Our weight can fluctuate daily, which can be extremely frustrating for those who have a competition coming up or are trying to hit a goal weight. One trick is to lose water weight – but what’s the best way to do it? and what is Anyway water weight?
According to personal trainers and nutritionists Josh SchlottmanCSCS, your body can retain water weight because your kidneys, in their role Fluid balance controlHold it rather than flushing it in the urine. This excess water, like the junk-food-filled weekend experienced, is temporarily pushed into your skin and organs, which can have the side effect of making you look puffy and puffy.
Fortunately, you can learn how to lose water weight by avoiding certain foods while enjoying others. Read on for our top ways to reduce water retention.
1. Avoid high-sodium foods
One of the most common causes of water weight gain is eating salty junk food, which causes your body to react by retaining excess water.
“Sodium helps your body absorb and retain water, which is why it’s so important as a workout supplement,” says Schlottman. Beachbody Performance Hydrate. “It’s useful if you’re trying to stay hydrated while playing basketball, but not great if you’re trying to look your best.”
So avoid high sodium foods before weight or wedding. These include cured, salted or smoked meats, salted nuts, frozen breaded meats or frozen meals, regular and processed cheeses, and prepackaged or processed foods.
2. Load up on high potassium foods
If you are unable to avoid salty foods consistently, eat potassium-rich foods instead. Potassium found inside the cell works with sodium outside the cell to maintain fluid balance, Sloatman said. Research has found A direct link between poor cardiovascular health and a diet low in potassium and high in sodium.
The same study concluded that people who eat a high-salt diet would benefit from increasing their potassium intake, especially if they are sensitive to salt. Now, this doesn’t mean you can ditch the salt with abandon, but increasing dietary potassium can help restore balance if you’re consuming a lot of sodium and experiencing water retention.
Whether you’re trying to develop healthy habits or lose some water weight, aim to eat potassium-rich foods like avocados, coconut water, dried apricots, bananas, lemons and leafy greens. Other sources of potassium include milk, coffee, chicken, orange and grapefruit juice, and potatoes (although, of course, avoid salty French fries).
3. Supplement where you can
Dandelion root supplement Excess water can help rid your system. More research is needed, but animal studies are suggestive Different parts of herbs serve unique functions:
- Stimulates bile production to remove key toxins and restore hydration and electrolyte balance.
- The leaves can be used as a diuretic, a substance that promotes urination.
Plus, dandelions are also high in potassium, so you’ll get a double dose of water-expelling benefits.
4. Sauna injury
For a quick fix to flush excess water weight, spend 15 to 20 minutes in a sauna. According to a study by Harvard Medical SchoolYou can sweat about a pint of liquid in a short time in a hot house.
One reason saunas help remove excess water is that the heat nearly doubles the amount of blood your heart pumps per minute as your pulse rate increases. That extra blood flow circulates to the skin in the form of sweat.
5. Hydrate
Although it may seem counterintuitive, an easy way to avoid water retention (and subsequent weight gain) is to stay well hydrated.
“If you don’t drink enough water, your body will conserve what water it has,” says John GardnerA certified NASM personal trainer. “Also, when you’re dehydrated, the kidneys don’t excrete excess sodium and water, which increases water weight.”
How much water should you drink every day? According to the US National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine:
- male Drink about 3.7 liters (about 125 ounces) of fluid a day.
- woman Aim for about 2.7 liters (about 90 ounces) a day.
6. Cut carbs
“When you eat more carbohydrates than your body needs, the excess is stored as glycogen,” says Gardner. “For every gram of glycogen stored in the body, three grams of water are also stored. That’s why one of the best ways to lose water weight is to reduce your carbohydrate intake.”
Following a low-carb diet, such as the paleo or ketogenic diet, can help you lose weight faster, often resulting in water weight loss. A Analysis The National Center for Biotechnology Information notes that a strict keto diet (there is also a lazy keto diet) can cause rapid weight loss, but in most cases the result is mostly due to a diuretic effect, i.e. water weight loss.
So if you want to lose a few pounds quickly or weigh in for a competition, you may want to consider cutting carbs. However, just remember that severely limiting carbohydrates is not a sustainable long-term strategy for most people.
