Eat Your Way To Better Hydration

As you very well know, it’s the dead of Summer right now and even going out for 5 minutes to let the dog out feels like you’ve been baking in a sauna for 2 straight hours. This Summer heat is no joke and with the extreme heat causes extreme dehydration. You maybe feel tired, dizzy, faint, and/or, constant headaches; these are all symptoms linked to dehydration. 

Let’s think about it, the body is made up of about 50% water and the brain is made up of 75%. Furthermore, water is used in every single cell and organ of the body, so it quite literally is the essence that binds us together. Since water is also the main transporter of nutrients in the body, if we’re not properly transporting these nutrients then your body gives you warning signs linked to those symptoms listed above. 

The moral of the story here is: DRINK MORE WATER! The recommended consumption for women is 11.5 cups a day but this can also vary depending on your physical activity level and environment. But, if you’re one of the many people who most likely don’t drink the recommended amount of water per day, why not EAT your way to better hydration? 

Sounds crazy right? Well, not so fast. If the planet is made mostly of water, and humans are made mostly of water, then it’s not too ludacris to believe that our very own plant based foods are made of mostly water. 

Here’s a quick list of foods that are made up of approximately 90% water:

1. Watermelon 
2. Strawberries
3. Peaches
4. Tomatoes
5. Cantaloupe 
6. Oranges
7. Cucumbers
8. Lettuce
9. Zucchini 

The list goes on and on but my point is, is that there are so many water rich foods that in addition have excellent sources of vitamins to pack a serious one two punch!

Now that it’s Summer time we can find these above foods in abundance all fresh and all at your local grocery store or farmer’s market. Pretty awesome, right? 

I bet you might be thinking to yourself now “Well how much should I eat then?”.

Let’s do a quick example with watermelon: a pound of watermelon looks like a good ole hearty slice (one serving). That slice of watermelon contains about 16oz of water which equals about 2 cups of water. Instead of drinking those 2 cups of water, you’ve just eaten them with that delicious, sweet taste of Summer. I don’t know about you, but staying hydrated sounds pretty delicious right about now. 

I challenge you to go to your local grocery store or farmers market and pick out some of these fresh seasonal foods in addition to your water intake and note the difference in your color of urine (the more clear the better) as well as note the decreased symptoms of dehydration. Try this for a week straight and FEEL the difference!

Need more nutritional guidance? Please message me with any questions as well as figure out your EXACT water intake need with a quick calculation:  (BMR x your daily activity level) =kcal, you need 1ml of water to replenish every kcal expended per day.