Tags
bones, Bromain, calcium, evian, figi, fitness, magnesium, physical therapy, sports drinks, water
Dying of thirst? Maybe you don’t feel like it but most people are slowly killing an optimal chance at good bodily performance due to one reason. DEHYDRATION! Eighty percent of the brian is water and a 1.5% loss of water significantly impairs performance (reaction times, cognitive function). Everybody knows that they need water but why don’t we drink it? How much is enough? With this blog I want to educate you on why you need water but more importantly give you the desire to make a habit of drinking it.
Suggestions:
How much?
Drink half your weight in oz of water / day. If you weigh 150 lb, drink 75 oz of water / day. This is what you should drink if you are not an excessive exerciser, do not drink in excess alcohol or caffeine. If this is the case add more water each day.
What?
Water means PURE water. Coffee, tea, soda, Gatoraide, Vitamin Water or any kind of alcahol do not count. Anything colored or flavored (unelss it is by something natural like cucumber or lemon) does not count. Why?
A: corn syrup in soda has been known to be related to a lot of chronic disease. The orange stuff you see in drinks (even sports drinks) has Bromine, which is toxic to humans!! Of course, the Bromine is altered to make the color in drinks but one would guess that small doses repetitively is not good. My suggestion: stay away from color or artificial sweetening of any kind.
When?
Drink 25% of your daily intake in oz first thing in the morning. In the example above you would drink 15-20 oz before you leave for work (1-2 hours). Why?
A: Because we wake up dehydrated from sleeping all night. Why do you think you weigh less in the morning. You lost your water weight.
What? In Detail…
I am going to steal this from Robert Yang but I have to because it works. “Become a water snob.” It is best to drink water with the right minerals in it. Magnesium, Calcium, Potassium etc. Most bottled water is purified and do not retain these minerals. Look for products that are labeled natural spring water. Suggested brands that are commonly found in grocery stores or convenience stores are Figi and Evian. My favorite is Mountain Valley Spring however it is less common in regular grocery stores. Here is where you can find MVS. Yes buying spring water costs more. It is better and this is why it helps create the habit.
Knowing that you are paying GOOD money for GOOD water helps with follow through. Why are the minerals important?
A: Magnesium and Calcium are both involved with healthy bone structure. Get these a portion of these minerals naturally via water consumption instead of relying on vitamins. Not taking vitamins? Even more reason to drink natural spring water.
More to come on vitamins, minerals, and exercise nutrition.
A lot of the information above was inspired and taken from the Titleist Performance Institute World Golf Fitness Summit in Orlando last week. Thank you Robert Yang, Janet Alexander, Don Tolman and Marc Smith. It has been several months since I have consistently posted on my blog. I have been devoting time to my work blog www.ptsportswellness.com . A few of those have been reposted here as well. Please use the CPMC Sports Wellness Blog as a resource for similar topics. In addition the blog has a link to CPMC YouTube and a lot of great exercise videos we put together… free!
PT Jess 