Everyone knows the importance of drinking water. Aside from hydration, which improves digestion, cognition, physical performance, mood and more, there are other things about water consumption that matter.
Canadian fitness expert Greg Hetherington is the owner of Fuel Training Club in Toronto, and his mission is to help you BE BETTER. He shared his tips with us on how water can help with weight loss as well.
How Can Drinking Water Lead to Weight Loss?
At its simplest, if you consume fewer calories through eating or drinking than you expend through exercise, movement and your body’s daily energy requirements, you’ll run at what’s called a “caloric deficit,” which can lead to weight loss. It’s not the only factor in weight loss, but it’s a significant one. Here’s where water comes in: if you consume water before a meal instead of a calorie beverage (CB) like juice, soda or milk, you could consume fewer calories during a meal. That’s right, consuming CBs can needlessly increase your meal’s caloric intake by 15%.
Could Drinking Calorie Beverages Make You Want to Eat More?
Although the mechanism is not fully understood, it’s speculated that since most CBs are sugar-based, a spike in insulin can open the gates to hunger. You simply eat more when your body is primed, and consuming CBs may help do that. On the other hand, drinking water fills up your stomach without affecting blood sugar and simply leaves less room for food, so you feel full faster. More importantly, calories you consume through CBs are usually not needed by your body (unless you’re exercising intensely for more than an hour) and so are stored as fat.
Should You Limit Calorie Beverages?
Since CBs are the easiest and least filling way to consume calories, they’re the easiest way to increase your caloric intake. If weight management and body composition are goals for you, CBs should be minimized. Or, save them for your evening glass of wine or beer and don’t waste them during the day!
What Do You Think about Reverse Osmosis Water?
Weight loss isn’t the only thing to think about when it comes to drinking water. Public tap water is fine, but purifying your water can potentially improve its taste and reduce impurities. Fluoride, which may not be necessary for most people, can also be removed, as can chlorine, which is reduced in purified water.
A Reliance™ Reverse Osmosis System will deliver water that is potentially better tasting and contains fewer contaminants straight to your tap or fridge dispenser. Get in touch a book a free, in-home water quality consultation with one of our experts to assess your residential water needs.
Learn more about the benefits of reverse osmosis by watching this video.
Are you looking for more information on Water Purification overall? Be sure to go to our Ultimate Water Purification Guide.