You know you need water to survive right?
it is an essential part of your diet that you simply cannot do without it for a long period of time.
And as a singer you know that you need to keep your vocal cords lubricated at all time.
But how much water should you be taking in?
The truth is that there are so many different opinions on how much water you should be drinking.
Some are good… some are bad and some are just plain incorrect.
In this article, we will be looking at the health benefits of water, how water affects your body as a singer and how much water you should be taking daily.
What are the health benefits of water?
According to the guys over mayo clinic, every system in your body depends on water to function properly.
So basically for you to function properly, you need to make sure that your body gets the right amount of water in the right proportions.
Here are some health benefits of drinking water regularly
It helps to maintain the balance of body fluids in your body
Have you ever experienced a situation where you were sweating really bad?
You lost a lot of body fluids either by sweating or peeing?
Well the thing is that the body fluids in your body carry out a lot of important functions
Things like digestion, circulation, creating of saliva and the maintenance of your body temperature.
So what happens on a normal day is that your brain communicates with your body and determines the amount of fluids that need to leave your body daily.
When it happens that there is a default and your body fluids is in short supply, this is where it becomes necessary to drink water.
Water then helps to balance the fluids in your body.
It helps to control the amount of calories you take
Drinking water is absolutely recommended if you are looking to lose weight or simply shed a few calories around your tummy.
This is simply because water does not have any calorific value and it also helps in speeding up your body metabolism.
It gives you a healthy skin
When you are dehydrated and you are not taking in a lot of water, your skin becomes wrinkled and shrinks.
This is because your skin contains a lot of water and this water helps to prevent excess fluids loss from your body.
So one way to get a good and healthy looking skin is to make sure you stay hydrated always.
How much water should a singer drink?
To determine how much water you should be drinking as a singer, there are some things we need to consider.
First you need to know your weight
This is simply because the amount of water you need to drink daily will be different from another person based on their weight.
Why?
Because say for example I weigh more than you, then I will definitely need to be drinking more water than you on a daily basis.
So get a scale or go to the hospital and determine how much you weigh.
Next multiply your weight by ⅔
Next you need to multiply your weight by ⅔ or 67 percent.
This will help you determine the right amount of water you need to be drinking daily.
So for example if in the previous exercise you weigh 175 pounds, when you multiply that by ⅔ you will get 117.
This means that you should be taking in at least 117 Ounces of water daily to maintain a healthy balance.
What about your activity level?
Finally you need to take into consideration your activity levels.
This simply means that you need to consider how often you are involved in activities where you lose a lot of body fluids.
Say for example, you go to the gym and workout daily, then you need to make adjustments to your daily water intake to account for the fluid you lose while working out.
Here is a chart showing you the recommended amount of water you need to take in daily based on your weight.
Image here and a video.
What about the 8 glasses a day advice?
You have probably heard that you need to drink 8 glasses of water a day.
While this is not a bad advice, it has not been scientifically proven.
It is very popular simply because it is very easy to remember.
What you should keep in mind if you want to follow this advice is that you should also account for your activity level.
What about taking other fluids?
The simple reason why most people “forget” to drink water is because they do not like the taste.
So are there other ways you can stay hydrated without necessarily drinking water?
The simple answer is YES.
Drinking plain water is not the only thing that can contribute to the water balance in your body.
There are other foods and drinks that also help.
Foods that are rich in water content such as fruits and vegetables are very good sources of water for your body.
So if you find out that you do not like the “taste” of water, then you can use other foods mentioned above as a replacement.
How to know when you need to drink water
Maintaining your body’s water balance is very important for your survival.
Your body will always tell you when you are dehydrated.
This comes in the form of thirst.
So when you are thirsty, that’s your body telling you that you are already dehydrated.
Another way to know is after you have finished peeing.
If the colour of your pee is light yellow, then congratulations…you are getting enough fluids.
But if it comes out dark and has a strong smell, then you really need to consider taking more fluids daily.
Tips to help you reach your daily water intake goals
Now you know that you need to be drinking a lot of water daily.
Here are some tips to help you reach that goal.
- Drink at least two cups of water before every meal.
- Make it a conscious habit to drink a glass of water very early in the morning and also at night.
- Keep track of your water intake by using a container. One way to do this by getting a special water bottle like this one here or this one and making sure you fill it with water daily. By doing so you are always reminded to take in water.
- One way to “sweeten” the taste of water is by adding some flavors. So you can add cucumbers, strawberries and fresh herbs to give your water some zing. Here is a good fruit infusion water pitcher you can use.
- Make sure you eat more fruits and vegetables. This will help to increase your body fluids with you taking in water.
Conclusion
You need water to survive
.That’s the plain and simple truth and you can easily calculate how much water you need to drink daily as a singer.
All you need to do is to make sure you are taking in a lot of fluids to maintain your body balance and to stay healthy.
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