Drink Water to Lose Weight!

I remember watching a TV commercial where this female coach says to the little girls playing soccer, "You are losing a lot of water out there!" She starts giving out bottles of sports drinks, when one of the little girls looks up and says, "If we are losing water, shouldn't we be drinking water?"

It's amazing how we sometimes overlook just how important water is to our health.

Most people don't think about what's in those sports drinks that is suppose to quench your thirst. Many companies will try to influence you to buy these drinks by using celebrity endoresments and promising great taste. A lot of these drinks have caffeine, which tends to dehydrate your body... Not good if you are playing sports outside in the hot sun.

Water is better for our body. Better than any caffeinated sports drink on the market. In fact, our body is made up of mostly water. So it is necessary for our survival.

Our bodies cannot function without water. Why? Well, Lets explore...

Drinking Cold Water to Lose Weight.

Because water contains no fat or calories, you don't have to worry about gaining weight. In fact, water can help you lose weight, especially if you drink it cold. What?

That's right! Drinking cold water can help you lose weight.

How?

You know how your body is constantly regulating your temperature? Well, when you drink cold water the body has to use extra energy to warm up the water in your stomach to normal body temperature. In doing so, your body is burning extra calories.

You know that cold feeling you get after drinking a glass of cold water? That happens because cold water is easily absorbed into your bloodstream faster than warm water.

Other drinks on the market will add calories and dehydrate you by stealing water from your bloodstream. This makes it harder to get rid of those extra calories.

I've also found that water is good way to supress your appetite. So the next time you start to feel hungry, drink a glass water. I like to have glass of water while I'm eating a meal because it keeps me from over eating. Drinking water while eating is a great for any weight loss plan because it limits the amount of calories you intake.

When Should You Drink Water?

Some people only drink water when they are thirsty. If you wait until you are thirsty to have a drink of water, then chances are - you are already dehydrated. You need to stay completely hydrated through out the day - morning, noon, and evening. You can do this by drinking water with each meal and between each meal. When you take a break a work, drink water instead of sodas or coffee.

Also, you need to drink water before, during and after moderate exercise. If you live in an area of the country where it is hot and humid, you need to drink water during and after sun exposure.

If you drink water late in the evening you may find yourself waking up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom. It's best drink water between five and six o'clock in the evening.

How Much Water Do The Average Person Need to Drink?

Experts have always recommended that you should drink about 8 glasses (8 ounces = 1 glass) of water a day to stay hydrated during moderate exercise or in mild temperature. An overweight person needs more water because they have larger metabolic loads. Since water is vital to fat metabolism, it is especially important during weight loss. All that metabolized fat has to go somewhere. Drinking enough water will flush it out as waste.

Now, you maybe thinking, "How in world can I drink eight glasses of water in a day?"

It's not as hard as you think! For example, I keep a 16 ounce water bottle with me all the time. First thing I do in the morning is drink half the water in my bottle. While I'm driving to work I'll drink the other half - that's two glasses I've already consumed.

Once I'm at work I will refill my 16 ounce water bottle and drink it at my desk. By noon time, I've already had about four glasses of water. Sure! I will make several trips to bathroom, but that's okay.

Usually, during lunch I tend to drink more water during and after I eat a meal. Then, yeah you guessed it... make another trip to the bathroom. :-) By the time I get home, I'll have two more glasses of water. This way, I stay hydrated all day.

I know some people who don't like to drink water at all. The number one complaint I always hear is... water has no taste. If this is you, then there are ways you can increase your water intake.

For example, you can eat fruits and vegetables, which contain lots of water and good sources of vitamins, minerals and fiber. If you like herbal tea, then you can drink several cups of tea through out the day.

Also, lemon water is good. Just cut up some lemon or lime into a pitcher of water and leave it in the refrigerator.

Does Drinking More Water Cause Water Weight?

I use to think just that. You know.. if you drink more mater it will cause water weight. The fact is, drinking more water is best to rid your body of extra fluid. There were times when I would have water weight or fluid retention. I thought the only solution was to take diuretics. That only provided me temporary relief. Once I started drinking more water, I no longer deal with the extra water weight.

So what causes water weight? Excess salt!

Yes, having excess salt in your system will cause water weight. That's why it is so important to watch your salt intake. Your body can only tolerate so much sodium in certain concentration. The more salt you eat the more water your system retains to dilute it in order to maintain the salt level at proper concentration. And, it gets worse when you are dehydrated because you will start to have swollen feet, hands, and legs.

When your body is not getting enough water it will perceive this as a threat to survival. Therefore, your body will hold on to any drop of water to replace it at every opportunity.

The best way to fight water weight is to give your body what it needs, and that's - more water. You will start shedding more water weight because your body will recognize that it is constantly being replenished with new water. So there is no reason to hold on to any fluids, causing you to make extra trips to the bathroom. Drinking more water will, also, get rid of extra salt in your system because it forces your kidneys to take away excess sodium.

So to stay hydrated through out the day, skip the colas and other caffeinated drinks and pour yourself a tall glass of ice-cold water. :-)

You may also be interested in:

7 Amazing Benefits of Drinking Lemon Water

Do You Recognize the 9 Warning Signs of Dehydration?

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