We all know that hydration is important whether you are active or not. Water is critical in a multitude of bodily systems. I like to say that if you think you are drinking enough water you should drink a little bit more! Here is a short list of important roles that water plays in the body and why you should make sure you hit your water drinking goals!
Critical in Body Functions: Water is vital for correct organ function, digestive processes, and transportation of nutrients in the body. Water helps carry waste away from cells, protects and cushions vital organs, lubricates joints, regulates body temperature, and much more.
Promotes Weight Loss: Water can help you feel satiated and full longer so you don’t feel like snacking as often, thus cutting down on your total caloric intake.
Mood Improver: There are multiple ways that dehydration can negatively impact our bodies. One of the most common ones are headaches. Nobody is in the best mood when they are dealing with an annoying headache! By keeping ourselves properly hydrated we can help prevent those pesky headaches and improve our moods!
Aids in Post Exercise Recovery: The first and most obvious role that water plays in recovery is replacing lost fluids from exercise. It is also important in the synthesis of nutrients following exercise. As we know, water is important in aiding digestion so by hydrating after our workout we can ensure we have the resources required to replenish important nutrients post exercise such as protein.
How much water should you be drinking?
This question may not be quite as simple as you may think, there are a few factors that can alter the amount of water you should be consuming daily. These factors include whether you are male or female, if you are physically active, your dietary habits, and the environment that you live in. We have all heard that everybody should drink at least 8 glasses of water a day but is that true for everybody? Not necessarily! Everybody is different, some may need more some may need less! For many getting 8 glasses of water a day is a great goal to start with! If you are curious about how much water you should be getting daily there are a few good water intake calculators for you to use online!
Here is one water intake calculator to if you are interested! https://goodcalculators.com/water-intake-calculator/