Hydration for Exercise and Weight Loss

How much water should you be drinking to optimize weight loss and gaining muscle?

Drinking lots of water throughout the day and during your workout has SO MANY BENEFITS. Not only does water just keep you hydrated... but there are actual tangible benefits you can see from it. In this blog post I'll outline the benefits of staying hydrated during your workouts, the benefits for weight loss, how much water you should be drinking and some tips to do it. 

Hydration in Strength Training:

Chase the pump

For all the gym goers reading this, you'll be happy to hear that drinking a lot of water before & during your lift will create a CRAZY pump. I've tested it myself and now I will never go to the gym without hydrating. Your muscle tissues are filled with more than 75% water, so when you add hydration into the mix the pumps come faster and are insane. Add to this a pump enhancer or any pre workout with nitric oxide and your veins will be popping. 

 Hydrating will also help you perform better! Drinking  water before & during your workout will help with strength, power, anaerobic & aerobic capacity. I personally recommend buying a gallon of spring water and drinking 1/3 pre lift, 1/3 during your lift, and the rest afterwards; it might sound excessive but the benefits are amazing. 

Benefits of H2O: 

Weight Loss, Clear Skin & More. 

Outside of getting a gnarly pump, when you drink a proper amount of water you are allowing the body the carry more nutrients to your cells. When your body has more nutrients your cells can function better! This leads to benefits like clearer skin, less joint pain, decreased cramping, and faster recovery after workouts! Like YESS! The list of benefits goes on, hydration will also help with digestion, and flushing toxins from our body.

If your goal is to lose weight, staying hydrated also plays a huge part. Studies have shown that drinking 2 cups of water before a meal can help with weight loss as it can keep you from overeating and can increase your metabolism. 

How Much Water Do You Need?

General rule of thumb for everyone

You might be asking yourself if you are drinking enough water; odds are you probably aren't drinking enough. Everyone's needs are different based on size, exercise and climate, but a general rule of thumb is 0.5-1oz of water for each pound you weigh. If you weigh 150 lbs you should be drinking 75-150oz of water, or about 8 regular plastic water bottles everyday. Or if you would rather save the Earth, get a nice 32oz reusable waterbottle that you can fill up.  

Tips for Staying Hydrated

• Fruits like watermelon, oranges, berries, peaches, and cantaloupe are all great options
• Eat vegetables like cucumber, lettuce, broccoli to get extra water content
• Consuming skim milk, soups and broths will also help you stay hydrated

You can't beat H2O for staying hydrated! Get that awesome pump in the gym, see clearer skin and feel healthier!