Believe it or not, the secret to weight loss and perhaps the single most important catalyst in keeping unwanted pounds off is … water. To top it off, drinking the recommended 8 glasses a day has been found to be an effective stress reliever.
Water naturally suppresses appetite and helps the body metabolize stored fat. Studies have shown that an increase in water intake can actually reduce fat deposits.
This is the way it works: The kidneys can't function properly without enough water so when they 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 but if the liver has to do some of the kidney's work (due to lack of water) then it can't operate fully. As a result, it metabolizes less fat and therefore more fat remains stored in the body slowing down weight loss.
People have a common misconception that if the body seems to be retaining water (thanks to all the salty food intakes) one must take in very little water so as not to aggravate the situation. They could never be more mistaken. 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.
This worsens the situation and in effect causes water to be stored in extracellular spaces (outside the cell) hence shows up as swollen feet, legs and hands. 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. So how do you address this problem? Drink more water as it is forced through the kidneys it washes off the excess sodium.
Larger people have larger metabolic loads. Since we know that water is the key to fat metabolism, it follows that the over weight 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 weightloss - shrinking cells are buoyed by water which plumps the skin and leaves it clear, healthy and resilient.
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 resulting to constipation. Of course fibrous foods have proven to be major help in this area but when a person drinks enough water, normal bowel function usually returns.
There are so many kinds of water now available in the market: oxygenated, vitamin enriched, fitness, caffeinated, naturally or artificially fruit-flavored and so on. But do you really need any of these? According to Cedric Byrant, chief exercise physiologist at the American Council on Exercise "Some of the fitness waters that have a little sweetness might encourage greater levels of consumption than plain water," says
ON OXYGENATED WATER-Bryant claims it may be more hype than anything else. Take for instance a recent study enlisted by the American Council on Exercise and conducted at the University of Wisconsin, La Crosse. They found that drinking super-oxygenated water had no measurable effect on the subjects' resting heart rate, blood pressure or blood lactate values either at rest, during exercise or afterward. "The bottom line is that super-oxygenated water appears to be no more beneficial than plain old tap water. It's very doubtful that the presence of extra oxygen in the blood would make a difference," Bryant says.
ON WATER WITH VITAMINS-He further adds that you also don't need extra vitamins in your water. In fact, some of these drinks can have up to 250 calories per bottle, so it is wise to check the label before consumption. ON WATER WITH CAFFEINE-While fitness enthusiasts have long been using caffeine to give them that little extra boost, it really isn't going to be beneficial for the average person, Bryant says caffeine became very popular with the real ultra-endurance athletes like people running marathons because the caffeine allowed them to do it as well as better utilize fat as a fuel source, so that they could spare their glycogen levels to avoid quick fatigue but unless you're doing really long duration endurance activities, you're going to have sufficient glycogen levels to meet your needs. | How Much Water do We Really Need? |
On the average, a person should drink 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 (more research is being done to prove this). To utilize water most efficiently during weight loss, follow this schedule:
Morning: 1 quart consumed over a 30-minute period.
Noon: 1 quart consumed over a 30-minute period.
Evening: 1 quart consumed between five and six o'clock.
Or you may simply be guided by this: For every 20 pounds of body weight over 150 - One additional cup. For those over 250 pounds, 12-13 cups.