The answer to that question is yes – in fact it is one of the best things that a person on a diet can do to lose weight and lose it faster. It is very important to make drinking a health amount of water the first priority in any diet program.
It is important to drink water during dieting for many reasons – the weight loss in the beginning is possibly lost water and you should replace that water so that you do not become dehydrated.
The process of burning calories requires water in order to work properly – dehydration will only slow down the burning of calories.
This using extra calories will also create waste products and toxins – the water will play another role in flushing these waste products out of your system.
Dehydration can also cause a reduction in blood volume which also causes a reduction in the supply of oxygen to your muscles. This problem can cause you to feel tired – with little or no energy.
Water also helps with muscle tone by helping your muscles in being able to contract. It also lubricates your joints. So, adequate hydration will help reduce muscle and joints aches and pains after exercising. (You will need to exercise also with your diet to lose weight).
Any healthy weight loss diet needs to include a good amount of dietary fiber. While fiber is normally helpful to your digestive system – with inadequate fluid intake, it can also cause constipation which will not help in delimiting waste and toxins.
Drinking water before or with a meal will make you feel full sooner and therefore you will be eating fewer calories. But drinking water alone will not have this effect. A good diet that will not make you feel hungry must contain calories, bulk, nutrient as well as water.
You should train yourself to drink at least eight 8-oz glasses of water every day. How much water you may need to add depends on your weight, level of exercise, as well as the temperature and humidity of the climate you live in as well as your diet.
Your diet makes a difference in fluid intake if you eat plenty of foods that are dense with water such as plenty of fruits and vegetables. You can research and use a measuring cup and go thru all the other ways to measure, but nature is really your best regulator of letting you know the right amount of water to drink. It will tell you by the color of your urine – which should be very pale or palest yellow. But remember vitamins or antibiotics can discolor your urine.
You may be going to the restroom frequently for a few days, especially if your body has become use to not getting enough fluids. After your body realizes that it will be getting the water it needs everyday, it will eliminate the extra water that you have been carrying around in your ankles, hips and other areas. At that point, all the extra trips to the bathroom will level themselves out. Whenever in doubt, drink a little more. The extra water will not make your body bloated.
There are a number of things that you need to avoid in order not to retain water, especially using too much salt. It is possible to harm yourself by drinking too much water, but it takes quite a lot of water to do that. Remember, water should have no side effect as your body is already around 97% water anyway.
But if you are an obsessive-compulsive person or have extended activity such as athletics, drinking large amounts of water can dilute the sodium and potassium in your blood to a point that it could interfere with the function of your brain, heart and muscles. Athletes have this problem with sodium loss through excess sweating but have drinks such as Gatorade Endurance Formula to aid the excessive loss of electrolyte back to a healthy balance.
Some things to remember with drinking water:
1. Drinking other liquids also provides your body with a source of water, but note that diuretics cause your body to expel water. Diuretics include caffeinated soda drink, as well as coffee and tea as well as alcohol. When drinking any of these drinks, drink more water to compensate.
2. When you are feeling thirsty, you are already dehydrated. Avoid this situation by drinking water in advance. So this means being especially careful when taking part in activities where you won’t be able to stop to get caught up.
These are just a few reminders and tips for water to assist in weight loss. And I am living proof that it does work.