pure water
Many people do not consider what they drink to be as important as what they eat when trying to lose weight. Take for example, pretty much any kind of fruit juice which is packed full of sugar (or the simplest of carbs)… What do you think is going to happen if you drink this stuff in large amounts? You’ll get fat, that’s what.
Fruit juice (and of course all other sugary drinks) are not bad for you if you drink moderately, but large amounts will produce a spike in blood sugar which will in turn cause your body to start immediately storing said sugars as fat, and as it’s in liquid form it will be digested very quickly as there is no dietary fibre or indigestible bulk to get in the way of the digestive process. I used to drink a litre of orange juice in one go, and wonder why I wasn’t losing any weight. I thought that because it was made from fruit it was healthy, and indeed most fruit juices contain good amounts of vitamins in varying quantities, it’s just that if you drink too much (like with anything) it will be counter-productive. Just drink water instead, if you’re thirsty enough it will taste just as good. It’s just a matter of conditioning yourself to reach for the water instead of the fruit juice.
If you make the water ice cold you probably stand to lose a few calories as your body burns a little bit extra to maintain your core temperature. See my post on cold water for the reasons behind this.
There are a couple more benefits to drinking water too.
- It makes you feel full.. Only for a short period of time, but as you know water is calorie neutral…. So to recap, something that makes you feel full, and has no colorific value whtsoever.
- When you are dehydrated, your body can mistake thirst for hunger, making you peckish when in fact you are thirsty. So drink some water first and see what happens.
