Lots have been written about the benefits of drinking water, but to the question “does drinking water help you lose weight”, the answer is it certainly does. Of all the foods and magic weight loss pills that we are told we need to buy, the cheapest and most plentiful on the market is the one thing we can least afford to be without water. Adding a balanced diet and some exercises you need for not only weight reduction, but looking and feeling like a healthier person.
How Does Drinking Water Help You Lose Weight?
How does all of this happen? Studies have shown that if a person were to increase their water consumption by about six cups a day, in a year’s time that would equate to about 17,400 calories or a weight loss of approximately five pounds. Certainly not massive, but it all helps. It is estimated that up to 40% in calories burned is because of the body attempting to heat the ingested water.
Further studies have shown that drinking water before meals is a big help in cutting calories. It was found in a test that adults who consumed two cups of water before meals lost on average about 4.5 pounds more in twelve weeks than the group that did not.
The study participants only drank about 1.5 cups of water per day prior to the study. According to this test, it was found that people who drink water just before eating a meal consumed between 75 and 90 fewer calories during that meal. These studies are not to be construed as water in itself making people shed pounds, but the effect that a no-calorie filler has on the system.
Water Help You Lose Weight, and Other Advantages: Helping the Liver
There are also subtle things going on when more water is added to the diet. Helping the liver perform one of its main functions, that is the removal of toxins in the system, will allow the liver to do the job we want it to do, which is to metabolize fat and remove it from the system.
Epsom salt for weight loss: Benefits, DIY’s, and side effects
If the liver becomes overburdened, it sends fat into storage, and you get to look at it every day when you gaze in the mirror. The function of the liver is one of my favorite subjects, as in my opinion not enough emphasis has been put on its role in weight reduction and overall health.
So now that we have found that we need more water, what is that magic number of glasses or cups that we should be consuming each day?
Unfortunately, that is a very individual thing, so the “eight glasses a day” thing really doesn’t fly for everyone.
Different body metabolism, activity levels, climates, and individual body sizes are just a few variables in what we should consume daily.
And too many people use thirst as their guide to their water consumption. Typically by the time a person is thirsty, dehydration may have already set in.
By knowing that you have a need for more water than you are presently drinking, then you should set about how you will go about fulfilling those needs.
For instance, probably everyone experiences the need for more water when exercising, so you may kill two birds with one stone by increasing your exercise regimen.
Something that works quite well for me is always drinking a small amount of water with every meal (and as much as I can before). For me, if I eat slower but consciously consume more water while eating I drink much more than I ordinarily would.