Drinking Water And Weight Loss

With over 50% of Americans trying to lose weight, one option to help us lose those unwanted pounds is by drinking water. There are claims that drinking a lot of water will help with weight loss, so let us take a look at this theory and see if there is any truth to it.

We are all aware that in order to lose weight we are to burn more calories than we consume, simple isn’t it, but what weight loss benefits do we get from drinking water?

The Benefits

• Water reduces hunger if you drink a glass before each meal.
• Water will give us more energy which boosts are metabolic rate
• Water makes your metabolism burn calories faster

Other Benefits of Drinking Water

• Younger looking skin
• Flushes toxins and impurities
• Cleanses your liver
• Enhances brain function which keeps you alert

Ultimately if you are trying to lose weight you should completely remove carbonated soft drinks from your diet, there is nothing but artificial ingredients as well as empty calories and sugar. If you were to eliminate drinking carbonated soft drinks imagine the calories you would save.

There are those who drink diet sodas thinking that is better for them, they get to save calories therefore they can have their cake and eat it too (no pun intended). You need to know that when you drink diet soda which has artificial sweeteners; you signal to your body that it’s getting calories for energy and sugar, since there are zero calories and only artificial sweeteners in diet soda you confuse your brain which will now crave more sugar until the craving is satisfied.

There is no right or wrong answer; there are many factors that contribute to this; age, sex, activity level, health, if you’re pregnant or breast feeding and where you live.; a 65 year old woman might need more water than a 35 year old woman or a 50 year old man. Here is a trick that might help you; if you take your body weight and divide the number in half that gives you an approximation of how many ounces of water you need to drink per day.

If you are including exercise in your weight loss efforts, I suggest you drink more water to make up for the loss of water that happens during exercise. You should drink some water before, during and after your routine, so you can keep your energy at a high level.

There are some people who simply do not enjoy the taste of water. They are probably those who have only tried unfiltered tap water which can taste different depending on where you live. For those who don’t enjoy the taste try buying spring water, the taste of spring water can differ depending on the brand but I’m sure if you keep trying different ones you will find a brand that you like.

With all these great benefits that water has to offer, you would think that you can basically drink as much as you like without any risk.  However, what you may not know is that you can drink too much water and it can be dangerous.  In 2007, after entering a radio station’s on-air water drinking contest called "Hold Your Wee for a Wii" a California woman vomited, went home with a terrible headache and later died from water intoxication (hyper–hydration) this is a result when the normal balance of electrolytes in our body is pushed beyond the safe limits by drinking too much water.

I think the all the benefits linking drinking water and weight loss are too high to ignore.  Water is a wonderful and natural source that we all need to live a healthy life. Incorporating the right amount of water into your day will have you reaping many benefits and also help you shed those extra pounds.