Yes, Drinking Water Helps To Lose Weight Among Other Things.
If you’ve ever tried to lose weight, you’ve probably heard a lot about water and weight loss. But does water really help weight loss? Well, the short answer is yes! Water does more for the body than just quench your thirst – it might even help you drop some kilograms.
If there is one ‘holy grail’ secret to keeping your body healthy, it’s drinking plenty of water. Drinking water helps boost your metabolism, cleanse your body of waste, and acts as an appetite suppressant. We’re looking into 5 reasons why drinking more water may help you lose weight.
- Water makes you feel more full
Drinking water before each meal might help you eat less food and could be an effective method to help you lose weight. When you realise you’re hungry, your first impulse may be to find food. But eating may not be the answer because mild dehydration is often mistaken for hunger by the brain – water sends messages to your brain, signalling fullness, and only 2 cups of water are needed for this.
- Water speeds up your metabolism
Some research suggests that drinking cold water helps boost your metabolism because your body works a little harder when warming it up, which helps you burn more calories. Increasing your water intake increases the breakdown of fats and other lipids by hydrolysis to release fatty acids. The effect may be slight, but it can snowball to create a greater impact over time.
- Water removes body waste
Water is essential to your body’s waste removal process. If your body isn’t getting enough water, you are more likely to get constipated and won’t pass waste as frequently as you should. When waste stores in your body, you’ll feel bloated and heavier and might even weigh more on a scale. Adequate hydration also promotes kidney function, flushes harmful bacteria from the urinary tract, and prevents kidney stones, which can occur with more concentrated urine.
- Water improves motivation and reduces stress
When you’re dehydrated, you may experience symptoms such as fatigue, dizziness, and confusion, and who makes healthy decisions under those conditions? No one. Dehydration increases your body’s production of cortisol, the stress hormone. So to make conscious decisions linked to your weight, drink plenty of water, exercise, cook at home and make better food choices!
- Water helps during exercise
Water is essential to the body during exercise because it dissolves electrolytes (minerals that include sodium, potassium, and magnesium) and distributes them throughout the body, where their electrical energy triggers muscle contractions required for movement. An electrolyte imbalance can lead to cramping, but that’s not the only side effect of drinking too little.
What’s more, the body loses fluids more quickly during exercise because it generates heat that’s shunted to the skin’s surface, where perspiration and subsequent evaporation (a cooling process) help with temperature regulation.
If your body can’t dump excess heat via sweating, you’re setting yourself up for heat exhaustion or worse. That’s why it’s so important to hydrate before and throughout your workout, not just when you start to feel thirsty.
How much water should you drink to lose weight?
You’ve probably heard the familiar ‘eight 8 glasses per day’ rule. However, the reality is, the amount of water needed varies greatly depending on age, gender, health, physical activity, the tendency to sweat, and more. The majority of healthy people adequately meet their daily hydration needs by letting thirst be their guide.
One way to determine whether you’re drinking enough water is to peek in the pot. It’s best to go by the colour of your urine – if it’s dark yellow, you aren’t drinking enough. Aim for light yellow.
All of the above helps facilitate weight loss and encourage other positive health outcomes, but drinking more water should be only one small part of your wellness journey. It’s essential to embrace a more comprehensive and sustainable approach through calorie restriction and exercise. View Trojan’s home exercise equipment here to change your wellness journey today!
Disclaimer:
This blog provides general information and discussions about fitness and health subjects. The information and other content provided in this blog, or any linked materials, are not intended and should not be construed as medical advice, nor is the information a substitute for professional medical expertise or treatment.
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