by Nathan McGee
DRINK WATER!
Up until a couple of weeks ago, my poison of choice (and I do mean poison) was diet soda. It wasn't until I really started working out consistantly with the company's boot camp and trying to loose those a few extra pounds (ok... more than a few) that I started to really look at everything I was putting into my body. One thing I found out, I was not hydrating enough and the soda I was drinking was actually having the reverse affect!
Your Body Needs Water!
It doesn't need caffeine, it doesn't need high fructose corn syrup, it doesn't need aspartame... it needs water! About 85% of your brain, 80% of your blood and 70% of your muscles are made from water. Water helps in flushing our system out of all the toxins we take in from eating, breathing and just living. It helps regulate your body temperature and it creates a cushion for your joint, which is especially important when you are working out. Being properly hydrated, before, during, and after your work out can increase your performance level and prevent serious muscle soreness. There are so many "performance enhancing" drinks out there which can be helpful when you are working out or doing a lot of physical activity, but the rest of the time, your body does not need all the sugar and "enhancing" chemical that it needs during the activity. What your body wants and needs is water. Clear, crisp, refreshing water.
I'm Not Drinking Enough!
Dehydration can cause a lot of problems. Head aches, tiredness, joint pains, muscle pains, hunger, impeded concentration, decrease in coordination, decrease in reflexes, loss of strength and DEATH! Ok, you are probably getting enough water in your coffee, soda and other beverages to ward off the grim reaper, but the other symptoms might seem familiar. It has been suggested that a lack of hydration makes our bodies more susceptible to illness and that being properly hydrated will help in losing weight and boost our immune system.
So How Much Should I Drink?
You've heard the classic, "8 glasses of water a day." If a glass is one cup, and a cup is 16 8 oz. then you end up drinking about 128 64 oz. of water a day. As a general rule, a physically active person should drink about ½ to 1 ounce of water per pound of body weight per day. I'm 175lbs (depending on the day) and pretty active so I would need at least 87 oz of water, which is only about 2.5 more glasses of water.
But I have to Pee!
When I started to drink more water, it seemed like I had to pee all the time. One of the reasons for this, I was drinking large amounts of water all at once. Drinking water follows the same concept of eating food... you don't eat all your food at one time, the best way is to break it up into smaller meals through out the day. If you drink 2 glasses of water at breakfast, sip on 2 glasses of water during your morning at work, a glass of water at lunch, 2 glasses of water during the afternoon, 2 glasses of water at dinner and a glass in the evening. You will still need to relieve yourself throughout the day (um, there's no stopping that) but you won't feel like you live in the bathroom.
Writing all this about water has made me thirsty, looks like it is time to fill up my eco friendly trx bottle. Drink up and enjoy!
UPDATE: My original math was off as I had miss calculated a cup to be 16 oz. and I've adjusted it to the correct cup size which is 8 oz. Thanks to those who have a keen eye and let me know.