The Art of Health

Hydrate or Die!
"I have come to believe that caring for myself is not self-indulgent. Caring for myself is an act of survival.” - Audre Lorde

On our fifth day of the 300-mile expedition race, the Raid Gauloises in the Sultanate of Oman, my team was halfway through the 80-kilometer trekking leg of the race in the Al Hajar mountains and had run out of water 22 hours earlier. We were past dehydrated, in a mental fog, and moving at a snail's pace.
The race directors found us and were hovering overhead in a helicopter. Yelling through a bullhorn in French, they were offering us a 1.5-liter bottle of water in trade for adding a five-hour penalty to our race time.
We were drained, with barely any energy, but we also were Team American Pride! So instead of accepting potentially life-saving water and the penalty, we pulled down our pants and mooned the race directors watching us in disbelief; they hovered a few more minutes and then choppered away.
Woo Hoo Team American Pride! We do not need your help!….. but we still had no water and were lost navigating the Omani mountains.
We made a colossal mistake; we were physically shutting down and losing concentration. We needed to get to the next checkpoint six kilometers away, where water and food were.
An hour later we came upon a Bedouin herding his goats. Was I was hallucinating?
We didn’t speak Arabic, and he didn't speak English. We pointed to our water bottles, then our chapped lips. The Bedouin understood what we were asking. He turned, pointed into the distance, and jogged away, goats in tow. We frantically took off after him.
He was barefoot, but he and his goats were outpacing us over the rocky terrain. He led us to a cliff edge and pointed down to a tiny pool of standing water at the bottom of a 100-foot canyon.
He nodded, smiled, and jogged off with his goats. One curious goat stayed to watch us descend into the canyon and reach the 3'x 2' water hole occupied by a dead snake, various little creatures, and an oily substance floating on the surface. Thirsty? Even the goat left.
We strained the water through our socks into water bottles and added iodine tablets for safety.
It was the worst tasting water I ever drank. But within moments, my brain and body back on. We went from utter fatigue and deprivation to being fully alert again.
I never appreciated water more; I officially made water consumption a priority. It's hard to ignore when you discover how vital water is to your life.
Water is the energy source for the 30 trillion cells in your body. Water is responsible for regulating your nervous system, body temperature, blood pressure, digestion, elimination, lubricating joints, removal of cellular waste, toxins, and is a shock absorber for your brain, spinal cord, and fetus during pregnancy.
If you are not drinking, you are not thinking.
Recovery time:
While sleeping, existing hydration is used to cleanse, repair, and remove cellular and bodily waste. This hydration must be replaced daily.
Hydration is a daily mission. Each day you should consume water before drinking or ingesting anything else.
Not hydrating properly makes it challenging to improve and maintain health.
Coffee, tea, juices, wine, beer, soda, and other beverages, are not counted as water. Only H2O counts as water.
Dehydration creates physical fatigue, mental weariness, hunger, chills, and disorientation. Even slight losses of hydration create metabolic limitations easily avoided by consuming enough water.
Prep the metabolism for success:
Morning hydration determines your metabolic momentum for the entire day. Begin each day the healthy H2O way.
1-Immediately after waking, before using the bathroom when possible, consume your 1st 6-10 oz glass of water.
Drink from a glass, not a bottle, to avoid swallowing air a bottle can create. Room temperature water is the easiest to consume.
2-After drinking the 1st glass of water, use the bathroom, then Immediately consume the 2nd 6-10 oz glass of water.
3-Consume a 3rd 6-10 oz glass within the first hour of waking.
For clarification:
-Drink 6-10 ounces of water when waking up
-Drink a second 6-12 ounces of water after using the bathroom
-Drink a third 6 oz glass of water within the 1st hour of waking.
If relying on coffee or other caffeine beverages for energy, I encourage you to consume water in place of those caffeinated or sugar-filled drinks for one week for your body to experience natural hydration energy. The effect is healthier and longer-lasting than caffeinated beverages that also dehydrate you.
Daily hydration after the first hour of being awake:
Every hour awake consume 6-8oz ounces of water.
Miss an hour? Consume two 6-8 ounce glasses the following hour. The body can process approximately 30 ounces of water per hour, so no more than 4-5 hours of hydration can be replaced in one hour. Be mindful of going hours without hydrating to stop the detrimental physical and mental effects dehydration cause.
The Daily H2O Rule:
Every day consume 75% of your body weight in ounces of water.
Multiply your bodyweight by .75.
If you weigh 150lbs, multiply 150 x .75 = 112.5
You should drink approximately 112.5 ounces daily, approximately seven ounces per hour over a 16hr day.
18-36 oz of water is consumed during the first waking hour, making the average only 5-7 ounces of water to optimize health.
Water is crucial for every metabolic function in the body. Hydration also comes from fruits and vegetables eaten, providing from 10-30% of your daily intake.
Your body is 75-80% water.
Water percentages critical parts of the body.
-The brain, over 80%
-The heart 75%
-The lungs 83%
-The skin 64%
-The muscles and kidneys 79%,
-The bones 31%
Hydration may increase the bathroom frequency initially. This removes waste, toxins, and reduces inflammation.
If constipated, daily hydration goals will naturally support mobility in that area.
If you are not drinking, you are not thinking.