Did you know that you can endure weeks without food, but only days without water? That’s because water makes up 60-75% of your body.
Water contributes to the healthy formation of blood, digestive juices, perspiration, and urine. It is contained in lean muscle, fat, and bones, but your body has no way to store water, so it must be replenished daily.
While it’s easy enough to stay hydrated by drinking water daily, many people don’t drink the amount they need to stay healthy. If you don’t drink enough water, you may experience dehydration and lose less weight because your body isn’t working efficiently.
If you think about hydration when you’re meal planning, you can also take advantage of the ways that water can support weight loss and healthy lifestyle goals.
Our team at NuvidaRx Weight Loss in Tallahassee, Florida, can help you enjoy the benefits of meal planning without the risk of dehydration. Our specialists help you create weekly meal plans that include adequate amounts of fruits and vegetables, along with the appropriate amount of water, to ensure that your body remains hydrated as you change your eating patterns.
Meal planning makes it easy to achieve your weight-loss goals because it ensures that you always have healthy meals when you’re ready to eat. Learn how to include water intake in your meal planning and how this helps you lose weight.
Water assists your body in weight loss by making you feel more full without adding to your caloric intake. Drinking water also prevents your consumption of sugary, high-calorie drinks by quenching your thirst without sugar.
When your body becomes a little dehydrated, it often misinterprets your brain’s signals as hunger. As a result, you may eat in response to your brain’s trigger of hunger, when all you really need is a glass of water.
Drinking water, especially cold water, can boost your metabolism by making it work harder to warm the cold liquid. This process, called thermogenesis, helps you burn more calories.
Drinking water increases your metabolism by up to 25% for almost an hour after you consume it. Drinking a few cups of water hourly can keep your metabolism operating at peak performance throughout the day.
Lipolysis is the natural process by which your body burns fat and converts it into energy. The process starts with hydrolysis, a chemical process in which your body adds water to fat to promote its breakdown.
Water combines with your stomach’s acids to break down the foods you eat. This makes it easier for your body to absorb the nutrients your body needs to operate efficiently and burn fat.
Your body needs water to complete the process of waste removal. Without enough water, you can experience hard stools, constipation, and bloating, which can make you feel heavier and weigh more when measured on a scale.
Many people struggle with getting enough water, whether they’re trying to lose weight or not. If you’re involved in meal planning, you’re already learning how to track what you eat, so you can easily learn to track your water intake.
Guidelines from the Institute of Medicine (IOM) recommend that daily water intake from all sources, including the foods you eat plus the water and other beverages you drink, should total:
These totals are only guidelines. Your daily need for water can vary depending on a wide range of factors. Changes in location, weather, and activity level can increase perspiration and your need for more water to replace the liquids lost.
As you plan your daily food intake, incorporate these strategies to remain hydrated as you lose weight:
Find out more about incorporating hydration into your meal planning to promote weight loss and improve fitness. Request an appointment online or call our office today at 850-765-2549.
