Understanding dehydration and 5 tips to stay hydrated

Posted by Jane McClurg 2 February 2017

You know when you have a massage and your therapist offers you a glass of water? They are prolonging the awesome effects of the massage by flushing out the metabolic waste that has been released from the muscle tissues...so you should continue to drink more water post massage.

But how much should we drink on a day to day basis?

Water is such an important part of our health; we are up to 70% water! We really do need to be consistent with drinking it as water assists in many daily functions such as digestion, detoxification, concentration and energy.

The cells of our body need to be hydrated to do their jobs, otherwise blood flow becomes sluggish, connective tissue/fascia becomes sticky and even vertebral discs can become dehydrated and press onto nerves.

Some signs that you may be dehydrated

• Feeling tired
• Feeling anxious or irritable
• Feeling stiff
• Inability to concentrate
• Disturbed sleep
• Headaches, migraines
• Joint pain
• Lower back pain
• Eyes feel dry and scratchy
• Dry lips
• Dark coloured urine

How much water should we drink?

 This is not a one size fits all...you may have heard the 6- 8 glasses a day but in reality just as all glasses are different sizes so are we!

 Here’s a guideline:

• 55 kg – 60kg = 2litres
• 61kg -75kg = 2.5 litres
• 76kg – 90kg = 3 litres
• 91kg and over = 3.5 litres

Making sure you drink more if it is hot or if you’ve been exercising or if you’ve had caffeine.

 5 Tips to Stay Hydrated.

1. One of the best things you can do is to have a drink bottle with you at all times: at work, in the car, by the bed.  The best kind are stainless steel (you can get insulated ones too that keep cool for up to 12 hours) or glass, stay away from plastic.
2. The more often you drink the more you recognize that you’re thirsty, which is a good thing because instead of reaching for that snack you’ll realize that your body is asking for water not food.
3. Have a competition with your partner or work colleagues or gym buddy or just with yourself! Set some targets to reach during the day.
4. Try Water Drink Reminder app which can track your consumption or just set an alarm on your phone.
5. Sick of plain water...try these instead...

• Herbal teas that are caffeine-free such as rooibos, chamomile, peppermint, berry...
• Squeeze of lemon, orange or lime
• Mint and cucumber
• Frozen berries
• Sparkling water

 Be aware of caffeinated drinks.

Such as coke, energy drinks, tea and coffee…too many of these a day and you start to lose water and become even more dehydrated!

Their diuretic action increases the production of urine, and results in further loss of body fluids.

Caffeine is a stimulant to the central nervous system with a wide spread effect on the body, it affects the heart and skeletal muscles, and respiration. Its use leads to increases in metabolism, temperature, blood pressure, gastric acid secretion and nervous tension.

Losses of hand steadiness, trembling and muscle tension have also been reported. This is why it is important not to have a coffee/caffeine before or after a massage!!

Start your day with a big glass of water with a squeeze of lemon juice to get your digestive system going and get a bonus Vitamin C hit!

To maintain a fluid balance is extremely important to our health and well- being, as dehydration hinders performance, coordination, motivation and concentration.

So reach for that water now and feel the difference!