A healthy diet and an active lifestyle are both crucial for those embarking on a weight loss journey. However, the importance of staying adequately hydrated must not be underestimated.
In a YouTube video about drinking water for weight loss, a fitness and nutrition coach shared the amount slimmers should drink to see results on the scales.
Answering how much water you should be drinking every day, Michelle Roots said: “We are all different. A lot of people say eight glasses of water a day – that seems to be the trend – but every human is a different size, some people exercise more, some people live in really hot climates and some people live in really cold places.
“We all have a different need but I would say the best place to start is half of your body weight in ounces. It’s a quick calculation and it’s a great way to start.” According to Michelle, this number should be the minimum amount of water consumed per day.
When it comes to water intake, ‘the best place to start is half of your body weight in ounces’
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To find out how much water you need to drink on a weight loss journey, convert your weight into pounds and then half this amount. This means that someone who is 10st 10lb (150lb) should drink 75 ounces of water, for example. This is equal to around 2.13 litres.
Michelle explained that this is the “bare minimum” for her but she increases her water intake if she is exercising in the heat or sweats a lot more than usual.
As for why drinking water is so important for weight loss, Michelle outlined four key reasons.
The expert stated: “Drinking more water helps your body burn fat. The process in your body where your body burns fat naturally and converts it into energy is called lipolysis.
“And the first step in that process is called hydrolysis. That’s where your body is adding water to the fat to help break it down.
“Studies have found that increasing your water intake will increase the lipolysis in your body, meaning you increase your metabolism – so the amount of calories you burn on a daily basis. This, in turn – if you’ve got everything else in check – can help with weight loss.”
Another way water helps with weight loss is by helping the body feel full. This “decreases your appetite and gets rid of a lot of cravings”.
Michelle said: “Often when people haven’t had enough water throughout the day, they can confuse hunger with dehydration.
So you might feel like you’re getting hungry but you’re actually just dehydrated and you need to drink some more water.”
Drinking more water will also boost your energy levels for a workout, the expert explained.
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The expert increases her water intake if she exercises in the heat or breaks a sweat
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Michelle said: “If you are on a weight loss or a fat loss journey, you want to be mainly strength training.
“So if you are trying to crush workouts but you haven’t had enough water – especially if it’s really hot out – you are not going to have as much energy.
“Your body needs water to function, your muscles need water, so drinking water before your workouts, during your workouts and after your workouts is going to help fuel you because, in the end, you’re going to get the strength results during your workout.
“If you’re too tired – meaning you haven’t eaten or you have had enough water – you’re not going to get those results you need in the gym.”
Finally, drinking water is crucial for helping the body get rid of waste. Neglecting to drink enough water may cause slimmers to become constipated or feel bloated, decreasing their motivation to exercise due to a feeling of sluggishness.
Another way slimmers can achieve their weight loss goals is by rethinking their diet choices. A doctor named the two foods to “eliminate” if you want to lose weight, as these “can quickly turn to fat”.
