Why Water?

Drinking water is so important for good health. When you were a kid in school, you learned that each molecule of water is made up of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom: H2O. You may also have learned that it was great fun to fill up your squirt guns with water, at least until the principal caught you. What you may not have learned, however, was how much water you need in order to be a healthy human being.

Your body is estimated to be about 60 to 70 percent water. Blood is mostly water and your muscles, lungs, and brain all contain a lot of water. Your body needs water to regulate body temperature and to provide the means for nutrients to travel to all your organs. Water also transports oxygen to your cells, removes waste, and protects your joints and organs.
Without water we can become very ill: a 2% water loss can mean a drop in performance; at 5% you will become very ill and a 10% loss means you are likely to be dead. Dehydration can happen whether you are an athlete, in bed with flu, in hot weather or even to someone who simply doesn’t drink enough.
You lose water through urination, respiration, and sweating. If you are very active, you lose more water than if you are sedentary. Diuretics such as caffeine pills and alcohol result in the need to drink more water because they trick your body into thinking you have more water than you need.
Thirst is the obvious symptom of dehydration. However, you may need water long before you feel thirsty.
A good estimate for how much water you need to drink is to take your body weight in pounds and divide that number in half. This gives you the number of ounces (1 oz=29ml approx)) of water per day that you need to drink. For example, if you weigh 160 pounds, you should drink at least 80 ounces (8 glasses of 300ml) of water a day. Naturally, use your common sense when it comes to water. You may need to increase your consumption based on your environment and what you are doing.
And, regardless, keep these points in mind:

It’s no easy feat...so here are some suggestions:

Nathan Solia is the founder of Bootcamp and Bootcamp Chef. Bootcamp is a fun exercise regime that takes place in 15 locations across Hong Kong. Bootcamp Chef is a new nutritional take-away service that counts your calories so you don’t have to! www.bootcamp.com.hk


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WHY WATER? By Nathan Solia Drinking water is so important for good health. When you were a kid in school, you learned that each molecule of water is made up of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom: H2O. You may also have learned that it was great fun to fill up your squirt guns with water, at least until the principal caught you. What you may not have learned, however, was how much water you need in order to be a healthy human being. Your body is estimated to be about 60 to 70 percent water. Blood is mostly water and your muscles, lungs, and brain all contain a lot of water. Your body needs water to regulate body temperature and to provide the means for nutrients to travel to all your organs. Water also transports oxygen to your cells, removes waste, and protects your joints and organs. Without water we can become very ill: a 2% water loss can mean a drop in performance; at 5% you will become very ill and a 10% loss means you are likely to be dead. Dehydration can happen whether you are an athlete, in bed with flu, in hot weather or even to someone who simply doesn’t drink enough. You lose water through urination, respiration, and sweating. If you are very active, you lose more water than if you are sedentary. Diuretics such as caffeine pills and alcohol result in the need to drink more water because they trick your body into thinking you have more water than you need. Thirst is the obvious symptom of dehydration. However, you may need water long before you feel thirsty. A good estimate for how much water you need to drink is to take your body weight in pounds and divide that number in half. This gives you the number of ounces (1 oz=29ml approx)) of water per day that you need to drink. For example, if you weigh 160 pounds, you should drink at least 80 ounces (8 glasses of 300ml) of water a day. Naturally, use your common sense when it comes to water. You may need to increase your consumption based on your environment and what you are doing. And, regardless, keep these points in mind: Drinks with caffeine do not help meet your water requirements. In fact, they cause you to lose water by increasing your urine output. So, if you use caffeinated drinks, increase your water intake as well. If you drink four cups of coffee, you may need more than eight cups of water per day to make up for what the caffeine causes you to lose. If your fluid intake is restricted to begin with, you may want to avoid entirely, or at least greatly limit, caffeinated beverages. Caffeine is found in coffee, tea, colas, and some other soft drinks. Alcohol also is a diuretic and will deplete the body of water, so match each glass of alcohol with a glass of water. Be wary of sports drinks and juices as they contain lots of calories and they’re expensive. If you’re not a heavy-duty exerciser, sports drinks really aren’t necessary; they’re no better than plain water. In fact, nothing replaces water! Finally, know that your thirst sensation runs quite a bit slower than your body’s need for water. By the time you realize that you’re feeling thirsty, your body will already be suffering from drought. Most experts suggest that you drink before you get thirsty. If you’re exercising – even if you’re just pushing a long distance – drink water before, during, and after. It’s no easy feat...so here are some suggestions: Keep a water bottle with you. Some people have used "Camelback" or similar water systems that they wear like a backpack. Make it a point to drink two glasses of water 15 minutes before your meals. It will help with increasing the stomach juices to prepare for food and help hydrate your large intestine for digestion. Try to do most of your drinking in the morning and early afternoon so there’s time for all that water to be eliminated before bedtime. Don’t waste your drinking efforts on things that won’t help – coffee, many teas, colas, etc. A smaller amount of water will benefit you more than a larger amount of many other beverages. Nathan Solia is the founder of Bootcamp and Bootcamp Chef. Bootcamp is a fun exercise regime that takes place in 15 locations across Hong Kong. Bootcamp Chef is a new nutritional take-away service that counts your calories so you don’t have to! www.bootcamp.com.hk