Eight glasses of water a day will help hydrate your body and leave your skin feeling moist and supple, but are there other benefits to getting your 64oz in?
Water is one of the key components to a healthy diet and long-term weight loss success. It not only nourishes your body by keeping your cells hydrated, but it also fills your stomach so that you are less hungry. Here are some quick tips for consuming a weight-loss-friendly amount of water without feeling like a human fish.
Eight glasses a day
Just about everyone has heard that it is essential to drink at least eight glasses of water a day. These eight glasses of water will help hydrate your body and leave your skin feeling moist and supple. Most people struggle with how much water should be in that one glass. Drinking a standard 16.9oz water bottle is equivalent to two “glasses” of water. So, if you were to drink four bottles of water, you would achieve your goal of eight glasses of water a day.
To appreciate the importance of water, you should understand exactly what those eight glasses of water are doing to your body. As the water enters your system, it hydrates your cells. Not only will you feel more energized, but it will also help keep your cells strong against illness, headaches, and fatigue.
Imagine that the body’s cells are a plant. Without water, the plant will wither and be less strong against daily elements. However, the plant will be strong and healthy with the proper amount of water and care.
Water relieves the body of harmful toxins such as those that are caused by illness and stress. By hydrating into your system with water, your body pumps out unwanted chemicals that will slow you down and make your body function less healthily. Eight glasses of water are the minimum you should drink a day if you wish to retain a properly functioning body.
Fruits
Many people get their water from fruits, such as apples, watermelons, and berries. Depending on the size, one piece of fruit can count for as much as half of a glass of water. The added benefit of fruit is that in addition to helping to hydrate you, fruit can add healthy amounts of vitamins and minerals to your core diet.
Fruit also fills the stomach and energizes you. Since fruit contains very few calories, it is a good food to fill up on. However, fruit does contain fructose, which is a type of sugar. Fructose will spike the level of sugar in your bloodstream, which will give you energy. Yet, if that energy is not used, the fructose will become fat (if only a small amount). That means eating fruit alone won’t be helpful unless you get to moving.
Dehydrators
Some beverages and activities dehydrate your body quickly so that your actual amount of water intake needs to be increased. Drinks that lessen water from your body include sodas, coffee, tea and alcohol.
To ensure that you stay properly hydrated, drink one glass of water for every glass of soda or other dehydrating beverage. Also, for every half-hour of sweat-inducing exercise, you should drink at least one cup of water. If you exercise in a humid environment, you may have to drink more water to avoid headaches, illness, and overall dehydration.
Water truly can aid your weight-loss process if you are diligent about consuming generous portions of it. Many people find that carrying a water bottle with them everywhere they go is the best way to remain tempted to treat your body right.
Sharlene Edwards, aka Nurse Shar, is a public health practitioner and community advocate with a master’s degree in public health epidemiology. For more blog posts, visit www.mybetterlivingllc.com.
