H2O "Challenge Accepted!"

Every cell in the human body is full of water. 
The ability of water to dissolve so many substances allows your cells to use the valuable nutrients, minerals, and chemicals in everyday processes. 
The average adults body weight is generally 50 to 60 percents water, enough to fill 40 to 50 quarts if bottled.
Even though many people think that fat has a lot of water in it, it is the muscles that have more water then the fat, so a lean person will actually have more water in their body then an obese one, and would therefore not need to worry as much about their water needs. Men tend to have proportionally more water in their body then women. For example: in a 150lb man, water accounts for about 90lbs and fat for about 30lbs, with protein, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals making up the balance.  
Where is the water in our bodies? 
Blood is 92% water, muscle and brain tissues about 75% and bone 22%. 

Dehydration is when your body water drops below 2% of its normal volume. (That is not very much)

Almost all body cells need and depend on water to perform their functions. Water is the medium for many metabolic activities, and also participates in some metabolic reactions. Water carries nutrients to the cells and waste away. Since 90% of blood is water, water maintains blood volume in your body, and also maintains normal temperatures. 

For example: When you exercise your muscles work extremely hard and creates energy and heat. Your body needs to get rid of the heat, so your blood circulates to the muscles, picks up the heat, and circulates to your skin where sweating takes place and you lose some of the water and heat. The result is that you cool down internally. Without enough water, this could nor work efficiently or properly. 
Water also aids in cushioning of the joints and internal organs, keeping eyes, lungs, and air passages moist.

Women who are adequately hydrated consume about 91 ounces of water a day from foods and beverages.
Men consume 125 ounces from all sources.
 
Typically about 80% of total water intake comes from beverages, the remaining 20% from your food. Your body has the ability to extract water from anything that you consume. Although some studies have shown that coffee, tea, and mainly carbonated beverages can cause toxins to transfer with your water. So the thought that it dehydrates you is not quite correct, but that it can deteriorate the quality of the water that your muscles and body absorbs.

Nearly all foods have water . Milk has about 87% water, Eggs about 75% water, meat can be anywhere from 40 - 70% water, breads around 35% water.

I found this great little calculator that you enter in your weight and activity and it tells you how much water you need.  I suggest taking that number and finding 80% and trying to drink that much water a day. :) That way you are leaving the other 20% up to your food. :)  If you want to aim for drinking all of it in water, then by all means. :)
Water consumption calculator!


 So, now that you know all the good information, let us think about the practicality of it, for me personally, I allow myself one non water drink a day, either coffee for breakfast or milk, then sometimes a glass of wine or whatnot for dinner. I personally stopped drinking sodas over a year ago and only waver once or twice a year. I found it very hard to give up but now I dont miss them at all. I notice when I do not get enough water, I feel lethargic and cranky. I have grown to have little taste for much else.  Except my coffee, I love my coffee. :)  
It is a challenge to try cut out the other drinks that are bad for you, but I promise it is one of those challenges that is only in the habit. Once you go for a time without drinking them, you wonder how you drank so many sodas, or poweraids, or whatever. :)

THIS is the challenge I give to ALL my readers: 

GO 5 DAYS 

drinking nothing but water save one drink a day. 

SO you can have your coffee, your tea, or your diet coke, or even your protein shake, or spark once a day but to fill the rest of your days with just pure water. 

Then leave me comments either here on the blog or my facebook page and let me know how you did. Did you succeed in all 5 days? How do you feel?  :)  

Take note to how often you will have to pee, this is the sign that all the other things you have been drinking have not been flushing out all the toxins that are in your body like pure water.  This also works best when you drink the necessary amount of water.  DO NOT JUST NOT DRINK ANYTHING!! :)

HAPPY DRINKING! (your water of course)

Have a great week! 

If you start your challenge today then you will be done Sunday. :)