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How much water to drink when dieting?
By admin | January 10, 2008
Next to air, water is most essential to life. The human body is made up of about 70% water. Almost every cell in the body requires water to function properly. If you really think about this fact it is amazing that so many people do not drink enough water. Your body can survive without food for about a couple of weeks but without water you could only survive a couple of days. If you are trying to lose weight an important fact to remember is to drink enough water so that the body can metabolize fat adequately.
Benefits to drinking water while losing weight:
1) Drinking water regulates the appetite. Water is a natural appetite suppressant, so developing a good water drinking habit can be a long-term aid in achieving and maintaining a healthy weight..
2) Water helps to increases metabolism
3) Drinking water will boost your energy level
How much water to drink when dieting ?
Although it is recommended that you should drink 8-10 glasses of water per day, there is no clear-cut answer as to how much water to drink per day, because it depends upon a number of factors like your health condition, your activity level and a lot of other factors. A good formula to know how much water to drink is to divide your weight in half, and use that number in ounces of water. For example, for someone who weighs 130 pounds, 65 ounces of water would be required per day which would equal to about 8 glasses.
When you are exercising you need to drink water to keep hydrated, the Mayo Clinic recommends that if your level of exercising is moderate you need an extra 1-2 cups of water. For intense exercise like running, you need to add an extra 2-3 cups of water. Most people wait until they are thirsty to drink water but if you are waiting until you are thirsty you are already dehydrated.
Why so many are dehydrated
I think that one of the reasons we don’t drink enough water is because water has no taste, it does not seam exciting or appetizing to the palate.
There are many ways we can spruce up the taste of water to make it more exciting to the taste buds. For example, you can add flavored packets to your drinking water.
Another thing you can do is to buy water bottles in your favorite color and always take one with you in the car, or when you go out so that you are never dehydrated.
One thing that I do is add a slice of lemon to my water with a little low calorie sweetener and I pour it over crushed ice, this makes for a great drink. I drink lots of seltzer water which I make myself and I add my favorite fruit flavors to it, its really easy and I am sure I get enough water for the day.
Water is especially good for you, so make a habit of waking up and having a glass of water. Make it your first drink of liquid for the day before you get the cup of coffee, and in place of having a soda with one of your meals drink a glass of water. Make water drinking a habit then it will become second nature.
Tip: An easy way to make sure you are drinking enough water is to observe the color of your urine. Your urine should be a very pale yellow, if not, you may need to increase your consumption of water.
Here is the system I use to make seltzer water; it’s inexpensive easy and fun!
Topics: Health Articles, Healthy Recipes |
January 10th, 2008 at 10:12 pm
[…] Here’s another interesting post I read today by weightwatchersblogger@gmail.com […]
January 11th, 2008 at 12:39 am
Thank you for your reminder. I gotta get my glass of water now.
January 11th, 2008 at 3:44 pm
Glad to see someone posted an article on the importance of H2O. My doctor said that most people don’t drink enough. I try but when it is cold I am less likely to drink pure water versus hot tea–herbal.
January 11th, 2008 at 11:52 pm
I know, it’s so simple yet we all forget from time to time.
: )
January 12th, 2008 at 6:17 am
So my brain is 85% water. Ahhh that explains it!
January 15th, 2008 at 11:33 pm
I get 6 cases of water delivered from Hinkley Springs every month. Since I am the only one in the house, I am the only one to drink it and there are months that I have to buy a gallon or 2 from the store to get me through until the next delivery.
Having the bottles readily available in the fridge helps keep me on the water. If I want a soda, I have to go and buy it - I don’t keep it in the house. I do treat myself to a soda after my WW meeting and weigh in.
January 16th, 2008 at 12:12 am
Sounds like you are right on track, wtg Debbie! : )
January 17th, 2008 at 6:53 am
I saw a really interesting bottled water on TV recently. Apparently there’s a company selling water with mint in it. They said it had lots of benefits, and it sure was fascinating. I wonder if anyone else has tried it?
February 16th, 2008 at 2:50 am
I do find that the more I drink, the more likely I am to want more. Having my own 1L water bottle and being sure to fill it in the morning seems to help.
Also, I use a water filter, I have heard that drinking out of plastic water bottles from the store isn’t a good idea because the plastic leaches from the bottles.
I haven’t tried it yet, but placing a slice of cucumber in your water is said to freshen it up, I want to try it, I love cucumber!