I had always been told that one of the best ways to stay healthy and maintain a healthy weight was to drink plenty of water. So I was curious what the research said on how much water was good for you, and why it promotes a healthy weight.
A 2010 study done by Brenda Davy, PhD where she took 48 adults all on a low calorie diet and divided them into two groups one drank two glasses of water before a meal and one didn't. The participants who drank 2 glasses of water prior to their meal lost an average of 15.5 pounds over 12 weeks compared to
the other group who only lost 11 pounds. The amazing thing is that a year later the participants who drank the two glasses not only kept the weight off but also lost more weight.
My second question was how much water is the correct amount? From what I can tell the standard answer to that question is between 64 and 72 ounces for women and 72 and 104 ounces for men. That's 8 to 9 glasses of water for women and 9-13 glasses of water for men.
Now that is a lot of water! So how can I manage to drink that much and how
do I keep track of it? Sounds like a silly question right? I don't know about you but I'm really picky about my water. It has to be a specific temperature and taste good straight from the tap just doesn't work for me.
Way back when I use to buy those plastic water bottles and keep them all in the fridge and bring them to work every day. I know terrible for the environment and terrible for me right.
My solution was to buy a group of 5 aluminum water bottles and fill them up each night with filtered water from home put them in the fridge so they are cold for the morning and then stick them in a cooling lunch sack for work.
I know sounds like a hassle but it really doesn't take all that much time
and it insures that I drink my water goal for the day.
When I drink the right amount of water, eat well, and get plenty of exercise
(at Mercer Island Martial Arts of course :)! I feel great!
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