How does water help with weight loss?

StacieLutes
StacieLutes Posts: 68
edited September 19 in Health and Weight Loss
I know water is good for your body. Does it just make you feel full or what? I've always heard "drink a lot of water when dieting. WHY

Replies

  • I know water is good for your body. Does it just make you feel full or what? I've always heard "drink a lot of water when dieting. WHY
  • mandyc1108
    mandyc1108 Posts: 57 Member
    Making sure your body is hydrated is essential; otherwise you mistake thrist for hunger and your body will want to hang on to excess. I'm sure there are other reasons, but that's what my doc told me a few weeks ago.
  • molsongirl
    molsongirl Posts: 1,373 Member
    The problem is that, though many decide to increase their water intake, very few stick with it. It's understandable. During the first few days of drinking more water than your body is accustomed to, you're running to the bathroom constantly. This can be very discouraging, and it can certainly interfere with an otherwise normal day at work. It seems that the water is coming out just as fast as it's going in, and many people decide that their new hydration habit is fruitless.

    Do take heed , though. What is really happening is that your body is flushing itself of the water it has been storing throughout all those years of "survival mode". It takes a while, but this is a beautiful thing happening to you. As you continue to give your body all the water it could ask for, it gets rid of what it doesn't need. It gets rid of the water it was holding onto in your ankles and your hips and thighs, maybe even around your belly. You are excreting much more than you realize. Your body figures it doesn't need to save these stores anymore; it's trusting that the water will keep coming, and if it does, eventually, the flushing (of both the body and the potty) will cease, allowing the human to return to a normal life. It's true. This is called the "breakthrough point."

    One recent finding, as irresponsible as it may be, that caffeine increases the body's fat-burning potential has many people loading up on coffee before going to the gym. This finding may hold some degree of truth in it, but caffeine is, in essence, a diuretic, and diuretics dehydrate. Caffeine may increase the heart rate, causing a few more calories to be burned, but this is at the expense of the muscles, which need water to function properly. This isn't doing your heart any favors, either. It's already working hard enough during your workout. Never mix caffeine and exercise. In fact, your best bet is to stay away from caffeine all together. It's a big bully that pushes your friend water out of your system.

    Water is the best beauty treatment. You've heard this since high school, and it's true. Water will do wonders for your looks! It flushes out impurities in your skin, leaving you with a clear, glowing complexion. It also makes your skin look younger. Skin that is becoming saggy, either due to aging or weight loss, plumps up very nicely when the skin cells are hydrated.

    In addition, it improves muscle tone. You can lift weights until you're blue in the face, but if your muscles are suffering from a drought, you won't notice a pleasant difference in your appearance. Muscles that have all the water they need contract more easily, making your workout more effective, and you'll look much nicer than if you had flabby muscles under sagging skin.

    "Eight glasses a day? Are you kidding?!" It's really not that much. Eight 8-ounce glasses amount to about two quarts of water. This is okay for the average person, but if you're overweight, you should drink another eight ounces for every 25 pounds of excess weight you carry. You should also up this if you live in a hot climate or exercise very intensely.

    This water consumption should be spread out throughout the day. It's not healthy at all to drink too much water at one time. Try to pick three or four times a day when you can have a big glass of water, and then sip in between. Don't let yourself get thirsty. If you feel thirsty, you're already becoming dehydrated. Drink when you're not thirsty yet.

    Do you think water is yucky? Drinking other fluids will certainly help hydrate your body, but the extra calories, sugar, additives and whatever else aren't what you need. Try a slice of lemon or lime in the glass, or if you really think you hate water, try a flavored water. Just make sure you read the labels. Remember that you're going to be consuming a lot of this fluid.

    When you drink all the water you need, you will very quickly notice a decrease in your appetite, possibly even on the first day! If you're serious about becoming leaner and healthier, drinking water is an absolute must. If you're doing everything else right and still not seeing results, this might just be what's missing.
  • also if you don't drink enough water you organs have to work harder, thus you will be tired! I never knew before this whole getting heathly thing why I was always SO tired. Now I feel great! Also I don't tend to eat as much because I feel fuller when I drink all my water!
  • shopie
    shopie Posts: 39
    I was wonder how long should it take for the running to the bathroom every hour to stop? I have been drinking about 10-12 glasses a day for about 6 weeks now. I have never heard that about your body storing up fluid. that is good stuff. If you could let me know how long the bathroom running wil take i would appericate it
  • Thanks!! I had had no idea. I have the same question as Sopie. How long does it take before I'll stop running to the bathroom?
  • shopie
    shopie Posts: 39
    molsongirl can you answer how long is normal for running to the bathroom all the time
  • shopie
    shopie Posts: 39
    just bumping this to try and get an answer
  • tahmed
    tahmed Posts: 409 Member
    It took me about 6 weeks for my body to get used to it. I drink on average about 80-100 oz of water a day. Now I still go a bit more often than before (I used to go only once during an entire work day), but now it is 2 or 3 times.
  • alapointe
    alapointe Posts: 369 Member
    I was running to the bathroom all the time for about 3 months, then i started to notice I was decreasing my runs to the "potty".

    I drink water all day at work, but the weekends i find it harder to drink all that water. I have found that when i go back to drinking the first day or two i am in the bathroom more frequently but then go back to normal again.
  • shopie
    shopie Posts: 39
    Thanks i am six weeks now and no let up yet. I drank alot of soda before so it might take a while before all that junk gets out of my system. I posted and article about soda in the fitness message board under another p90x thread. It is a must read. good stuff
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