 One of the best and easiest ways to take care of your body is by staying hydrated. Water makes up roughly 60% of your body and is essential for every one of your cells to function. If the water content in your body drops by even 2%, your mind starts to lose alertness and your body will begin to feel fatigued. A loss of 10% of the body's water can cause physical and mental deterioration, and a loss of 15% - 25% can cause death. Most people know how important staying hydrated is, yet some studies have indicated that 75% of Americans are functioning in a chronic state of dehydration. Symptoms of chronic dehydration include:
This article from foodmatters.com is worth a read if you want to learn more about the symptoms of dehydration We are so lucky to live in a country where we have fresh, clean, drinking water flowing from the tap. We just don’t know how lucky we are to have this available to us. Earlier this year, I took a trip to India to visit my brother. This trip was incredibly eye opening for me. You can not drink the water in India. You can not brush your teeth with the water out of the tap in India. India is incredibly hot and dry. It was about 100 degrees every day I was there. I drank a lot of water. In our travels I noticed women walking along the side of the road carrying huge loads.  I took this photo on the way to an organic spice farm in Goa, India. It was 108ยบ F that day and dry. Just look at the load this woman was carrying. This was on the side of a very busy road where dirt bikes, rickshaws, cars, and livestock were zipping around. I have this photo saved in my favorites on my iPhone. Anytime I think I have it bad or I am having a hard day, I bring up this photo and get instant perspective. I learned that the task of retrieving water on a daily basis for some women living in rural India is a constant challenge. The Water Project reports that nearly 1 billion people in the developing world don’t have access to clean, safe drinking water. Water is the fountain of life and today, all around the world, people are spending the entire day searching for it. The Water Project Reports: “Indian women can take up to six trips a day to gather and transport water. These walks in rural regions can average ten miles a day, carrying up to fifteen liters every trip. The women load jars or buckets on their heads to carry water. The pressure, added with the distance to water sources, creates back, feet, and posture problems. The heat increases their exhaustion, and the chore itself takes away much needed time for other duties. It is a great loss for these women to spend their days fetching water; they are removed from being able to make an income, better care for their children, or in a younger girl's circumstance, be able to get a proper education. It is common for girls in rural India to drop out of school, so as to help carry out the burden of moving water.” How is that for perspective? What is the obstacle that is getting in your way of being properly hydrated? Is it because you are worried about the inconvenience of more frequent bathroom breaks? Don’t like the taste? Would rather drink coffee or soda? It is time to get over these obstacles and commit to getting yourself properly hydrated. Your body is about 60% water… and just a small 2% decrease can significantly impair performance and the way you feel. Our recommendation is to drink at least half of your body weight in ounces each day. This is critically important. If you are not already drinking this amount of water, make the commitment today. Example: If you weigh 200 pounds, you should be drinking a minimum of 100 ounces of water each day. Need motivation to drink more water? Download our strategies here.  Water should be the main drink you consume on a daily basis. We want you to avoid alcohol, sugary juices, and soda because those beverages do nothing to serve you. Not only that, they’re loaded with sugar that will spike your insulin. It places a heavy load on your body to detoxify from it, which is the exact opposite of what we’re trying to achieve with proper hydration. Hope this helps provide you with a little perspective and tools and resources to commit to proper hydration. Cheers! Paige Download our habits tracker here: www.wilcoxwellnessfitness.com/habitstracker Enter your contact information to receive some free tools and resources to support your habits for massive impact. Visit the link above to sign up to receive more support from us. We will send you information via email to help support your habits for massive impact including a printable habits tracker that you can use to measure your progress within the next 21 days. Join our Healthy Living FaceBook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/WilcoxHealthyLiving/ Join our free private FaceBook Group - Healthy Living with Wilcox Wellness & Fitness to connect with us live. Daily we post all things healthy living - pro tips for healthy living, recipes, and weekly workouts for you to do at home. We will answer any question you post and we encourage you get involved in the discussion. Join Wilcox Wellness & Fitness’ mailing list: http://www.wilcoxwellnessfitness.com/keep-in-touch.html
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