How Much Water Should You Drink?

Since the late 1990’s Dr. John Berardi has published 8 scientific abstracts; 15 scientific papers and textbook chapters; presented at nearly 50 scientific, exercise, and nutrition-related conferences; and published countless articles online.

His first articles at Testosterone Magazine so many years ago provided me with the basis for everything I knew about nutrition in my early years as a personal trainer. Now I will turn some of that knowledge over to you in the form of Nutrition Tips written by Dr. Berardi himself.

Today’s Topic – How Much Water You Should Drink

Water is important for maintaining proper health.

I have always advocated drinking at least a gallon of water a day, but then some media outlets over-hype the fact that drinking too much water can make you sick, so people sometimes dismiss the importance of drinking water. So whatever you believe, the all-important question must still be answered, how much water should you drink?

I think it all had to do with some radio contest to see who could drink the most water in the shortest amount of time. The fact is that you would have to drink many gallons of water in a short time frame to make yourself sick.

Let’s take a look at a few reasons why you should basically drink as much water as possible each day.

Water IS Mandatory for Proper Bodily Function.

You should drink between one and two gallons of water each day, depending on your lifestyle and your environment. That is why getting counter-top filters, commercial water dispensers, and filtration systems are so important.

For those of you using supplements like creatine, it is vital that you drink enough water or you could end up with severe cramps in your legs and arms. Trust me, I’ve been there. Incidentally, if you want to get the best creatine on the market, hook yourself – click here for creatine.

Here Are Some Ways Water Does a Body Good

• Helps you to maintain a proper blood volume of 92% water. This gives you more energy and prevents blood thickening, which can lead to high blood pressure and other heart diseases.
• Guess what? Water helps prevent constipation!
• Reportedly decreases the risk of colon cancer, breast cancer, and bladder cancer.
• The toxins in our bodies are flushed out through urination and sweat, both of which we do more frequently when properly hydrated.
• Lose weight by drinking more water. Specifically ice water, which burns more calories during your regular daily activities.
• You should experience fewer kidney stones and urinary tract infections if you drink more water.
• Believe it or not, your brain works best when properly hydrated. This improves concentration and reaction time, which is important for working and working out.
• Helps ease gastrointestinal distress, especially when taking medication.
• Helps get rid of excess sodium, which causes fluid retention. By drinking enough water, you will actually lose weight, even if it’s only water weight.
• Helps you prevent and recover from a cold or a flu.

Tip: How Much Water

“You always hear experts recommending that you drink more water but how many of you actually do it? And how much is enough? Well, check out this chart below for some interesting data on water loss.

Water Loss:	Normal Weather No Exercise	Warm Weather No Exercise	Exercise in Warm Weather (85° F)
Skin	350 mL	350 mL	350 mL
Respiratory Tract	250 mL	350 mL	650 mL
Urine	1400 mL	1200 mL	500 mL
Feces	100 mL	100 mL	100 mL
Sweat	100 mL	1400 mL	5000 mL
Total	2,300 mL (2.3L)	3,300 mL (3.3L)	6,600 mL (6.6L)

It should be clear that quite a bit of water is lost per day, especially if you’re an athlete. Since most people can get about 1.5L of water from their food and from metabolic water production, for a margin of safety, I suggest:

• Sedentary individuals drink at least 2L or about 8 cups of water per day
• Athletes in normal climates drink at least 3L or about 12 cups of water per day.
• Athletes in hot weather climates drink at least 4L or about 16 cups of water per day.”

Final Thoughts

This tip is sponsored by Precision Nutrition – Project Swole’s pick for the best nutrition and supplement resource currently available. Containing system manuals, gourmet cookbooks, digital audio/video library, online membership, and more, Precision Nutrition will teach you everything you need to know to get the body you want — guaranteed. Now go grab your Yeti, drink some water, and brush up on your nutrition tips.

Tags: Diet, health, lifestyle, nutrition, Nutrition Tip, precision nutrition, water

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