Water is one of my favorite things. As a competitive swimmer, I spend a lot of time in the pool. Not only is water a crucial part of my favorite sport, but it is also a crucial part of life. The adult human body is about 60% water in weight. Let’s look into the advantages of water and see if you’re really drinking enough.
The age old adage is “drink eight glasses of water per day.” According to the Mayo Clinic, that is too simplified of a rule. Eight cups of water a day is a good target goal, but to be more specific to your own body’s needs, you need to take into account things such as body weight and activity level. It is simple to figure out though: Take half your body weight, and that is the number of ounces of water you should drink every day. For example, a 160-pound person should aim for 80 ounces of water consumption in one day, which equals ten cups. This doesn’t take into account activity level or even climate. Though one cannot make rules concerning water that will apply to everyone, there are some good guidelines to follow:
Drink a cup of water when you wake up. This rehydrates your body systems and helps prevent kidney stones and bladder infections.
Drink a cup of water before a meal and one during your meal. This helps create a sense of satiety, or fullness, before consuming calories. This is good advice as we head into the holidays.
Drink two cups of water two hours before you work out, and then drink two cups of water after exercising.
Drink a cup of water when you are thirsty.
Water not only quenches thirst and helps control calorie intake, it is also essential to many bodily functions, such as flushing out waste, temperature control, and helping brain function. Long-term dehydration also affects your joints. Joints are partially made up of cartilage, which is 80% water. Water helps lubricate and cushion your joints.
Teens know that clear skin can be a bit of a struggle. Drinking water throughout the day assists in giving skin a more healthy appearance. Since the skin is the largest organ in the body and water goes to all the organs, water helps to flush toxins out of the skin. More water can help with clearer skin, but this doesn’t mean you should stop your daily skincare routine in lieu of drinking gallons of water. Water will help when your skin be at its best at all stages of life. Even aging skin needs plenty of water, too.
It is a common theme for people during the holiday season to overeat or complain about weight gained during the fall and winter. While overeating may be enjoyable at the time, the after-effects can be unpleasant. Water may be just the thing for you at the dinner table in the coming season. There has been much research done that proves how drinking water while eating helps you feel more full without having to consume more food. You feel full when your stomach has stretched, so drinking water before and during a meal will help stretch your stomach without having to eat as much.
As we enter this holiday season, remember and be thankful for the amazing ways God created water to work with our bodies.
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