Did you know that not drinking enough water might be why you’re on that dreaded weight loss plateau even though you’re maintaining your diet. Research suggests that a lot of Americans unknowingly suffer from mild, chronic dehydration! Could they be talking about you? I hope you read this article because it explains and makes sense the importance of water and the surprise impact to dieters.
Water is an essential ingredient for your weight loss. Water is required for a whole range of the body’s biochemical processes, so lets look at what water does specially for dieters:
Your body needs to metabolize stored fat into energy – so much so, that your body’s metabolism can be slowed by even mild levels of dehydration. And the slower your metabolism, the slower your weight loss (and you become tired), until eventually your weight loss just grinds to a halt! You now have just hit the dreaded diet plateau.
Water is a natural appetite suppressant. What good news! In the hypothalamus, a region in your brain that controls appetites and cravings, the control centers for hunger and thirst are situated next to each other, and there tends to be some overlap. This has both advantages and disadvantages for the dieter. On the flip side, it means that chronic mild dehydration can confuse these mechanisms, leading to feelings of hunger, rather than thirst. But on a positive note, it means you can use water to reduce your appetite. For example, in one University of Washington study, drinking a glass of water reduced nighttime hunger cravings for most of the dieters studied. I have also found this to be true.
Water is an essential to the processes that enables your muscles to contract. So water helps maintain muscle tone. Better muscle tone means a better looking body, and isn’t that what dieting and weight loss is about?
There’s help for that sagging skin. Water also helps to prevent the sagging skin that often follows weight loss – water plumps the skin cells, giving the skin a younger and healthier look.
Water helps rid the body of waste. During weight loss, the body has a lots of waste and toxins to get rid of because of all that fat. So enough water is essential to your health while dieting.
Water also helps with constipation. When the body gets too little water, it siphons what it needs from within, particularly from the colon. This leads to constipation. But normal bowel function almost always returns with adequate water intake.
Remember that water is a natural appetite suppressant. Use it to your advantage. If you’re out shopping, take a bottle of water with you. If you feel like a late night snack, either go to bed or drink a glass of water. If you want a change, add a little bit of lemon juice into a glass of water. I find, instantly, my desire to eat is gone. Give it a try.