Tuesday, August 28, 2007

How Much Water Should I Be Drinking?

The body is composed of mostly water and therefore extremely important that you are drinking enough water everyday. Dehydration can become a serious health risk if not taking care of. Thirst is not the best indicator of when you should be drinking. If you are getting thirsty then you are already in the early stages of dehydration. A good rule of them is to drink half of you body weight in ounces of water. For example if you weight 150lbs you should drink 75oz of water per day. This may seem like a lot but if you are not coming close to this number you are at risk for certain health problems.

While you are exercising you must also pay close attention to your hydration. You should try and plan drinking with your workouts. Before a workout (about 2 hours) you should try to consume 16oz of ice cold water. During your workout you should try to get 5-10oz every 15 minutes. After the workout will depend on each individual. Pay attention to how much you sweat. You need to drinking 16oz for every pound that you lose during a workout. If you are performing continuous exercise for long durations (over 60min) it is also important to replenish your body with electrolytes with water.