Why Water, And How To Increase Your Water Intake.

courtesy of rbatina

Life is one challenge after the next, and just when we have achieved on goal, we are met with the next one. Health and fitness being part of life, hopefully, are no different.
In this world of many choices, and many many options, one could live a whole life without knowing the wonderful benefits of drinking water.

Yes. Water. Not diet sodas (that actually make you hungry), not coffee, or tea or fruit juices. Just water.

Here are 10 benefits for drinking water:

1. Have great healthy skin

There is nothing like drinking water to hydrate your skin, keeping it moist from the inside out, and helping it to stay supple and soft.

2. Flush Toxins out of your body 

Without water, the kidneys cannot do their job properly in flushing toxins out of the body. It is like expecting the car to drive with no gas.

3. Reduce risk of heart attack
researches have found in a study involving more than 20,000 healthy people that people who drink more than 5 glasses of water a day were less likely to die of heart attack or heart disease than those who drank less than 2 glasses a day.

4.Cushion and lubricate your joints and muscles

Reduce muscular cramps during exercise by drinking water before during and after a workout, this will also reduce the chance of tiring before you are done with your workout.

5. Water is energizing and keeps you alert.
even minor dehydration can cause impaired concentration, headaches irritability and fatigue.
Water is essential for proper circulation in the body, and the levels of oxygen in the blood stream are greater when the body is better hydrated. The body can burn fat better and utilize it as an energy source more effectively when there is a sufficient amount of oxygen in the blood.
drinking more water every day will help you think with greater clarity, so if your mind is a bit fuzzy and you are a little tired instead of going to get a cup of coffee, have a glass of water first and see how you feel.

6. Water help prevent constipation.
I am sure you can all imagine the mechanics of this.

7. Reduce your risk of disease and infection.
Consistent failure to drink can lead to Chronic Cellular dehydration - a condition in which the cell are never completely hydrated - thus leaving them in a weakened state, venerable to attack from disease.

8.Regulate your body temperature.
Water regulates the body’s cooling system, and is absorbed better than other beverages, without it, your body is lacking its ability to control its temperature properly.

9.Burn more fat and build more muscle.
Dehydration decreases protein synthesis - which is the process that builds muscle. If the protein synthesis is not happening your calorie intake will be stored as fat instead of made into muscle. These are the only two options available.
Also, by increasing your water intake, your body doesn’t confuse thirst for hunger, thus lowering your food intake, to a necessary amount.

10. Get Well
Water is the substance of life. Life can not exist without water. We must constantly be adding fresh water to our body in order to keep it properly hydrated. Water can be a miracle cure for many common ailments such as headaches, fatigue, joint pain, and much more.

If you are having a hard time increasing the amounts of water you drink, Stephanie from Back In Skinny Jeans has 3 excellent ideas to help even the biggest water resisters:

1. Up your intake slowly. if you only drink one glass of water a day now. start with adding only one extra glass until that becomes your habit and work you way up to 8 or 10 glasses a day.
Baby steps.

2. When you eat out, drink the cup of water the waiter pours for you immediately. It will be added to your glasses of water and help you avoid over eating as you already have a glass of water in your stomach.

3. If you don’t drink water because of the taste adding a little lemon juice (just a squeeze) or some mint leaves gives it some taste and makes it easier to swallow.

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