The AMAZING facts and multiple benefits of drinking water
Water, is good for you, but do you know what exactly is it doing for your body and what sort of water you should be drinking?
As you can imagine working with 14,000 people in over 50 parks around Australia, we see a lot of water drinking and we get asked all the time “how much water should I drink each day?” “Will it help me feel better, healthier, happier?” and “what type of water should I be drinking?” It seems to be a constant debate, as it is discussed and written about a lot.
Of course we have our researched point of view that is based on clinical studies, industry fact and the knowledge imparted by our nutritionist, but we also have what we like to refer to as the “the guys on the ground”, in other words our trainers, people who practice and teach healthy habits everyday. What do they do and what do they think are the benefits of drinking water?
Let’s start with the facts, your body is about 60% water, give or take and through out the day we constantly lose water from our bodies, primarily via urine and sweat.
Image Courtesy Southern Nevada Health District
There are many different opinions on how much water we should be drinking every day but the health authorities across the globe commonly recommend around eight 8-ounce glasses, which equals about 2 litres. This is where the 8 glasses a day comes from eg 8 x 8 (8 ounces are about 240 mls). This is a good ideal to aim for but don’t worry if you don’t make the two-litre mark, the most important thing to remember is to drink regularly and constantly throughout the day. This keeps you hydrated and stops you mistaking hunger for thirst, which is one of the biggest mistakes people make. Now before we go into the benefits of drinking water we thought we should also address the question, can you drink too much water? Well, if you are hitting the 4 litre a day mark that is a little excessive and you are probably spending a lot of time in the bathroom!
So what are the benefits of drinking water, according to us?
Water is the elixir of life. It can give your day a massive boost! Here are 10 reasons why we believe water is so wonderful.
1. It will Increase Your Energy and Reduce that Tired Feeling
Since your brain is mostly water, drinking it helps you think, focus and concentrate better and be more alert. As an added bonus, your energy levels are also boosted! Dehydration is a major reason we feel an afternoon slump and a craving for food!!
2. It can Help You Lose Weight
Water removes by-products of fat, reduces eating intake (by filling up your tummy if consumed prior to meals), reduces hunger (hello natural appetite suppressant!), raises your metabolism and has zero calories!
3. It will Flush out the Toxins
Gets rid of waste through sweat and urination which reduces the risk of kidney stones and UTI’s (urinary tract infections).
4. Improves Your Skin Complexion
Moisturizes your skin, keeps it fresh, soft, glowing and smooth. Gets rid of wrinkles. It’s the best anti-aging treatment around!
5. Maintains Regularity
Aids in digestion as water is essential to digest your food and prevents constipation.
6. Boosts Your Immune System
A water guzzler is less likely to get sick. And who wouldn’t rather feel healthy the majority of the time? Drinking plenty of water helps fight against flu, cancer and other ailments like heart attacks.
7. It is a Natural Headache Remedy
Helps relieve and prevent headaches (migraines & back pains too!) which are commonly caused by dehydration.
8. Prevents Cramps and Sprains
Proper hydration helps keep joints lubricated and muscles more elastic so joint pain is less likely.
9. Puts You in a Good Mood
When the body is functioning at its best, you will feel great and be happy!
10. It can Save You Money!
Now this is where some people may argue that drinking water is expensive! Well it can be if you choose to drink bottled water. A 600ml bottle is about $2.30, so that’s around $7.70 if you drink 2 litres a day. It’s also really expensive to get rid of all that plastic, remember plastic bottles DO NOT biodegrade easily. In fact, they take 1000 years to break down. We don’t even know how many plastic bottles we generate each year in Australia, millions probably, so lets not add to them.
Really encouragingly the tap water in Australia is deemed to be some of the best drinking water in the world because it is constantly filtered and tested to meet high standards. Sydney Water for example monitors the water flowing through the taps 24/7 and undertakes 70 different tests to ensure it keeps its world class quality.
Drinking tap water is also good for your wallet. That $2.30 spent on a 600ml bottle could buy nearly 1000 litres of tap water.
Create a water routine
Buy a good re-fillable drink bottle.
Keep it with you all day.
Set drink times, before breakfast, mid morning, before lunch, whilst exercising at your local Live Life Get Active Camp!! After lunch, mid afternoon, when you get home. Restrict the amount you drink in the evening or you could be up all night!!
At first this may seem strange or even arduous, but after a while you wont even think about it. What you will notice however, is a more vibrant energized and positive you!
As for those soft drinks…
Don’t drink them. They have up to 16 teaspoons of sugar in a standard 600ml bottle/can. That includes fruit juice. Remember a brisk 400m walk only burns up the calories in one teaspoon of sugar.
Stay away from flavoured water too. Check the bottle but these also tend to contain very high levels of sugar.
And think of this… those who regularly consume 2 cans of soft drink a day have a 26% greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes. This is not good.
How great is it to learn that plain water is the best and therefore we recommend you drink it regularly. If its from the tap even better for you as you save money too! Mantra for the day?
Drink water, drink tap water, save money and feel amazing!
Or course our camps will also ensure you feel amazing so If you want to circulate all that water and work on getting rid of the toxins and stimulating the positivity in you, come and join us in a park close to you. It’s FREE – all you have to do is register and you can book in for as many sessions as you like.
Live Life Get Active camps are fun, engaging, beneficial and life changing.
