Most Americans spend the majority of their lives dehydrated, which can cause a host of health problems on its own, in addition to compounding effects on preexisting health conditions. Knowing this, we often ask “How Much Water Do I Need to Stay Hydrated?”
How Much Water Do I Need to Stay Hydrated?
According to leading health experts, you should drink half your body weight in fluid ounces of water every day to stay properly hydrated. For example, if you weigh 190 pounds, you need to drink 95 ounces of water every day to maintain a baseline of good hydration. However, you may need to drink significantly more water every day because this rule does not consider fluid loss from sweat, exercise, sunlight, or dehydrating beverages and medications.
Don’t Gulp!
Gulping down 32 ounces of water every hour is counterproductive. Your body can’t absorb and utilize fluid that you intake at a rapid pace, which is why, when you are pounding down fluids, you’ll have to run for the bathroom every 45 minutes.
How About Electrolytes?
Water alone is not enough to keep you adequately hydrated if you’re sweating a lot. When you sweat or cry, you lose electrolytes in the form of salt. The more water in your system, the greater the imbalance of electrolytes, which is why it is essential to replace those lost electrolytes. To replace lost electrolytes, try Coconut water or salted chicken broth. Both are excellent sources of electrolytes.
Chiropractic and Dehydration
If you suffer from frequent neck pain, leg pain, or shoulder pain, you could look to dehydration as the cause.
With neck pain, the dehydrated body develops tighter muscles, ligaments, and tendons, leading to neck stiffness. This tightness makes it more challenging to move your neck and can sometimes cause pain.
The very large leg muscles require a significant amount of blood flow to function well. If you are dehydrated, blood flow is impaired, reducing the number of nutrients reaching your muscles. This can cause discomfort in your leg muscles and makes you vulnerable to cramping.
Finally, shoulders are packed full of ligaments and tendons that require lubrication to work smoothly. If you do not drink enough water, the availability of lubrication decreases, which can lead to inflammation, pain, and joint mobility issues.
How Much Water Do I Need After an Adjustment
After you visit your chiropractor, your body may feel differently. For the first 24 hours, you may experience mild side effects. After adjustments or realignment, your body begins to go through the healing process. So, it is vital to eat a healthy diet and keep your body hydrated. Drink more water immediately after an adjustment to help you catch up on your hydration.
Once this happens, the toxins that have been building up are finally able to be released. Again, drinking water after the adjustment will help to eliminate these toxins from your body more quickly. Electrolyte replenishment and Epsom salt baths to replenish lost electrolytes can also help eliminate toxins and reduce overall muscular soreness in the body. We recommend drinking water and taking a hot bath after each adjustment to aid your body with toxin elimination.