The best way to beat bloat is give your body all the water it needs. People who retain water do this because they are not getting enough!! Although some are hard to convince that this is true. The human body is so simple and it functions in a "primal survival mode" and responds accordingly to anything it perceives as a possible threat to its survival. The main goal of the body is to stay alive. By depriving your body of the amount of water it need each day you are threatening its survival. So in response it is going to hand on to all the water it can for any future need. This water is often stored in extra-cellular spaces and appears to us as bloated hands, legs and feet. Another reason for bloat is too much sodium. The human body can only handle so much and then it will start looking for water to dilute this, causing you to retain water. So by drinking plenty of water and cutting back on sodium, you will find yourself less bloated so DRINK UP.
Water and Metabolism
This falls right in line with weight loss, without a good metabolism it is extremely difficult to loose weight. Water, also known as the body's solvent, regulates all bodily functions including circulating and dissolving. Every enzymatic and chemical reaction of the body occurs in the presence of water. It transports hormones, nutrients, oxygen and antibodies in the blood stream and lymphatic system. In addition our bodies' proteins and enzymes are more efficient in solutions of lower viscosity, meaning we need to dilute them and drink more water so DRINK UP.
Water and Digestion
Digesting solid foods has to happen with large amounts of water, so our bodies can properly digest our food. Without water not all of our food digests as it should and we end up with constipation problems so DRINK UP.
Water and muscle tone
Of course everyone wants that rock hard Jillian (from biggest looser) body, well drinking your water each day is a start. To get that desired muscle tone you obviously need a good exercise program in addition to proper water intake. Water will help the muscle achieve a better contraction, help prevent sagging skin that follows weight loss, and it will help to maintain clear, youthful skin so DRINK UP.
Water and Muscles
Be sure you are hydrating while you exercise! Muscles are mainly composed of water. So it only makes sense to drink a lot of water if you want to have more muscle mass. In addition to this water removes wastes from the muscle cells, and tranports nutrient to the muscle cells, this decreases your recovery time so DRINK UP.
Water and Constipation
Since I have been doing my water habit through the last week I have to share with you that I have noticed my bowel habits are much more regular. (no need to be embarrassed by talking about poop, everyone does it, and more people than care to admit have problems with their digestive system.) When the body doesn't get enough water it will rob from the colon. When this happens you can bet that constipation is not far behind. Normal function will commonly return upon proper hydration so DRINK UP.
Water and Body Temperature
Water helps us regulate and maintain body temperature through perspiration. Without water this balance is disrupted so DRINK UP.
Water and Asthma
Histamine is a major factor in regulating the way we use and distribute water. It also helps control the body's defense mechanism. Asthmatics' histamine levels increase with dehydration, mobilizing their body's defense mechanism to close down their airways. Knowing this, we can draw the conclusion that asthma could be relieved through increased water intake so DRINK UP.
Water and the Kidneys
Our kidneys scream at us for water. The purpose of kidneys is to remove waste such as uric acid, urea and lactic acid. All of these are dissolved in water, when we deprive our kidneys of water these wastes are not removed effectively and damage may result so DRINK UP!!
Water and Joints
Cartilage between the vertebrae of the spin and at the end of long bones retain a lot of water. Cartliage must have water for the purpose of lubicating the body's joints during movement. When well hydrated, the cartilage and opposing surfaces glide nicely, minimizing the damage that can be caused to the joint by friction. This friction leads to joint deterioration and pain so DRINK UP.
Water and Back Pain
Who doesn't have back pain, well if you don't you are lucky. Minimizing this pain ban be as quick and easy as staying hydrated. The water that is stored in your spinal disc core supportes about 75% of the upper body's weight. Your spine is very dependent on the hydraulic properties of water so DRINK UP!!
Water and the Brain
What water can help my brain? Yes your brain tissue is 85% water. The brain is 1/50th of the body's total weight and uses approximately 1/20th of the body's blood supply. Dehydration causes energy generation in the brain to decrease, there are actual studies that link depression and chronic fatigue syndrome with dehydration so DRINK UP.
Don't obey your thirst!
By the time you are actually thirsty you are already dehydrated. The bodies thirst refles is the last signal of dehydration. Don't wait til your thirsty to drink, do it now!!! The question often comes how much water should I drink, well again there are several recomendations out there. They say a non-active (those of you with a desk job) needs 1/2 oz per pound of body weight per day!!! Or 8-10 8 oz glasses per day. DRINK UP!!
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