I’ve written a previous blog on water intake and my recommendations via Paul Chek’s book How To Eat, Move, and Be Healthy. I’m here today to dispute those recommendations based off of some new perspectives…
“Drink half of your body weight in ounces each day”
Holy crap that’s a lot of water! I’ve done it… 100 ounces? Sure, fill me up! Hell, there was a period where I was drinking a gallon of water a day. I peed every two hours, but at least I had clear pee and I was hydrated! Actually, I was overhydrated and, essentially, dehydrated. Make sense? Abs-probably not…
For those of you who’ve had experiences with “adult beverages” in excess – what color is your pee? CLEAR. Alcohol is a diuretic, meaning it dehydrates the body! And the clear pee is actually a sign of dehydration. Wild, huh?
Our cells only have so much room for water. Once they fill up they’re done, nothing else can come in until they have more room. When we continue to drink more water because of the Clear Pee Perspective, the CPP (I just made that up and am mentally copywriting it), there’s no where for it to go, so it just goes right through the body. There’s another piece to this puzzle, though… excess liquids can actually strip the cells of essential nutrients (minerals, to be specific). So not only does excess water intake waste your time, but it also wastes your nutrients. This can lead to many cause and effects including constipation, dry skin, cramps, spasms, vitamin/mineral deficiencies, etc.
You want me to add what to my water?
Water is essential to doo doo-ing and cleansing the body, but so are the trace minerals that should come naturally with water – sodium, potassium, magnesium, iodine, choline, iron, yadda, yadda, yadda. Ideally, water is collected in the clouds, falls to the ground, is “filtered” by the earth’s crust and picks up these essential trace minerals along the way before it deposits in a spring. Today, water is stripped, processed, packaged, and filled with chemicals that hinder our health. This can be avoided by filtering water (Reverse Osmosis being the best method), but I recommend that you add back the natural minerals to the water (and your food) with Morton’s Canning & Pickling Salt. I would not recommend drinking water without its essential trace minerals – either add them or purchase brands like Evian, Fiji, or a good-sourced Sparkling Water.
You can hydrate yourself through food, too!
All natural, “whole foods” contain some amount of water. Fruits and veggies yield the highest water content, and the major bonus is their natural trace minerals that come along for the ride! It’s easy to tell which fruits are more hydrating than others: melons, citrus, and seed fruits. As for veggies, I would recommend a potato-a-dayto. And we can’t forget animal sources such as unprocessed dairy, eggs, and meat!
Ok, so we know that too much water and alcohol can dehydrate the body, but what else can do that?
To name a few: Coffee, Tea, Energy Drinks, Processed foods such as white bread, white salt, and white sugar, and Highly Pasteurized drinks such as Juice and Milk.
Soooooo, how much water should I drink?
I don’t know. Really. The answer lies within your daily needs, your daily habits, and your perspective. I have been hydrating myself with about 1-2 liters of liquid a day, depending on my needs. I would recommend to listen to your body (not your ego) – it always has the answers.
The idea is to keep this all in perspective with your daily living habits. Take what you want from this and use it how you see fit. There isn’t a one size fits all answer to anything – it’s all about how you can use various perspectives to develop an answer for yourself… What will make you happy now AND at the end of the day.
