Water is something we don’t really give much thought. There’s a perceived abundance of it on Earth; that makes it easy to take for granted. We only really worry about it if there’s a water crisis or our pipelines are broken.
Regardless of how easy it is to overlook the importance of water, we can’t deny that it’s a key component in sustaining our lives. 60% of our body weight is attributable to water, 70% of our brain is made up of water, and, although there are differing opinions, 3 to 5 days without water can actually kill us. Water is very important for our survival. However, in addition being a requirement for to basic survival, water is also important if you're trying to lose weight.
We all know the technique of drinking water before a meal in order to lose weight. If this is the first time you’ve heard of it then welcome to the club. Drinking water before your meal can help to reduce your appetite. It's important to choose pure water, filtered if necessary, to remove toxic chemicals and environmental contaminants. Adding water helps to increase satiety, which makes you feel full sooner and with less food intake. Studies have shown that there’s a significant effect, although not drastic, of utilizing this practice for losing weight. However, don’t rely on this and interpret it to imply that “drinking water burns fat.” Water as part of the meal is there to contribute, not to be the weight loss solution.
On the flip side, it's also important to not overdo it. Drinking too much water can lead to water intoxication and changes to your body chemistry in a way that can prove to be unhealthy or worse, fatal. There is, however, a way to use gallons and gallons of water for losing weight and healthy living.
While drinking excessive amounts of water can be negative for health, gallons and gallons of water outside of your body can help you get fit, lose weight, and be healthy. I’m talking about swimming of course.
Scientifically speaking, swimming is one of the best forms of cardiovascular exercise. Better than jogging or cycling, swimming is a low impact cardio that doesn’t take its toll on your joints. You can get your lungs working and heart pumping to help you burn off those excess calories. One example found on the internet is the inspirational story of Matthew who lost more than 100 pounds via eating right and swimming.
Swimming also provides a work out for the whole body as opposed to jogging and cycling which affect mostly the lower body. When you swim you are exercising your core and back muscles as well as strengthening your legs and arms. It's a total body workout aided by the buoyancy factor of the water.
As you can see, you not only need water to survive; you should use water if you are going for a healthy lifestyle and trying to lose weight. Now if there’s was only an accessible swimming pool in every neighborhood…
Kurt Lao is the Editor of weight loss product reviews resource: WeightRater.com. He has several product reviews to his credit and serves as a contributor to some of the top health and weight loss blogs online.
photo: rebecca