Not Drinking Water is NOT the Same as Not Flossing

You've heard it over and over again: drink water. It’s kind of like flossing, you know you should do it, but most of the time you don't. Unfortunately for you, unlike flossing, not drinking enough water on could lead to dehydration; and when you're dehydrated, you risk much more than cavities.

First of all, water makes up more than 70% of our total body. From a fitness standpoint, did you know that you can lose up to 20% contractile strength (the electrochemical process of generating muscle tension) from only a 4-5% drop in body fluids? The feeling of fatigue and lethargy begin to creep up as well as a foggy feeling in the head when you don't drink enough water, and this is from only slight dehydration.

A Dehydration Story
Dehydration can happen fast. After a long run on a hot day I came home, drank what I thought was enough water, and laid down. After a little bit, I started feeling nauseous. I didn't think anything of it since I had never really been dehydrated before. About an hour passed and I didn't drink any water because I was nauseous and thought I might throw it up. I went out to dinner with some friends and as we got there, I felt like I might vomit. When I couldn't, I started to sweat profusely and sat down. I tried to get up and started getting dizzy with tunnel vision. I nearly collapsed.

Luckily my friend knew what was happening and gave me some water. The scary part of it is that almost everyone I've talked to about the situation seems to have had the same experience at some point. Dehydration is dangerous and commonly overlooked by most people, many of which are walking around dehydrated at this moment!

This is why so many people rely on energy drinks, stool softeners, laxatives, and pain medications. Dehydration can cause a lack of energy, constipation, and headaches, just to name a few of the side effects. It only takes a 15% drop in body fluids to cause death!

How much water should you drink?
A good rule of thumb for staying properly hydrated is to drink half your bodyweight in ounces. If you weigh 200lbs, you should be drinking 100oz of water. The easiest way I've found to do that is to buy a stainless steel water bottle that is anywhere from 16-32oz. I personally fill up my water bottle six to seven times everyday. This sounds so easy, but like I said, so many people think that they are suffering some sort of ailment and spend lots of money trying to fix it when all they really need is more water.

So the next time you feel thirsty, remember that dehydration is right around the corner. Take your water levels seriously and drink enough everyday!