Why Drinking Water is Powerful: 8 Tips To Hydration
The majority of people are suffering from headaches, fatigue, headaches, foggy thinking, heart burn, high blood pressure, stress, joint pain, back ache, hunger and even weight gain.
Water is, aside from eating, one of the most vital aspects of staying alive; without either..we cannot exist. We can live for 40 days without food, but only 7 days without water. Why is this? Our bodies are 75% water and our brain is 80% water. Even your bones are 25% water! Every single process in the human body requires water.
Fluid losses occur continuously, from skin evaporation, breathing, urine and more and these losses must be replaced daily for good health. When your water intake does not equal your output you can become dehydrated.
Water is one important component for optimal health. It keeps your “internal stream” (or lymph system) flowing, making it harder for harmful organisms and disease to take root. Drinking plenty of clean, high quality water is a critical way to nourish nearly every function in your body. This very important lymph system, which sweeps all toxins (poisons, waste, viruses, bacteria) out of the body, requires water! Without water, the lymphatic action slows down and weakens allowing the toxins to accumulate and settle in where then inflammation takes hold and in time can turn into illness, disease and faster aging.
When there is a shortage of water in the body, some parts are forced to go without water because the brain (remember the brain itself is 80% water) will direct water to the most vital areas of the body first. The key is to keep ahead of mild dehydration.
Below you will find tips to stay optimally hydrated and that means optimal health:
- Don’t rely upon thirst as a sign to drink water. When you are thirsty, you are already 1-2% dehydrated.
- Drink half your body weight in ounces of water each day. So if you weigh 120 lbs. you should be drinking 60 ounces of water each day.
- Drink water as soon as you wake up. Your cells are mildly dehydrated because they have gone several hours without it. Cellular function slows down with dehydration and simply drinking water the very first thing will create amazing energy for you.
- To remind you to drink water, use the app Waterlogged for the iPhone, take a water bottle with you wherever you go, use sticky notes or set the alarm on your phone and/or the computer to alert you.
- Losing weight will be more effective as drinking water boosts your metabolism by 30% one hour after drinking it.
- You know you are getting enough water if your urine is clear in color. The darker the urine, the more dehydrated you are.
- If you are not yet a water fan (and you will be), consider adding fruits like watermelon chunks, mint, orange or lemon slices, berries and even refreshing cucumber. Let it sit for a couple of hours before drinking.
- Not all water is created equal. Look into getting a water filter to make the water healthier and deliciously refreshing.
There are so many benefits of drinking water consistently throughout the day: more vibrant energy, protection from illness, weight loss, healthier skin, better digestion and much more that it is worth taking action on such an important component of optimal health and weight loss.
To Your Health,
~Lori
© 2013 DLS HealthWorks, LLC.
Lori Shemek, PhD, Health and weight loss expert, is the best-selling author of Fire-Up Your Fat Burn!