Water and Weight Maintenance

Water, the Clear Advantage

The importance of water cannot be overstated when addressing concerns of health and fitness. From the standpoint of weight maintenance, water, in adequate amounts, is the key to health and well-being. Understanding it's function is paramount for in the individual who has decided to take responsibility for their health.

Did you know that:

• Muscles are made up of almost 70% water
• Blood is made up of almost 90% water
• Water cleanses the body, helps regulate its temperature and lubricates aching joints
• You can survive long periods of time without food, but several days without water can be fatal
• Your body is made up of about 40 to 50 quarts of water
• Eight to 12 cups of water are lost daily through perspiration, urine, breath and the intestinal tract...and it must be replaced!
  
  

In terms of weight maintenance, water is as essential to the body's daily intake of food and fluids, as it is to the function of the body itself. Adequate intake of water will initiate and help maintain weight loss as well as helping to control hunger. It does this, in part, by metabolizing fat and helping to flush fat fluids from the body. Cold water metabolizes fat faster than warm water at the rate of about 100 calories per gallon of water!

How much water are we talking about?

The answer depends on the individual's body weight. For people who are at their "correct body weight," eight 12-ounce glasses of water (96 ounces or 3 quarts or 3/4 of a gallon or 2.84 liters) a day is adequate. For people who are "overweight," an additional eight ounces of water for each twenty-five pounds of weight is recommended.

How Much is Too Much?

Fifteen Reasons for Eight Glasses!

• Water is an essential nutrient.
• It carries nutrients to cells and transports wastes to kidneys and lungs for excretion.
• Your skin will love it!
• Through the bloodstream, water carries hormones and disease-fighting cells.
• It is necessary for many chemical reactions of digestion and metabolism.
• Having a plentiful supply of water assists in temperature control by cooling through perspiration.
• Water protects and cushions tissues and lubricates joints.
• It can be both filling and satisfying (appetite suppressant).
• It assists with constipation relief!
• One glass of water shut down midnight hunger pangs for almost 100% of the dieters.
• Lack of water, the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue.
• Preliminary research indicates that 8-10 glasses of water a day could significantly ease back and joint pain for up to 80% of sufferers.
• A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzzy short-term memory, trouble with basic math, and difficulty focusing on the computer screen or on a printed page.
• Drinking 5 glasses of water daily decreases the risk of colon cancer by 45%, plus it can slash the risk of breast cancer by 79%, and one is 50% less likely to develop bladder cancer.
• New research suggests that five glasses of water daily may ward off heart disease. In a study of more than 20,000 people, men had a 54-percent lower risk and women 41-percent lower risk of dying from heart attack by drinking five glasses of water daily compared to those who drank only two glasses of water a day.

Here are a few thirst-quenching serving suggestions:

• Use pure (distilled) water!
• Water is most palatable at a refrigerated temperature and is rapidly assimilated by the intestinal tract when ingested at this temperature.
• Use a frosty mug!
• Add a slice of lemon or lime for taste.
• Sip through a straw.
• Carry a 32-ounce water bottle in your car and keep it full.
  
  

"I've decided I want all these benefits. Now what?"

When you decide to initiate the process of properly hydrating yourself, it is importanct to realize that several changes will take place, depending on how much water (not fruit juice, soda, beer, etc.) you have been taking in before you decided to increase your daily intake of 96 ounces or more.

Such a sudden increase will most likely leave you in the restroom wondering if you will have to spend the rest of your life there. The recommendation, therefore, is to increase your water intake gradually, while decreasing additional fluids that do not positively affect your weight maintenance.

Certain chemicals adversely affect the absorption of water: sugar, caffeine, alcohol, and sodium ALL block the absorption of water and should be avoided as much as possible. Fruit juices, for example, contain high amounts of sugar in various forms. (Drinking a 12-ounce glass of orange juice does NOT count toward your water drinking goal.) Most diet sodas have sweeteners that are sodium based. In addition to the soda leaching your body of calcium, they also are preventing absorption of water.

The water you drink, as much as possible, should be just that: WATER.

As a recommendation, start your program of hydration with a three quart bottle of water in your refrigerator and make sure that at the end of each day you have emptied that bottle and refill it for the next day. You will experience the sensation of increased urination, of course, which is natural. The body needs to get rid of the fatty fluids through urination.

It will take about two weeks for the body to make the adjustment of needing such frequent urination before it returns to its normal pattern. You will also notice an initial weight loss of anywhere from 2 to 8 pounds. Your skin will feel better and you will begin to feel a little more energetic and a lot healthier!

Keep in mind that although you are increasing your water intake for the purpose of properly maintaining your weight, you are also doing a great service for your body by helping to promote your own health!

That's a winning combination that can't be beat!

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