Water is said to be very important for the health of us human’s. Lately I’ve been drinking much more water than than I ever have, mostly due to my efforts to save money. Now that I’m used to it, I like it, I think it’s helping me feel good.
Why is it good that I continue drinking water?
There are many forms of metabolism going on in your body right now, but the one everyone is talking about it the metabolism of fat. This is actually something that the liver does when it converts stored fat to energy. The liver has other functions, but this is one of its main jobs.
Unfortunately, another of the liver’s duties is to pick up the slack for the kidneys, which need plenty of water to work properly. If the kidneys are water-deprived, the liver has to do their work along with its own, lowering its total productivity. It then can’t metabolize fat as quickly or efficiently as it could when the kidneys were pulling their own weight. If you allow this to happen, not only are you being unfair to your liver, but you’re also setting yourself up to store fat.1
Here’s another way of putting it:
If your body isn’t getting enough water, it does everything it can to hold on to the water it does have. The problem with this, is the way it holds onto the water. You see, over 70% of your muscle is made up of water. It helps to give your muscles that full, pumped look (along with glycogen). However, if your body is not taking in enough water, that water is used for other things, leaving you bloated. And the way to get rid of that excess water, believe it or not, is to take in enough water.2
How much water should I drink each day though? The common medical/nutritional response is ‘8 cups’ (a cup being 8oz). If you were to look at the average water loss by adults, 1.5 liters a day is output via urine, another liter through breathing, sweating, and bowel movements (1 liter is about 4 cups, or 32oz). Food usually accounts for around 4 cups of water intake a day. So, do the math, and you need 6 cups to counteract those lost fluids. The Institute of Medicine recommends men consume 3 liters (about 13 cups) of fluid a day based on national food surveys. Visit almost any bodybuilding website and you’ll see recommendations of a gallon (16 cups) or more.
Since I’ll be exercising almost daily, sometimes twice a day, I’ll sweat more than average, so I should probably lean towards the higher end. I don’t weigh over two hundred pounds, and I’m not looking to be muscle bound, so a gallon might be a bit much. I tried to drink a gallon today just to see how easy/difficult it is, and you really have to keep on top of it to get that much water down (I didn’t, only got 5/8 of it down). I think I’ll compromise a bit, and try 12 cups (96oz). This will probably take a bit of getting used to, I know today I was in the bathroom quite a bit. I even had to use the restroom at the supermarket when I went shopping, even though I went just before I left the house (I hear your body gets used to it and will need fewer trips).
