Lose Weight with Water

Are you a lover of Starbucks Coffee, Classic Coke and red wine? If so, the road to weight loss may seem like torture (based on liquids alone) because you know that most all weight loss regimens advocate drinking water, as opposed to more preferred and addictive beverages. So, if the plan is to lose weight, maybe a strong case for drinking more water will help.

Here are at 5 critical ways water can not only serve as a replacement for something worse, but how it helps en route to weight loss. For with education comes change...

1. Drinking water reduces water retention.
Is that even right? It doesn't make sense at first, but it's true and here's why: when your body is given less water than it needs, it retains water. This retained water is stored outside of cells in "extra cellular" place. It can show up in swollen feet, hands and legs (even the torso.) Retained water is no good because on a scale in the bathroom, it shows up as extra pounds.

The good news is that when you drink a lot of water (or an increase from what you are used to) your body kicks into gear right away (translation: trips to the bathroom.) Do not worry that you are counteracting your efforts, though. What your body is doing is ridding itself of retained water first in response to getting clean water. Also, as water is forced through the system, it flushes out excess sodium (salt) - known to increase water retention. So, get rid of it. Drink water. When you drink, your body assumes the water is going to keep coming and it keeps flushing...so keep it coming!

2. Dehydration slows the fat burning process.
In an effort to lose weight, the very last thing we want to do is slow the process! If your body is going to burn a calorie efficiently (quicker), it needs water. Burning calories creates toxins (like a car burning gas emits exhaust.) So, here you are exercising and eating less...burning calories! That is good, but burning all those calories creates toxins which can make your weight loss efforts counter productive without water. Luckily, water flushes toxins right out of the system and helps your body function more effectively. In fact, being even 1 percent dehydrated can cause a significant drop in metabolism, according to the American Dietetic Association. Speaking of metabolism...

3. Kidneys burden Liver: Fat is stored, not metabolized.
Every heard that children's song that goes, "Your knee bone's connected to your thigh bone. Your thigh bones connected to your hip bone...?" It doesn't just apply to bones. Your kidney is connected to your liver. When the kidney (which needs WATER to operate properly) is deprived of water, it shifts duties to the liver. The liver has a lot to do, but one of its main duties is to convert stored fat to energy (aka: metabolizes fat.) Now, your liver has too much to do, because you didn't drink enough water and it can't do everything, so you are storing fat instead of burning it. This fat would normally be burned if you were drinking water.

4. Your colon needs you.
It may be a "no brainer" that your bowels need to move to really shed the pounds. What you may not know is that water is critical to regular bowel function (which is good...keep those bowels moving, lose weight!) Here is what happens...

When your body doesn't get enough water it siphons water from its primary internal water source, your colon. The result of your colon not working well is constipation. Protect your colon, drink water and keep all systems flushing and flowing.

5. You're thirsty, not hungry.
Perhaps you have heard that sometimes the body cannot differentiate hunger from thirst, which is why many resources on weight loss suggest drinking water before meals. Perhaps less known is that, according to CNN Heath, studies prove "those who drink water 20 to 30 minutes before every meal lost weight more quickly initially and lost significantly more weight than those who didn't." In addition, the American Dietetic Association found that people who drank water before a meal ate an average of 75 fewer calories at that meal. Over time, that is significant and effortless weight loss. These studies offer credence to the fact that you may eat less, or were not as hungry if you cured the thirst first!

Drink up!

References:

http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/expert.q.a/04/10/water.losing.weight.jampolis/index.html
http://www.healthymenumailer.com/articles/water-important.html
http://www.caloriesperhour.com/tutorial_water.php
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Does_drinking_water_really_help_you_lose_weight
http://www.shapeupshop.com/weightloss/water-weight-loss.html
http://www.colonhealth.net/free_reports/h2oartcl.htm