Monday, July 26, 2010

Have you had enough water?


I was going to save this post for Wednesday, but since one of our challenges is staying hydrated I decided to share this now :-)

A few months ago I learned something that has changed my life for the better.
I learned how much water my body needed, and I've started to implement that. I cannot describe accurately how good it feels to drink enough water...You'll have to try it for yourself ;-)

Since I started drinking the minimal amount of water I personally needed, I had more energy, I was more alert, happier, I could remember things better, and I could more easily focus (among other good things!)

Also when you drink a lot of water you're able to rid your body of toxins, your sweat doesn't smell bad, and it helps your metabolism.

Yeah... that's a huge list of positives!

Here's the thing. I don't like water. It tastes so gross to me... So, I add lemon. This masks the taste of water, helps me to drink more at once, and it's actually good to add lemon, because it helps to alkalize the water. Who knew!
Okay, this is a long list, but it is very important. Reading this list changed how much I drink each day, and by doing that, it changed my life. So, even though it's long, I hope you read it:

A mere 2% to 3% drop in body water can trigger fuzzy short-term memory, trouble with basic math problems and difficulty focusing.
A 10% drop can be life threatening
Your body is 78% water at birth, and declines to 72% for an average young adult, and further declines to 50% among average elderly
Optimal health requires maintaining 78% throughout your life
The elderly are less sensitive to thirst since the sensitivity of the thirst center in the hypothalamus declines with age. As we age we must be diligent in our consumption of water
By the time we experience dry mouth, we are already dehydrated
Dehydration slows down the body's metabolism
Lack of water causes daytime fatigue
75% of the U.S. population is dehydrated to some degree
37% of the U.S. population mistakes thirst for hunger
Brain function requires water to function -the brain is 85% water
Brain neurotransmitters are carried through the nervous system through micro-stream waterways
90% of the interior constituents of every cell in the body are water
Throughout the day, water escapes from the body through perspiration, urine, feces, tears, nasal discharges, respiratory exhaled moisture, and other pathways
Losses are drastically increased by the consumption of the natural diuretics caffeine, theophylline, and theobromine found in beverages like coffee, black and green tea, and soft drinks
It is estimated that we lose 9 to 12 cups of water on a cool day even without exercising and not drinking the above diuretics
For optimal health this loss of water must be replaced through both drinking water and through the food we eat

It is recommended that you drink 1/2 your body weight in ounces in water a day. In other words, a 150 pound person would drink 75 ounces of water per day.
It is recommended that you drink the purest water that you can. Drinking distilled, or R.O. filtered water is a high priority, tap water is best avoided if at all possible due to the contaminants including chlorine.
(No, Distilled water does not leach the minerals from your body.)

What I did:
I got a water bottle, and figured out how many oz of water it contains, (a normal U.S. measuring cup holds 8 oz of water, knowing this helped to figure out how many oz my water bottle holds) then I did the math to determine how many times I would have to refill it in order to have the minimal amount of water my body needs a day.

Doing this helped immensely, because then it seemed less daunting.

Whew! Did you make it? I hope so.

I also hope this list inspires you to go out and drink more water!
This has helped me so much! I hope it helps you too :-)

On Wednesday I'll tell you how much sugar lowers the % of water in your body. It's scary.

Happy Hydrating! :-D

5 comments:

the thrifty ba on July 26, 2010 at 3:01 PM said...

ok-im just a follower b/c i love helena, but here is my secret for drinking more water...put crystal light hunger satisfaction drink packet in your water bottle.
it has 30 calories, 3 gr of protein and 5gr of fiber AND you are getting 16 oz of water with it!! so it is tasty and healthy! my favorite is strawberry banana and i have it with breakfast and dinner. it helps!

Annie on July 26, 2010 at 3:30 PM said...

I am doing limes today-no lemons at work. And yes, I have not been as hungry. (which has kind of backfired, I've only had 301 calories today!)

Helena on July 26, 2010 at 5:26 PM said...

Wait- so you're saying water is a good thing...?

The Shrub on July 27, 2010 at 8:12 AM said...

Hey ladies! I'm following b/c of Helena too, but I'm glad to see more young women wanting to be healthy! I'll stick around, if that's okay? :}
You all should try "True Lemon." It's lemon powder (calorie free, of course), that you just dump into your water bottle. I like to use it with 16 oz's of H2O, but I guess it depends on what you like! :o)

Chantel on July 27, 2010 at 9:51 AM said...

Well, that isn't really what I was trying to say Helena, but I guess that works.

Good work Annie!!

Also, I used to put things like that in my water too, but I just do plain old lemon juice now :-)

z

Annie, age 29

About Annie

With everything I am responsible for at home, my ridiculous work schedule and my health problems, it makes it hard to keep working out on the front burner. But when I heard about this blog, I thought 'why not!'. I'm excited to get started and hopefully I won't die of exhaustion when this is all over!

Heléna, age 26

About Helena

I can't fit into my clothes! After getting married and being forced to eat my own cooking, I started gaining weight. The desk job didn't really help. I gained 30 lbs in the past year, and I can really feel it when I try to get dressed in the morning. I am really good at starting diet and exercise programs; but really bad at finishing them. And that's all about to change...

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