Water and Fitness Training

What is the most abundant substance in your body that makes up 70-75% of your total body weight? The answer is water. Water is involved in every bodily function known to us. That is why it is important to consume large quantities of this essential and beneficial liquid on a daily basis. You can go a few days without food but can not survive longer than one day without water.

Now that you know the importance of drinking water the question is “how much water should one drink?” The standard answer of (six-eight) 8 oz glasses per day just doesn’t cut it. I’ll explain why in a moment. Consider the fact that people come in various shapes and sizes. Doses it make sense to you for 5’0’’ tall girl weighing 100 lbs. to drink the same amount of water as a 6’6’’ professional athlete weighing over 230 lobs.? It doesn’t make sense to me!

A general guideline on water consumption is to take your weight in pounds and multiply it by 0.5 – 0.6 oz/lb. For example, if you weigh 200 lbs. you should be drinking 120 oz of water per day (200 x 0.6). This works out to (12-15) 8 oz glasses per day, At first glance it may seem like a lot of water but you are not drinking it all at once. If you sleep an average of 8 hours per night, you are awake for 16 hours. By drinking 1 glass every hour, you will meet your quota of water for the day.

An approach, that you may consider using carrying your water in a 4-L jug. Determine approximately how much water you need and mark it off on the side of the container. Then fill up what you require to last you throughout the day. If you finish all the water in the jug by the end if the day, then you have met your water quota! This is a much easier method to gauge your water intake.

If you feel thirsty at any point, chances are that you are dehydrated. This is your body’s way of telling you to consume more water. When you figure out your water consumption for the day, remember that it is water alone - not overall fluid intake for the day. By this I mean drinking the equivalent amount in soft drinks and caffeinated beverages dies bit equal your daily water intake. Certainly soft drinks contain some water but there are so many chemicals added to them that they do you more harm then good.

A simple test to use to see if you are drinking enough water is to pay attention to the colour of your urine. If it is yellow in colour or cloudy – you know that you are not drinking enough. If it is clear, more often than not, you are hydrated.