Hitch Fit Living Magazine Volume 4 - January/February 2016 | Page 70

Water, H20, dihydrogen monoxide… what ever you want to call it, is an important part of your daily life! Not only for consumption, cleanliness and fun in the rain, it is also an integral part of your internal health as well. *Water in your blood and other bodily fluids works to: 1) Transport nutrients, messages from hormones and move along waste. 2) Dissolves to work as a solvent. 3) Cleans by flushing through and filtering organs to remove toxins from our bodies. 4) Reacts with most of the body’s chemical reactions. 5) Pads as a shock absorber for your joints. 6) Lubricates and moisten our body. 7) Regulate your temperature through sweat. But why do you always hear that you need to drink more water? And now does it impact weight loss? Well, when you drink at least 16oz of water before each major meal of the day, it will help you feel fuller, so you will eat less. It is also ZERO calories, so when it replaces other drinks such as juice, soda pop, and anything else with calories, you will also create a caloric deficit just by making the substitution. There are also some reports that water may even increase metabolism as your body has to expend more calories to bring your body back into balance! From personal experience, just a few things I notice when I drink at least a gallon (128 oz) a day. 1) Drinking more water also requires additional trips to the restroom each day, which equals more activity and more steps through out the day! Then making a trip to the kitchen sink or water cooler to fill up again also requires more steps! 2) It helps me stay on my eating schedule and keeps away any feelings of being “hangry” (angry because of being hungry)! 3) During pregnancy, drink drink drink water! For me, I swear it helped keep stretch marks away because I was staying hydrated from the inside out. It is difficult when the baby is sitting on your bladder and you feel like you have to go all of the time, but it is worth it to keep drinking! 4) It helps my skin feel fuller and appear young by keeping fine lines away. So, drink your water! Your body will love you for it from the i nside out! *Article citation credit: http://www.precisionnutrition.com/water-and-weight-loss Sara Sutherland is a Hitch Fit Transformation Trainer at the Overland Park location. Contact her for training at [email protected]