Nutritional Myths Regarding Rapid Weight Loss

#1 Myth: Eat a lot of protein to increase muscle mass.

This is simply untrue. There is no scientific study that has shown any kind of relationship between additional protein intake and muscle increase. In actual fact, official nourishment programs for athletes prohibit a protein intake of 2 to 2.5 times higher than the recommended daily allowance. Excess protein intake can cause dehydration, kidney and liver troubles, because protein requires more fluids to eliminate waste products.

#2 Myth: When an athlete is thirsty, that’s when he needs to drink.

You should not rely on thirst as your indicator that you need fluids. Your thirst mechanism is telling you that you have gone beyond thirst, to dehydration. You need to consume a regular quantity of water to keep the body hydrated and flushed of toxins and cleansed.

#3 Myth: Sugar should not be part of a good diet for athletes before a competition.

Sugar, which is a form of simple carbohydrate, can actually fuel an athlete’s get-up-and-go, consequently improving his performance. Eliminating sugar from an athletes diet may prevent them from performing at their best. Too much sugar when living a more sedentary lifestyle is the problem, not sugar intake alone.

#4 Myth: Only athletes who work out for more than an hour need sports drinks.

Absolutely not true. Dehydration can easily be prevented with sports drinks.

#5 Myth: The best way to lose weight is with exercise.

It is possible that a portion of your weight loss will just be excess bodily fluids. But water eliminated during work outs and other physical exercise must be replaced. Losing fluids however, is definitely not the same as losing fat. Athletes and individuals who desire to lose weight should seek the advice of professionals and not simply accept widely held beliefs.

Finally, your focus should be on a whole body fitness and nutritional plan if you want to lose the fat and stay trim permanently.

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A study conducted by researchers from the Berlin Institute in 2003 noted that consuming 500 mls of water increases metabolic functions for about half an hour afterwards. During this time 25 more calories are burned. The explanation given by researchers includes the fact that the stomach heats the water, so it needs more energy to complete this task.

Why should you drink more water to lose weight

There are a number of reasons. Firstly, it will affect the amount of food you consume. Once you start eating, it takes up to 20 minutes for the stomach to “realize” that it is being satisfied and for the feeling of hunger to dissipate. But if you drink a large glass of water  just before you eat, your stomach will feel satisfied sooner and as a consequence you will eat less.

Another consideration is kidney function. You’d be amazed how much the kidneys play a part in regulating our metabolism and general overall health, including blood pressure etc. You need to do everything you can to “take the load off”. The metabolic process of burning fat means that your body will produce waste that must be removed through the kidneys. It is essential therefore that you drink more water to help the kidneys to fulfill their function.

For diets that include high protein consumption, water is even more important because with these diets the body produces more waste. You may even find yourself feeling more thirsty, which is confirmation of this. Remember that water cleans only body residue, not the fat.

Drinking lots of water also has the effect of “flushing out” your large intestine, which is good for overall health and a more efficient metabolism. In fact, those who are in favour of colonic irrigation would suggest that drinking 6 glasses of water first thing in the morning can have the effect of taking an enema. This “colonic detoxing” to start your day will get rid of many substances which lodge and breed in the bowel mucous. You should notice a substantial difference to your overall health within 30 days.

8 glasses of water per day

The Berlin study mentioned above recommendation we consume 8 glasses of water daily which adds almost 1.5 litres to normal water consumption. Consequently, you should burn an average of 100 calories more than normal. Combined with nutrition and diet this helps significantly with weight loss.

Dangers of excessive water consumption

However drinking water should not be excessive because it can have negative effects. Water consumption should be proportional to the existence of salt in the body for the electrolysis process.

The salt level should be maintained otherwise it may result in hyponatraemia which is usually followed by heart attacks and even death. Too much water can dilute the salt in the blood and tissues. Among athletes many deaths have been from this cause.

Exercise and water

As has been pointed out, water consumption is very important when we exercise. It is good that every time you walk, run, workout, or even dance (great exercise), you remember a container of water.

Water is so important to health that we can not replace it with  anything because over 60 percent of the human body is composed from  water.

Remember these things when you decide to start a regime and even if you are not thirsty, drink water with confidence.

It may be difficult to drink enough water during one busy day , but keep close to you a bottle of water to drink and you can add a little lemon for a change of taste. Enjoy!

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