Water

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qtpiesmom
qtpiesmom Posts: 394 Member
Thought this website gave good insight to why to drink 8 glasses of water a day, this is one of my goals is to drink them or more everyday.

Water & 20 Tips For Getting Your 8 Glasses Daily

How 8 Glasses a Day Keeps Fat Away

Incredible as it may seem, water is quite possibly the single most important catalyst in losing weight and keeping it off. Although most of us take it for granted, water may be the only true "magic potion" for permanent weight loss!

Water suppresses the appetite naturally and helps the body metabolize stored fat. Studies have shown that a decrease in water intake will cause fat deposits to increase, while an increase in water intake can actually reduce fat deposits. Here's why: The kidneys can't function properly without enough water. When the kidneys don't work to capacity, some of their load is dumped onto the liver. One of the liver's primary functions is to metabolize stored fat into usable energy for the body. If the liver has to do some of the kidney's work, it can't operate at full throttle. As a result, it metabolizes less fat, more fat remains stored in the body, and weight loss stops. Drinking enough water is the best treatment for fluid retention. When the body gets less water, it perceives this as a threat to survival and begins to hold on to every drop. Water is stored in extra cellular spaces (outside the cells). This shows up as swollen feet, legs and hands. Diuretics offer a temporary solution at best. They force out stored water along with some essential nutrients. Again, the body perceives a threat and will replace the lost water at the first opportunity. Thus, the condition quickly returns. The best way to overcome the problem of water retention is to give the body what it needs.PLENTY OF WATER. Only then will the stored water be released. If you have a constant problem with water retention, excess salt may be to blame. Your body will tolerate sodium only in a certain concentration. The more salt you eat, the more water your system retains to dilute it. But getting rid of un-needed salt is easy - just drink more water. As it's forced through the kidneys, it takes away excess sodium. The overweight person needs more water than the thin one! Larger people have larger metabolic loads. Since we know that water is the key to fat metabolism, it follows that the overweight person needs more water. Water helps maintain proper muscle tone by giving muscles their natural ability to contract and by preventing dehydration. It also helps to prevent the sagging skin that usually follows weight loss - shrinking cells are buoyed by water, which plumps the skin and leaves it clear, healthy, and resilient. Water helps rid the body of waste. During weight loss, the body has a lot more waste to get rid of - all the metabolized fat must be shed. Again, adequate water helps flush out the waste. Water can help relieve constipation. When the body gets too little water, it siphons what it needs from internal sources. The colon is one primary source. Result? Constipation. But, when a person gets enough water, normal bowel functions returns. So far, we've discovered some remarkable truths about water and weight loss:

The body will not function properly without enough water and can't metabolize stored fat efficiently.

Retained water shows up as excess weight.

To get rid of excess water you must drink more water.

Drinking water is essential to weight loss. How much water is enough??

On the average, a person should drink eight 8-ounce glasses every day. That's about 2 quarts. However, the overweight person needs one additional glass for every 25 pounds of excess weight. The amount you drink also should be increased if you exercise briskly or if the weather is hot and dry. Water should preferably be cold - it's absorbed into the system more quickly than warm water. And some evidence suggests that drinking cold water can actually help burn calories. When the body gets the water it needs to function optimally, its fluids are perfectly balanced. Once this happens you have reached the "breakthrough point". What does this mean?

Endocrine-gland function improves.

Fluid retention is alleviated as stored water is lost.

More fat is used as fuel because the liver is free to metabolize stored fat.

Natural thirst returns.

There is loss of hunger almost overnight.

If you stop drinking enough water, your body fluids will be thrown out of balance again, and you may experience fluid retention, unexplained weight gain and loss of thirst. To remedy the situation you'll have to go back and force another "breakthrough".

By Donald S. Robertson, M.D., M. Sc

20 Tips For Getting Your 8 Glasses of Water Daily

Sometimes drinking our eight glasses of water a day can be a real challenge Here are 20 tips to help you accomplish that feat! It is said by many beauty experts that drinking your water is the cheapest, quickest way to look better! That should motivate us!

1. Make a bet with a co-worker to see who can drink more water in the course of a day.

2. Have a big glass of water at every transitional point of the day: when you first get up, just before leaving the house, when you sit down to work, etc.

3. Make it convenient - keep a big, plastic, insulated water bottle full on your desk and reach for it all day.

4. When you have juice (apple, grape, or orange) fill half the glass with water.

5. When you have a junk-food craving, down a glass of water immediately. You feel full quickly and avoid the calories, and it lets time pass till the craving fades.

6. Have one glass every hour on the hour while at work. When the work day is done your water quota is met.

7. Substitute a cup of hot water with a drop of honey for tea or coffee.

8. While at work, get a 20 ounce cup of ice and keep filling it up from the office water cooler. The key is drinking with a straw - you take bigger gulps and drink much more.

9. Freeze little bits of peeled lemons, limes, and oranges and use them in place of ice cubes - it's refreshing and helps get in a serving or two of fruit.

10. After each trip to the restroom, guzzle an eight-ounce glass to replenish your system.

11. Don't allow yourself a diet soda until you've had two to four glasses of water. You will find that you won't want the soda anymore or that just half a can is enough.

12. Let ounces of water double grams of fat: When eating something containing 10 grams of fat, I drink 20 ounces of water.

13. Drink two full glasses at each meal, one before and one after. Also, drink one glass before each snack so you don't eat as much.

14. Carry a small refillable water bottle at all times and drink during downtime; while waiting in a bank line, sitting on the train, etc.

15. Use a beautiful gold-rimmed glass and fill it with cold water from the tap.

16. Drink two glasses of water immediately after waking up.

17. Bring a two-liter bottle of water to work and try to drink it all before you leave work. If you don't finish, drink it in traffic on the way home - it's like a race.

18. Always keep a 24-ounce bottle of water handy while watching TV, doing laundry, making dinner, etc.

19. Add drinking two glasses of water to your daily skincare regimen. Drink, cleanse, moisturize, etc., then drink again.

20. Drink your water out of a big Pyrex measuring cup - it's a good way to keep track of how much water you are drinking.
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  • LynnBirchfield
    LynnBirchfield Posts: 580 Member
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    Thanks for this useful information. :-)
  • qtpiesmom
    qtpiesmom Posts: 394 Member
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    bump
  • seemae
    seemae Posts: 38
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    Great info - a lot of times, if we're dehydrated, our body reacts as if it's hungry. That's another reason why you should always try drinking a glass of water before eating, you may discover you're not actually hungry.
  • ashmo1785
    ashmo1785 Posts: 117
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    This will be my challenge this week to drink 3 x 700ml bottles of water a day this will get my 8 glasses a day in.
  • kymarai
    kymarai Posts: 3,632 Member
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    Thank you for sharing! I have found that the straw thing really works especially at work! If I have to take lids off and on, then when busy I don't drink enough. I bought those reusable, double lined cups with lids and reusable straws. I can grab, sip, and don't have to worry about lids or spills! On weekends, I keep a glass of ice water with a straw with me most times to encourage water intake.
  • qtpiesmom
    qtpiesmom Posts: 394 Member
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    bump
  • beefluv86
    beefluv86 Posts: 86 Member
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    bump
  • jessicamarie81
    jessicamarie81 Posts: 441 Member
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    Wonderful info about water, thank you!!
  • qtpiesmom
    qtpiesmom Posts: 394 Member
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    bump
  • qtpiesmom
    qtpiesmom Posts: 394 Member
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    bump
  • qtpiesmom
    qtpiesmom Posts: 394 Member
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    for new people :)
  • qtpiesmom
    qtpiesmom Posts: 394 Member
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    In case you have a hard time drinking the water remember its 8 cups of water most glasses hold 2 cups.
  • circles000
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    Thanks, it was an interesting read :happy:

    I'm trying not to drink fizzy drinks so tend to lean towards tea/coffee instead although I don't mind water :smile:
  • 8sheila8
    8sheila8 Posts: 10 Member
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    BUMP
  • Elzecat
    Elzecat Posts: 2,916 Member
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    BUMP!
  • kacarter1017
    kacarter1017 Posts: 651 Member
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    I'm trying not to drink fizzy drinks so tend to lean towards tea/coffee instead although I don't mind water :smile:

    If the tea/coffee has caffeine, it shouldn't count toward your water total- the caffeine is a diuretic and will make you pee more.
  • cangel81603
    cangel81603 Posts: 64 Member
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    Thanks for the info..great read:)
  • sjdoman
    sjdoman Posts: 81 Member
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    :happy:
  • qtpiesmom
    qtpiesmom Posts: 394 Member
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    Been seeing some people posting about drinking water and I thought people may want to read this :)
  • qtpiesmom
    qtpiesmom Posts: 394 Member
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    This is From Yahoo

    As a runner, I’ve always been an avid water drinker. And because I’m a dietitian and nutrition editor, I typically choose to hydrate with water (it’s calorie-free!) over other beverages like sweetened tea, soda or sports drinks, which can pack a hefty calorie and sugar punch. (That said, there is a time and place when nonwater drinks are worthy choices. Still, I was surprised to learn just how essential water is for so many body processes. Here—as Rachael Moeller Gorman reported in EatingWell Magazine’s July/August issue—you can see what water does for your body, from your head to your toes.
    1. Brain
    Staying hydrated keeps your memory sharp, your mood stable and your motivation intact. When you’re well-hydrated, you can also think through a problem more easily. Researchers hypothesize that not having enough water could reduce oxygen flow to the brain or temporarily shrink neurons—or being thirsty could simply distract you.
    2. Mouth
    Water keeps your throat and lips moist and prevents your mouth from feeling dry. Dry mouth can cause bad breath and/or an unpleasant taste—and can even promote cavities.
    3. Heart
    Dehydration lowers your blood volume, so your heart must work harder to pump the reduced amount of blood and get enough oxygen to your cells, which makes everyday activities like walking up stairs—as well as exercise—more difficult.
    4. Bloodstream
    Your body releases heat by expanding blood vessels close to the skin’s surface (this is why your face gets red during exercise), resulting in more blood flow and more heat dissipated into the air. When you’re dehydrated, however, it takes a higher environmental temperature to trigger blood vessels to widen, so you stay hotter.
    5. Limbs
    When you’re well hydrated, the water inside and outside the cells of contracting muscles provides adequate nutrients and removes waste efficiently so you perform better. Water is also important for lubricating joints. Contrary to popular belief, muscle cramps do not appear to be related to dehydration, but, instead, to muscle fatigue, according to Sam Cheuvront, Ph.D., an exercise physiologist for the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine.
    6. Skin
    When a person is severely dehydrated, skin is less elastic. This is different than dry skin, which is usually the result of soap, hot water and exposure to dry air. And, no, unfortunately, drinking lots of water won’t prevent wrinkles.
    7. Kidneys
    Your kidneys need water to filter waste from the blood and excrete it in urine. Keeping hydrated may also help prevent urinary tract infections and kidney stones. If you are severely dehydrated, your kidneys may stop working, causing toxins to build up in your body.
    So now that you’ve read the total body benefits of drinking water, how much water do you actually need?
    It isn’t eight 8-ounce glasses each day. The Institute of Medicine says adult men need about 13 cups (3 liters) per day of fluid; adult women need about 9 cups (2.2 liters) of fluid. (You get about an additional 2 1/2 cups of fluid from foods.)
    But one size doesn’t fit all,” says Leslie Bonci, R.D., C.S.S.D., director of sports nutrition at the Center for Sports Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and dietitian for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Your size and activity level affect your fluid requirements. Simply put, the larger and more active you are, the more you’ll need.
    “The easiest thing that anybody could do on a daily basis is monitor their urine color,” says Douglas Casa, Ph.D., A.T.C., who studies hydration at the University of Connecticut. “Lighter urine color—like lemonade—means you’re generally well-hydrated. If it’s darker, like apple juice, you are most likely dehydrated.”