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What is the Water Diet?

Updated on July 18, 2013
Water
Water | Source

by Christopher Peruzzi

Air, water, and food stuffs are what people need to live – in that order.

If you don’t get enough air in your daily regimen, there are basic natural indicators that alert you to that problem. You get dizzy, your lips turn blue, and eventually you stop living. Lack of air can be fatal. You need air every second of every moment of every day of your life.

Food, on the other hand, is not so much of a priority. According to an article in Scientific American, the average human being can go 28 to 40 days without food before he or she starves to death.

But what of water? We’ve all been thirsty from time to time. Our bodies will let us know that we need to replenish our supply of water and put some more in our body. When we don’t drink water our mouths get dry and our lips crack from dehydration. From what I’ve been told we need to drink water at least once a day. There is a minimum amount we need to survive.

Apparently, there is an optimal amount that will keep up healthy. This is one of the factors of what has been called “The Water Diet”.

The Water Diet in many cases is a supplement to any diet you decide to go on.

There are a few different versions of this very cheap and very popular diet. I’ll go into a few of the theories and how not to go to extremes with what most people consider common sense.

Ice - When water gets really, really slow.
Ice - When water gets really, really slow. | Source
Hot Water
Hot Water | Source

How much water do we really need?

The general consensus is that we need eight glasses of water (or half a gallon) a day.

Other than the magnates who run Poland Springs and Dasani, there is no lobby that will make a substantial amount of money when people drink excess amounts of water. Unlike “the Dairy Council”, everyone knows you need water. So, I’ll put some stock into that recommended amount of daily water intake. It sounds about right.

Keeping your body hydrated does more to improve the internal functions of your body and digestion and keeps your skin healthy and elastic. Water works with the kidneys to flush toxins out of your system and helps regulate your body temperature through the act of perspiration.

But why does water help you lose weight?

There are a few factors behind the water diet. The first is that water helps curb your appetite. It has zero calories. Drinking water before, during, and after a meal will help you eat less.

Secondly, drinking water is part of a detoxification process. Yes, the amount of chemicals and toxins that you come in contact with almost everything you consume from coffee to monosodium glutamate are bad for you. A water diet will assist the kidneys in their function in getting that nasty stuff out of you. People on the Water Diet perspire more to purge the poisons from their body and get rid of the rest through urinating.

Thirdly, drinking cold water has an unexpected effect in helping the body burn more calories because the body will use more energy bringing the temperature of the water to what the body likes. In other word, the body needs to adjust the temperature.

People who go on the water diet by basically drinking the amount of water they’re supposed to drink in a day will lose a half pound a month without exercise.

However, there are some things you should be aware of.

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Caveats

There are some common sense things you should adhere to if you are going to follow this diet. First of all, if you are a coffee drinker you need to drink an extra glass of water for every cup of coffee you have. They recommend that coffee and cigarettes are out of your diet all together - as part of the benefits are that you’re detoxifying your body. Coffee and cigarettes are not the best thing for you, anyway.

You should also try not to drink tap water. Who knows what extra toxins are in that? And, let’s remember, you’re trying to get rid of the toxins you already have. Drink bottled, distilled, or filtered water.

You should also try to avoid sugary drinks as well. I wouldn’t be going too far when I quote Skinny Bitch (or Skinny Bastard for men) that sugar is the devil. In this case, I would simply make the case that if you’re going on any kind of a weight loss program, sacrificing processed white sugar should be at the top of your list anyway. Trust me on this one. Aside from drinking more water, cutting out processed sugar is one of the best things you can do for your body. (And if you really want to do yourself a favor, don’t have anything out of those yellow, blue, or pink packets, either – That’s just horrible for you.)

The more extreme practitioners of this diet drink a gallon of water a day. They like that bloated feeling that comes naturally with drinking enough water to keep a fish alive for a day. My wife’s a health coach and has mentioned to me that “the jury is still out on drinking excessive amounts of water.”

These extreme folks also like to combine this as part of a fasting program. If you do decide to go this route, consult a physician first.

Plus, I’ve consciously been trying to avoid the word “flush” throughout this article. As in, you flush your kidneys. That’s not the only thing you’ll flush if you go on this diet. You and the bathroom will be really close friends throughout this process. However, given the benefits, it’s a small price to pay.

Quiz on Water

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Final Thoughts

It’s water.

It’s not Gatorade or Red Bull. It’s not full of extra electrolytes. The good stuff comes from the sky and if it’s not pure enough for you, you can distill it into purer water. It makes plants grow and the birds sing.

It’s part of us. Drinking it on a hot day will make you happy. Being sad makes it leave your body through your tear ducts. It’s the first thing you should reach for after a hangover and the best thing we know of to bathe with.

There are no artificial water flavors or extra colors or preservatives in water. There is no government regulation on how much or how little water you drink in a day. It is the great equalizer. Not only do you need water, your parents and kids do, too.

It is life.

You have nothing to lose except weight by drinking what you should in a day of pure water. I say drink it.

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