Avoid Sucking Weight

When I was in high school, I wrestled at 178 pounds…every year.  This was preceded every year by playing football at 230 pounds.  This meant, in wrestling lingo, “sucking weight.”  Most of our weight loss came from physical activity such as running for an hour in the gym every morning.  But when it came to a meet or tournament, we had to lose the last few pounds by any means necessary.  And that meant dehydrating ourselves. We would wear plastic bags and run, run, run.  We would chew on gum and spit in a cup.  We did whatever it took. I often had some last minute dehydration to perform before every weigh-in.

You are not losing weight unless you are fully hydrated and losing weight.

Trying to lose weight this way does not actually get you anywhere.  I remember at one point, in the last few months, I was having some ease in losing weight. This lasted for about two weeks.  That was because the Metformin I was taking for diabetes was causing gastric distress (to put it mildly).  I got to where I was looking forward to the bouts in the bathroom because I knew weight loss would soon follow.  But the weight came back as soon as my body adjusted and was able to re-hydrate.  This type of weight loss does not work.

You are not losing weight unless you are fully hydrated and losing weight.

Remember, we get much of our water intake through the food we eat. So, drink more if you are fasting.

Half your weight.

For years I have heard from doctors that they recommend the following formula to determine how much water you should drink: Divide your body weight (in pounds) by 2.  That is the number of ounces of water you should drink every day.

For example: If you weigh 400 pounds, you should drink 200 ounces of water every day.  Two hundred ounces comes to 25 cups (8 ounces each), or 6.25 quarts (32 ounces each) or about six liters of water (33.81 ounces each).

I agree.  But I call that a minimum.

With the advice of my physician, I drink more because I exercise 7 times per day and am much more active than I once was.  I was worried about getting sick from drinking too much water.  He assured me I would be fine and gave me some advice.

Check your pee

So, how do you know you are drinking the right amount of water?  Easy, check your pee.  That’s right, look at the toilet bowl. Make sure your pee is the color of pale lemonade.  Darker yellow means not enough water.  Clear water means you can back off the water intake throttle just a bit.

Remember, please check with your physician when beginning any weight loss plan.

Take supplements, not sports drinks.

If you are restricting your intake of calories, like it or not, you will have to take in more fluids. Taking in more fluids means you need to replace minerals.

If you get sick, the danger of dehydration worsens and often others will recommend sports drinks.

Instead, I drink water with sugar free water enhancers and take supplements. This restored what was lost in dehydration.

Watch your medication side effects.

Today, I feel so much better without my meds. I needed them when I was at my larger size. But they often dehydrated me. Even a one or two percent body dehydration can have a significant impact on my ability to function.

Remember, if you are on a weight loss plan, check in with your doctor more often, at least quarterly.

Dehydration can be detrimental to overall weight loss, physical health and mental health. So, please take care. And drink more water!