Drink Water, Lose Weight, Look Younger
/How much water should I drink every day? Are there benefits to drinking a certain amount of water? How much is too much water?
Water. Drinking it is important and most people know that. Unfortunately, many people don't drink nearly enough of it. In fact, research has shown as many as 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated. 75%, really?!? That's 3 out of 4. Three out of FOUR, yikes! When you really sit back and think about it, which one are you?
“Okay, Erin. But if 3/4s of our population is dehydrated and yet somehow seem to be making their way through life, how bad can chronic dehydration really be?”
Short answer: It can be bad. And it can seriously impact your health and fitness goals.
Even mild dehydration slows the metabolism by as much as 3%. That’s right. Not having enough water can slow down your daily overall calorie burn.
Insufficient water is the number one trigger of daytime fatigue. So not only does being dehydrated affect your work, but this loss of energy and fatigue impedes various day to day activities as well as your workouts.
37% of Americans often mistake thirst for hunger. That means you may be consuming more calories than you need just because you are thirsty! Since water has zero calories (and as we’re discussing in this post many additional benefits) it’s not hard to see how this fact alone can be derailing a weight loss goal.
Water helps your body get rid of toxins and impurities. You probably know someone who has done a “cleanse.” Heck, there’s a possibility that you’ve done one yourself. But when we’re drinking enough water regularly, there are very few times when a cleanse is actually needed to detox our bodies. That’s right, water is the original “cleanse” and it comes with no side effects!
One of the number one causes of headaches and migraines is being dehydrated. If you get headaches or migraines this information alone should have you reaching for more water. Yes, there are other factors in play when it comes to headaches and migraines, but if you could prevent them just by staying adequately hydrated? Well, to me that’s a no brainer.
Being dehydrated can cause bloating and water retention. I know this seems counter intuitive, but stick with me. When you’re dehydrated you’re not getting enough water, and your body KNOWS that you’re not getting enough water. So it holds on to the water that you give it resulting in bloating and water retention. However, if you consistently give your body enough water, it doesn’t have to hold onto what you’ve previously given in “just in case.” This is also why we burn fewer calories when we aren’t eating enough, but that’s a future blog. Moral of the story, our bodies are smart and built to survive.
The human body is 55-75% water depending on your age, gender, and lifestyle. As we age our body starts “drying out.” Think about it, wrinkles, dry skin, dry hair, creaky joints… all of these things happen as we start to age, or dry out. That’s why staying hydrated is one of the easiest things you can do to prevent “drying out.” This is also where I’d like to point out that muscle has more water than fat, so by keeping your muscle ratio up you also keep your water ratio up. So when you really think about it, muscle helps prevent aging. Just another reason why you should pick up some weights!
Mind blown yet?!?! And those are just a few of the many things not getting enough water can do to your body.
So How Much Is Enough?
Just like with everything, every body is different. Your body's needs differ from your neighbors. However, a good starting point is to aim for a minimum of half your weight (in pounds) in ounces of water (I.e. 150lbs= 75oz). Then, as you start drinking more water, use the color of your urine as a guide. Your urine should be a very light color, almost (but not quite) clear. Yes, there are things that can affect the color of your urine like an excess of vitamins (like the time my high school youth group spent a week doing a service project at an assisted living center and we all peed fluorescent), but just like the ounce for pound example, this is a good guide.
You’ll also want to make sure you are drinking even more water during and after a flight and during and after high heat exposure and/or intense exercise. When you fly, the air in the airplane is extremely dry (dryer than the dessert dry), and because of this water can actually be pulled from your body to “hydrate” the air. I know getting up to use the bathroom in the airplane can be a pain, but it’s more important to stay hydrated. As for heat and exercise, it makes sense that you’ll need more water, especially if you are sweating a lot out!
Need more convincing? Researchers concluded that you burn about 95 calories a day just by drinking 2 liters of water (just over 67oz). But what it comes down to is that paying attention to your body and how you feel is just as important when it comes to staying hydrated as it is with finding the right nutrition and movement plan for you and your body.
How Do I Drink Enough Water?
I know that drinking this much water may sound like lot, especially if your water intake is currently pretty low. And it may be challenging at first, but it can be done. The key is to find what works for you. Here are just a few ideas to get you started.
DRINK WATER FIRST THING IN THE MORNING
If you do nothing else, start here. Aim to drink 16-20oz water within 30 minutes of waking. By drinking water first thing in the morning you help prime your body for optimum performance throughout the day. Before bed, I fill up a 25oz. stainless water bottle and put it on my bedside table. That way, I have cool water ready for me as soon as I wake up. By drinking that water before I leave for work, I know that I’ve already started my day with 25oz of water. By starting out your morning with water, you’ve already taken a huge chunk out of your daily water goal!
HAVE A SYSTEM
This is the easiest and most effective way to start drinking more water. There are several different systems you can use, the important thing is to find the one that works for you. I personally have a couple of different systems I use depending on my schedule.
If I have a full day at the gym I start the day with a full 40oz Hydroflask, and make sure to refill it at least once during the day. My "morning water" is separate, so if I drink my morning water and the Hydroflask twice, I know I'm getting about 100oz of water throughout the day.
On the weekends, I prefer to use smaller bottles. They’re easier to carry around the house and can easily slip in my purse. I have a couple S’well bottles that I absolutely love, but recently I’ve been using my 131 Hydration System bottles. Basically it’s three 25oz bottles, so you can fill them up in the evening and know that by drinking them all through the day you’re getting at least 75oz of water. Plus, they’re pretty (I get a lot of compliments on these bottles!) However, you don’t have to have the special 131 bottles to use that system. Get 3 or 4 bottles that you love, fill them up in the evening and make sure you drink them throughout the day. Easy peasy.
You could also have one large container (such as a gallon jug) that you fill up each day and use to dispense water into whatever you’re drinking out of. Some people will even make lines on their large container so they know when in the day they should have drank a certain amount of water. (Pro tip: Try to drink more water earlier in the day to prevent night time bathroom trips!)
Whatever you choose to do, just make sure it works for you and your lifestyle. That’s the most important thing.
DRINK 8-16oz BEFORE YOU EAT
As I mentioned before, it's easy to mistake thirst for hunger. By drinking 8-16oz of water 20 minutes or so before each meal not only are you working to achieve your water goal for the day, but you are making sure your body is hydrated so you can be sure you are actually hungry and not just thirsty. Especially when you are just getting used to drinking more water, meals times can be good reminder triggers to drink more water.
SET A TIMER
When it comes to creating new habits, the timer on your phone or on your email system can be priceless. You can use timers to remind you about almost anything. Drinking your water, checking your posture, or even getting up to walk around (which, if you are drinking your water, shouldn’t be as much of a problem)!
MAKE IT FANCY
Yes, your water needs to be water, but it doesn’t need to be “plain” water. Add fruits, veggies or herbs to your water to spice things up a bit. Personally, I’m a huge fan of lime in my water, but in the summer, strawberry slices and basil is a fun refreshing twist on plain water. Check out the water bar for more fruit and veggie ideas!
If you need some inspiration, don’t worry. Believe it or not but you can actually look up “water recipes” or “infused water recipes.” This is one of my favorites from Chalene Johnson:
ALWAYS HAVE IT WITH YOU
This may seem obvious, but it’s important that to point out. If you have water near or with you, you’re more likely to drink it. So keep a bottle or a glass close by at all times.
I’ve mentioned them before, but my favorite bottles are:
Hydroflask
S’well
131 Hydration System
Glass bottles are also a great option, but stay away from plastic. Water is a universal solvent, and can actually pick up plastic particles from your water bottle. Have you ever had water from a plastic bottle that had been left in the sun? Yeah, no good.
If it’s your only option, it’s better to drink water than avoid drinking water because it was stored in plastic, but in general if you can avoid it, you should.
Getting into the habit of drinking enough water can be challenging, but it’s no more difficult than creating any other healthy habit. Start by setting a goal then work on achieving that goal. No, it’s not going to happen overnight (especially if you are a one or two glasses of water a day person). In fact, I recommend that you gradually start increasing your water intake over the next couple weeks. If you’re only drinking about 20oz a day, aim for 35 or 40. Yes, that’s still less than what you eventually want to be drinking, but progress is more important than perfection. Plus as your body becomes more hydrated you'll feel the difference and you'll never want to be dehydrated again. So here's to being hydrated, Cheers!
Extra Resources
Articles: Are You Dehydrated? (Today.com)
Water Bar (Inspiration for water infusions)
Podcasts: Hydration and Water Masterclass (TMHS 073)
The Truth About your Water Supply (THMS 358)
Dehydration and Weight Gain (The Chalene Show)
This is a follow up post to my previous article, 13 Reasons Why You’re Not Seeing Results. Over the next several weeks (months!) I’m going to be doing a deep dive into each of these reasons to help you achieve your goals and live your healthiest and happiest life! As always, feel free to leave me a comment if there’s something else you’d like me to talk about!
Check out the original article to see what’s coming up!