water breaks while exercising.  Drinking extra water when you have finished exercising to replace perspiration lost during the exercise is advised.  It is important to compensate for the amount of fluids you lose when exercising, so drink up!

~  Hungry you say?  Drink a big glass of water.  Sometimes the body plays tricks on us and you might mistake hunger pangs for dehydration pangs.  Dehydration symptoms can include: dizziness, minor headaches, lack of mental clarity, etc.  Some of those same symptoms could also be due to low blood sugar if you’re close to needing a meal, so if you’re unsure, make sure you try the water first!   And incidentally, if you’re trying to lose weight, drinking a large glass of water 10 minutes prior to a meal will help you eat less!

~ One of the tips I tell my clients is to drink a good 10-12 ounces of room temperature or slightly warm water upon awakening each morning with a little fresh lemon juice.   It’s a good way to start the day.  You’re getting in a portion of the water consumption you need for that day.  It’s a good way to flush out your system.  Your body is very busy during your sleeping hours “cleaning house”.  Drinking a large glass of water first thing in the morning will help it do it’s job more efficiently!

~ Additional times to drink water?  If you have a cold or flu; if you are in dehydrating conditions such as extremely hot or humid weather or severely cold weather or high altitudes.

~ Also, remember that most of the above tips apply to children too!  The children in our society are constantly bombarded with opportunities to drink sodas in school and with friends.  Make sure they are getting enough water also!

Stay tuned for my post on the best kind of water to drink….coming soon!

Tags: Cleansing, Water