One of the great benefits of a blended juice cleanse is that it’s a great way to keep yourself hydrated. You’ve probably heard tons of doctors, medical professionals, and health-conscious family members point out the importance of getting enough water every day. But why exactly is that? Today we’ll go over everything you need to know about hydration and the benefits of water to the human body, and what you need to know about hydration and juice cleanses. If you’ve ever wondered “why do I need to stay hydrated” - then read on!
So, Why Do I Need to Stay Hydrated?
If aliens were to land on Earth tomorrow, you can bet that their first impression of our planet would be “wet”. Between oceans, rivers, and rain, water is everywhere - and that’s before you even get into all the water in plants and animals. The human body itself is roughly 60% water. Because water is such an integral “ingredient” to making “you”, it makes sense that you would get a lot of benefits out of keeping “topped up” on this vital fuel. Some of these benefits include…
Aiding Digestion
At Chef V, we’re all about promoting healthy digestive systems. And one of the best ways to keep a healthy digestive system is to drink plenty of water. Water is needed for your body to properly absorb food and get the most nutrients out of it. Not drinking enough water can lead to issues such as constipation, and trouble digesting certain nutrients such as fiber. If you’re having issues with bowel movements, or want to prevent constipation your relief could be as simple as upping your daily water intake.
Promoting Weight Loss
Weight Loss is also something that we’re big on at Chef V - and what do you know, water helps out with that as well. Partially this is just because water helps make you feel full, without adding on a lot of extra calories. However, water also helps you lose weight in other ways. It can help flush fat faster out of your body, and also boosts your metabolism, keeping your body’s natural fat-burning on track.
Protecting Tissues and Joints
Water isn’t just fuel for your body. It’s a lubricant as well. Getting the right amounts of water will help keep the tissues and joints in your body moist. This helps these parts of your body function better and provides more cushioning for you when you’re physically active. Being able to exercise with less discomfort can also help out that weight loss we talked about!
Boosts Your Cardiovascular System?
Do you know what’s mostly made of water? Blood - up to 90% of it is water. Do you know what blood is important for in your body? If you answered “pretty much everything”, you’re right. Just like your digestive system needs water running through it to work properly, your heart and blood system needs plenty of water to remain healthy and help regulate blood pressure.
Purifying Your System
Here’s another thing we love at Chef V - detoxing. And when it comes to the best detoxing substance on earth, you can’t get much better than the old classic of water. Your kidneys, liver, and other purifying organs need plenty of water to flush out those toxins. Without enough water, these systems are prone to developing nasty issues such as Kidney Stones.
Boosts Energy
Lastly, water just leaves you feeling all-around great. Not only does it provide the energy your body needs to move, but it provides fuel for your brain. With enough water, you’ll have the energy to kick butt throughout the day, no matter what it is you’re doing.
The Dangers of Dehydration
Getting water into you isn’t just about the benefits. If you don’t make sure that you regularly drink water and keep up a steady fluid intake, you could start to suffer from dehydration. The longer you go without enough water, the more severe symptoms can get. To start, you’ll have to deal with greater fatigue and dizziness as well as headaches. This can then progress into a feeling of overheating, muscle cramps, and even constipation. Prolonged dehydration can also lead to issues with the healthiness of your skin - not getting enough water can literally dry you out and age you!
So if you don’t want to turn into a walking mummy, it’s a good idea to keep those hydration levels up. Beyond the symptoms listed above, there are a few other good signs that can tell you that you aren’t getting enough daily water into you. Urine that is more yellow-ish than usual, dry lips and tongue, and even bad breath can all be signs of dehydration.
Avoiding dehydration can be trickier than it sounds. We assume that we just drink enough water and we’re good. But there are a lot of factors that can sneakily increase our body’s need for water. For example, if you’re exercising more, you’ll need more water to balance out all your sweating. If you’re sick, you might be vomiting out water from your body, or your medication might be messing with your hydration levels.
It could even be an issue with diet - fruits and vegetables are actually a good source of water on their own. If you aren’t getting enough in your diet, that could be leading to mild dehydration all on its own.
Blended Juice Cleanses and Hydration
So now that we know all the amazing benefits of hydration, how do juice cleanses play into this? Blended juice cleanses are actually a great way to stay hydrated. Not only are you getting most of your nutrition in liquid form, but you’re also getting plenty of those fruits and veggies we mentioned as important to hydration. The liquid focus of a cleanse is what makes it so good at detoxing your body.
Of course, this doesn’t mean that you should stop drinking water during a juice cleanse. Making sure to stay hydrated with glasses of water is a great way to help your body detox during a juice cleanse. Since water makes you feel more full, it also is a great way to help you if you have trouble handling your appetite during a juice cleanse.
So that’s the deal with hydration! If you have any other questions, don’t hesitate to contact us!