Tips to Staying Hydrated
I am the first to say that I don’t like drinking water. I can’t stand it. In honestly though it is pretty important. Your body is 60-70% of water. Blood is mostly water, and your muscles, lungs, and brain all contain a lot of water. Proper water intake allows your body to function more easily in very important ways. Staying hydrated allows the body to get the nutrients from the food you eat through your system so you can use it for energy. Water also transports oxygen to your cells, removes waste, and protects joints and organs. Proper hydration helps the body to digest and metabolize food and nutrients. Some of the water you drink is transformed into a sweat which allows the body to regulate its tempter.
The fact is your body needs water. The amount of water you need can change every day, based on your physical activity, weather, current health condition. Experts believe you can estimate the amount of water you need by taking your weight in pounds and divide that in half. For example, if you weigh 160 pounds you need to drink at least 80 ounces of water. At least 20% of the water you need comes from the foods you eat. The rest comes from the beverages you drink. The best beverage to drink is water. Especially if you are trying to lose weight. It’s because there are zero calories PLUS it’s free.
If you sweat a lot you need to drink more. With normal living drinking when your thirsty is okay, but if your athletes or workout excessively it’s important to drink before you are thirsty.
You need to know your body. Pay attention to how much water you drink and how your body reacts to it. Then come up with your own drinking plan.
Drinking too much water at once can be harmful. It’s rare but it does happen. So watch out for it. When drinking water it is more productive to drink a few gulps at a time instead of downing a whole water bottle every hour. Drinking a little water often is much more effective because your body is able to metabolize the fluids and use them more efficiently.
Tips to Staying Hydrated:
1. Drink 15-20 ounces, 2-3 hours before exercise
2. Drink 8-10 ounces, 10-15 minutes before exercise
2. If you work out more than 90 minutes add a sports drink
5. Water and sports drink in 2 hours after work out to replace
Believe me, I understand what you are thinking. Water is no fun to drink. It has zero taste. I hate drinking water just as much as the next person. But as I mentioned above it is clearly important and we should try. Drink a 20-ounce glass of water with each meal and before bedtime. Then have your choice drink in between. That way you are getting at least 80 ounces. That’s what I am going to do to try to incorporate more water into my day. What are you going to do to increase your water intake? Or do you drink plenty of water now?
