Summertime, and the livin” is easy...🎶 🎶 🎶
Summer is (hopefully) a time for slowing down, swinging in a hammock and taking life a little easier. It’s also a time to enjoy fresh local produce–straight out of your garden or picked up from the local famer’s market. Tomatoes, cucumbers, watermelon, peaches...summer at her finest. Summer seems to be the season when Mother Nature hums along, bursts with energy, produces in abundance, and laughs in flowers.
What about you? Are you feeling radiant, energetic and alive this summer? If not, your nutrition might be to blame...
Up for a pop quiz?
Of the six essential nutrients:
Vitamins
Minerals
Protein
Fat
Water
Carbohydrates
Which one do you think is the most important for our body? And I’ll give you a hint—it’s not protein!
Believe it or not, it’s water. Yep. Just plain water. Odorless, colorless H2O.
Why is water #1?
Water hydrates our entire system, which provides a panoply of benefits, such as:
Energy boost
Glowing skin
Infection fighting
Cell, tissue and organ regeneration
Curbs hunger
Flushes toxins
Regular elimination
Water’s secret super powers
Most of us know we need to drink water, and we may be familiar with some of the reasons why. But did you know that staying hydrated also helps with:
Weight loss
Blood sugar regulation
Decreased risk of kidney stones
Slaying sugar cravings
Healthy blood pressure
Preventing muscle cramps
Drink a glass of water and call me in the morning
If you’re not feeling well, of course, talk to your doctor. But if you have any of these symptoms you might be dehydrated:
Headaches
Fatigue
Brain fog
Dizziness
Stiff or sore muscles
Feeling thirsty
Dark urine
How much water should I drink?
Many health professionals will simply tell you to drink 8 x 8 ounce glasses of water per day, but our water needs are individual.
Sixty-four ounces of water a day is a great place to start, but your personal needs will depend on your weight, activity levels, climate and other variables such as alcohol and caffeine intake, and how many fresh fruits and veggies you eat.
Most people need anywhere from half to two-thirds of their body weight in ounces. I’ll give you an example, I used to be an actuary after all 🤣.
If you weigh 150 lbs:
150 ÷ 2 = 75 (half)
150 x 2 = 300 ÷ 3 = 100 (two-thirds)
So if you weigh 150 pounds, you need to drink between 75 and 100 ounces of water every day.
For more fun and easy ways to remember to get your H20, including a couple of summery recipes loaded with natural hydration, download my Power of Hydration packet.
Here’s to soaking up the lazy, hazy, dazy days of summer! 😎
Lisa