Sunday, November 24, 2013

What are you missing?

     Often, when it comes to workouts and performance, people flock to the supplements and protein powders as the best way to increase their performance.  If they look to nutrition the main focus is what types of food to eat and when.  One of the most overlooked and undervalued things you should be considering is much simpler than any of the above.

I'm talking about Water!

     The planet that we live on is made up of 70% water.  The human body is about 70% water.  This being said, water should be a big focus for anyone who is trying to change their body composition.

     Your body is a machine.  In order to work properly your body needs to be sufficiently hydrated.  Every day as you live you are losing water very quickly.  You lose water through breathing, perspiration, and elimination.  That water needs to be replaced.


                       Interesting Experiment:  To see how much water you lose through perspiration tie a plastic bag around your 
                                                               hand (don't go too tight here, we are not trying to cut off your hand, lol!)  Leave it on
                                                               there and in a matter of minutes you'll see the moisture begin to bead up on the bag. 
                                                               This is just a really interesting thing to try! 


     When your body loses water, it cannot perform bodily functions correctly.  This includes the regeneration of muscle fiber.  Adequate water will allow the proper elimination of toxins and promote healing, you MUST be completely hydrated.

     Years ago a theory was developed that when you feel thirsty, you need water.  The truth is that by the time you feel thirsty you are already dehydrated.  If you rely on the thirst feeling you will alway be in need of water.  Believe it or not, as we age, our body gets worse at telling us we need water!

     In order to keep adequately hydrated you must force yourself to regularly drink water.  The easiest way is to make sure you always have a bottle on you that can be refilled.  In particular I like the Brita Bottle with a filter.  This way you can fill it when you need to and always have good water.

     Drinking water can go a long way, but another way to make sure you are hydrated is to incorporate foods that are mostly water into your diet.  In particular, fruits and vegetables.   These things are a great source of natural waters that will help to keep you properly hydrated.  The easiest thing you can do is add a salad to your lunches and dinners.

     If you want more information on how important water is check out F. Batmanghelidj's book Water: For Health, for Healing, for Life: You're not sick, you're thirsty!  It is an interesting book that really highlights the benefits of keeping yourself hydrated.  I think some of the ideas are a stretch, but the value of the overall information is worth it. 

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