Water: The Summer Season Super Hero

By Erika Fehrenbach Prell

The hot weather of summer has water on my mind! That may have conjured images of pools and floaties, lakes and waves, or beaches with your toes in the sand. While a splash session is refreshing and fun, and perhaps the savior on a hot summer day, this isn’t the most important water in your life. Know what is? The water you hydrate with! You guessed it, DreamChaser...today’s wellness topic is all about water!

Let’s refresh our minds. You are made of 60-70% water. You use water in nearly every bodily function from transporting nutrients, removing waste from the body, digestion, and making new cells. You use and lose water all day, every day. Yet, even though water is crucial for function, you cannot make water on your own. You are dependent on the water you consume through drinking and eating to keep this all going. We are quite inefficient beings...lol.

Since water is used in so many body functions, there are a wide range of effects insufficient hydration has on the body. These include but are not limited to the following:

• Fatigue
  
• Constipation
  
• Bad breath
  
• Dry or dull skin
  
• Sugar craving
  
• Decreased urination or kidney stones
  
• Headache
  

See how important water is? Here’s another way to think of it, would you like more energy, to feel your best, while having glowing, radiant, youthful skin? Um, yes, please! Before you hire a personal trainer, chef, and sign up for botox, the answer is hydrate with water! Seriously, that’s a great first step to feeling and looking your best.

Before you start complaining that you “don’t like water” or “it’s so boring”, I’m going to give you some tough love. It’s time to drop the excuses! You need to get over this negative mindset and find a way to embrace hydrating with water. It is honestly one of the best actions you can take to start yourself on your healthy living, best life path...not to mention easy and inexpensive. And, during the hot summer months, it’s even more important to up the hydration game.

To help you out, here are 7 Fresh Ways to Up Your Hydration:

1. Wakey, Wakey: Drink a glass of water as you wake up. You are actually dehydrated upon waking in the morning. As you were sleeping, your body was using up water in your body with no way to replenish the source. Start your day with a glass...your body will thank you (and you will be at 8-12 ounces on your way)!
   
2. Try It Warm: Warm up some water and flavor with lemon. Warm water is easier for the body to digest.
   
3. Tea It Up: Try a decaffeinated tea, hot or cold. Why decaf? Caffeine has a mild diuretic effect so it helps your body remove water, which defeats the hydration goal we are going for.
   
4. Get Fizzy With It: Mix it up with seltzer water or flavored carbonated water. 
   
5. Flavor Burst: Get creative with flavoring your water! Try fruits such as strawberry or citrus fruits, throw in cucumber, or herbs like mint or basil. You can also go with a splash of real fruit juice.
   
6. Serve It as a Side: Want a sneaky way to up your hydration? Start drinking a glass of water every time you eat something. This serves a few purposes. You already have a habit of eating meals; adding a new habit, like hydrating with water, to an already established habit increases your success. Drinking water with your meals or snacks fills you up faster so you will naturally eat less. If you are like me, I typically eat 3 meals and 2 snacks per day; this strategy puts me over halfway to my daily goal without even thinking about it.
   
7. Your Favorite Sidekick: Get a cute, refillable water bottle so you can take your water with you all day. If water is readily available, you will naturally drink it more.
   

You might be wondering how much hydration is enough hydration? Often you hear about drinking eight 8 ounce glasses but the truth is...it’s complicated. The right amount of hydration depends on many factors from your size to activity level to even the weather. A good place to start is eight 8 ounce glasses per day with a goal of half your body weight in ounces. Listen to your body and up your hydration on days that it’s hot or you have a strenuous workout or are feeling ill. Your future self is already thanking you for this lifestyle upgrade!

Shine (and hydrate) On!

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