Water, Water Everywhere

This article is from Living Super Human

Water is often the most overlooked part of the Paleo Diet. It’s actually the most overlooked part of any diet. The prescription to DRINK MORE WATER can be found in pretty much every diet out there.  

Water and oxygen are vital to our health.  Our life on earth revolves around these simple elements.  I’m as guilty as the next person for letting these things become a small side note of my health.   

By focusing on drinking more water and taking the time to breathe deeply, I’ve uncovered some really amazing health benefits.  My energy and mood feel amazing, and I feel like my body and mind are balanced and clear.

Too many people think about walking the desert for days without water when they think dehydration.  They don’t realize that many of us go through our whole day dehydrated and lacking our full energy potential.

The Paleo Diet has changed the way I eat, but as importantly, it has changed the way I drink. I’ve allowed water to become the magical health tool it is.

1. It Fuels Your Energy.

• Start everyday with a glass of water. Immediately upon waking up, drink some water to get your system going. Many people rely on energy drinks or coffee in the morning. They don’t realize that a big part of what their body is craving is simply the water from that drink of choice.

2. It Kills Your Cravings

• Most food cravings are actually water cravings is disguise. We think we are hungry but our bodies are truly just thirsty. That’s it. We've become a culture of snacking with a billion different snack choices out there for us. 
• Our bodies often just need a glass of water to do the trick. It is easy to confuse the need for water for a need for snacks, especially when we have made the snack a habit of ours, a poor habit as its most likely a soda or candy that “rewards” you after a hard half-day’s work. 

3. It Hydrates, Unlike Other Drinks

• Has your throat ever felt like the Sahara desert upon waking from a long night of drinking? I know the feeling all too well and will chug bottle after bottle of water in order to recover. This also helps fight hangovers (more below). The reason why our bodies can feel like crap after drinking beer or soda or any other sugar laden drinks, is because these drinks actually work to dehydrate you. You heard that right, a drink made of liquids can actually work towards dehydrating your body.

4. It Cleans Your System

• It amazes me how when people catch a sickness or bug, they completely forget the magical powers of water. They make the poor decision of turning to bread or continuing to eat dairy with expectations of recovering. Next time you are sick and have to stay home from work, make drinking water your job. Drinking water will speed up recovery time and help flush your system of the toxins that are plaguing you. 

5. It Helps You Avoid Injury

• A dehydrated muscle is more prone to injury and inflammation. Our bodies are made up of mostly muscles and our muscles are made up of mostly water. They work best when they are “well-oiled”. Drink as much water as your workout allows. You can drink a lot more water in a low heart rate, heavy lifting session as opposed to an interval jogging/sprinting.  I promise you can lift more if you are drinking more water, it goes beyond a placebo effect.  

6. It Assists Food Breakdown Instead of Hindering It

• The coach in me wants to tell you to drink water with every single meal, regardless of where you eat it. There is no healthier drink choice during a meal than a glass of water. Period.

7. It Can Help You Take Down Stomachaches and Headaches

• We often confuse causation and correlation. Dehydration is not the cause of all headaches or stomachaches. They often happen together, but we fail to even realize the strong relationship between them.

8. It Gives You OOH-AAH Skin!

• Want the skin you see on celebrities you see on magazine covers (minus the massive airbrushing)? It starts with keeping your skin properly hydrated. There are many commercial products out there claiming to nourish skin and “wash away” wrinkles, but no skin product is more effective than water. Water keeps skin hydrated from the inside out. It also helps you prevent acne and wrinkles. And it costs a whole lot less than those fancy butters and creams.

What’s ENOUGH Water?
The right amount of water you should be drinking in a day ultimately depends on how active you are. The key to getting enough water is drinking it when you are NOT thirsty. Don’t wait until hunger or thirst strikes. Keep a water bottle with you at all times and keep it flowing throughout your body all day long. You will notice a significant increase in energy and you will feel better.