Water Therapy for Weight Loss

Written by Ahmed Zayed Helmy, MD, on January 01, 2020

There is a reason, or should we say, a long list of reasons why water therapy has been, is and continues to be one of the best ways to improve the quality of your life, your mental, and physical health. Water therapy is told to have way too many positive effects on our health, but the one positive effect that we would like to discuss today is its ability to enhance our weight loss journey. Water therapy is suggested to cause a number of effects that influence the weight loss process, but are any of them true? Can you really rely on something as simple and effective as water therapy to help you lose those last couple of pounds? Let's look into these questions a little bit more closely.

What is water therapy?

As water makes up for about three-quarters of our bodies, it is an inevitable fact that it plays a great role in maintaining our good health, both physical and mental. Water therapy is an ancient practice that has been a part of the Ayurvedic and Japanese health rituals for quite some time now. Water therapy points out to the importance of daily water consummation in order to gain all of the benefits that drinking water has on our health (1).

It involves daily consummation of around 1 to 1, 5 liters of pure, fresh water as soon as you wake up. This is thought to give your body a real boost in the morning, not to mention all of the expected beneficial effects on your health as well. Some lemon juice can be added to the water in order to improve its taste, but also, to add a few other health benefits that lemon has for our health. The water is to be drunk, either cold or lukewarm, depending on your personal preferences (2).

The benefits of water therapy

Water is, in most cases, a low-cost drink that is both refreshing and hydrating, but as it turns out, completely healthy for our health as well. And you would think that drinking water first thing in the morning will enhance your weight loss experience? But before we proceed to talk about how water therapy helps the weight loss process, let's explore all of the additional health benefits as well.

It cleanses your body from harmful toxins

When you are feeling dehydrated, removing the present toxins and waste material, it represents an awfully difficult task for your body. On the other hand, drinking water throughout the day will help your kidneys filter the waste and toxins better while retaining the much-needed nutrients in the body. The water therapy will help balance the body’s natural pH and give you the boost that you have been looking for in the morning. Practicing water therapy each day will reflect positively on your kidney health (3).

It improves your skin complexion

Now that all of the toxins and waste are being regularly and properly eliminated, you will notice as your skin is getting a glow that you have not yet experienced. By drinking water, you will assure a healthy blood flow and an elimination of the unwanted toxins which in return will give your skin a natural glow and blush that will make your skin look young and healthy – an effect that we often tend to achieve by applying various chemicals to your skin, when the answer is as simple as water therapy.

It helps relieve issues with constipation

Have you been having digestive issues that include constipation or diarrhea? Do you know that it is probably your insufficient water intake that is causing these common digestive issues, especially when it comes to constipation? Practicing water therapy will improve the ability of your colon to absorb the needed nutrients on a more effective level while purifying the colon itself in the process. By doing so, water therapy makes sure that a proper nutrient breakdown and digestion happens so that issues such as constipation, bloating, gas, stomach cramps, and diarrhea are no longer a part of your life (4).

It boosts your immune system

Water therapy helps strengthen your immune system in a number of ways. For starters, by flushing the dangerous toxins and waste material, it helps prevent the harmful bacteria and fungi from overproducing, shielding you from various health issues. In addition, it activates and flushes your lymphatic system, helping your immune system to grow stronger. So not only will you feel refreshed all day long, but you will also feel as your immune system’s power is growing and growing stronger each day (5).

Prevents dehydration by hydrating your body all day long

And what is probably the most obvious health benefit of water therapy and water drinking in general, is keeping your body hydrated and refreshed all throughout the day (6). Dehydration is a dangerous health issue that is linked as a source for a number of additional medical diseases and disorders, as well. Not only will you feel better, but you will also act to prevent a long list of mild to more serious health issues that you certainly do not want to have in your life.

Water therapy for weight loss – does it work?

So now, we have come to what represents the most important part of today's article, and that is the link between water therapy and weight loss. Of course, all of the previously mentioned health benefits are more than welcome, but we have all gathered up here with one question in mind – Can water therapy help you lose weight? And if yes, how exactly?

You see, there are quite a few effective methods that need to be discussed here. Water therapy truly does enhance our weight loss experience and helps us see the wanted results sooner than we have expected. But the thing that is most important here is the fact that water therapy is helping the weight loss process without exposing us to starvation, any health risks, or endangering our life. In fact, this is one of the most inexpensive, but most effective weight loss methods that you could have asked for (7). Let’s look into the methods that are applied with the water therapy for weight loss.

It suppresses your appetite

While you are eating, your stomach is gathering the information that is later sent to your brain in order to let it know when you are actually full. Well, the same effect can be achieved by drinking freshwater as well. Drinking water before your meals can efficiently reduce the number of calories that you intake during a meal. (8) Water therapy, combined with a high-protein breakfast, can help you reduce the number of calories, not only during the breakfast itself but throughout the entire day as well. You will reduce the risk of overeating, the intake of empty calories, and, most importantly, you will not feel hungry and will not have to starve yourself in order to lose those last couple of pounds.

It boosts your metabolism

But reducing the number of calories that you intake is not enough. You need to give your metabolism a real boost if you want to experience worthy results. Drinking water, both cold and warm, has been shown to increase the calorie-burning rate throughout the entire day. Although some individuals recommend drinking ice water for the best results, research says otherwise (9). Both warm and cold water are able to speed up your metabolism and help you burn more calories than ever before.

It reduces the overall liquid calorie intake

Water therapy will also help you avoid the empty calories that are often hiding inside caffeinated drinks, juices, and sodas. These are the true empty calories that you should avoid (10). Instead of sipping on a sports drink or a store-bought smoothie, why not sip on your water all day long. Of course, you can always prepare a homemade smoothie or juice at home but focus on drinking as much as water as you can whenever you can.

It helps with your workout

Drinking water helps enhance the quality of your workouts. Being hydrated during a workout will help your muscles and joints to move properly while helping your lungs, heart, and other organs to work efficiently in order for only the best results possible to be achieved during your workout. Water is to be consumed before, during, and after each workout, and water therapy can especially help enhance your workouts if you are one of those people that like to have their workout early in the morning to give their day the jump start that they need.

Steps for water therapy

Water therapy is pretty easily practiced. It does not have any special requirements, nor does it take a lot of your time to be completed. Water therapy can and is recommended to be practiced by each and every one of us as a way to improve our health and strengthen our mind. Here are the simple yet effective steps for water therapy.

Step number 1 – After a good night's sleep, wake up to your water bottle. Fill in your water bottle with some freshwater and sip on it until you have had around 1 to 1, 5 liters of freshwater. As we mentioned earlier, you may decide to squeeze half a lemon or throw a few lemon slices in your water bottle to give you the additional boost that you have been craving for. A pinch of salt can be added to the water as well, although this is a matter that needs to be discussed with proper healthcare professionals (11).
Step number 2 – Although brushing our teeth is naturally the first thing that we do after we open our eyes (that is after we are done looking through our phone, of course), you might want to skip it while practicing the water therapy. Make sure that you have drunk at least around 400 – 600 milliliters of water first and then proceed to brush your teeth and do your skincare routine.

Step number 3 – Instead of throwing yourself to prepare your breakfast, continue sipping on your water for at least 40-50 minutes for the best results. You can use this time to make your bed, shower, and get ready instead.
Step number 4 – After 40-50 minutes, it is time for your breakfast. Make sure that you have a filling breakfast that will give you the energy and strength that you need throughout the day. One tip, though – make sure that you are not drinking any water in the 2 hours after your breakfast or any other meal that will follow.

And there you have it – Through these four simple steps, you will practice the art of water therapy and gain all of the benefits that we have discussed so far. You do not need any specific preparation nor equipment – all that you need is some freshwater to do its trick for your health. You might want to invest in a good water bottle, of course, since it is way more convenient to carry around with you and make sure that you are sipping on water throughout the whole day. Not only will you avoid spending money, buying water, you will also avoid drinking from plastic bottles which are in no way healthy. Plus, the planet Earth will thank you! But drinking 1, 5 liters of water a day is not sufficient. You will need to continue to drink at least 6 to 8 glasses of water throughout the day as well, respecting the recommended amount of water that is to be drunk on a daily level (12). Only that way will you be able to truly gain all of the beneficial effects that have been discussed in today’s article.

Conclusion

Water therapy will do a lot more than simply give you a jump start on your day and morning routine. Not only will it help boost your energy levels and protect you from the seasonal cold and various other diseases, but water therapy will also help you lose weight in a healthy and effective matter. Water therapy is one of the easiest and most effective methods that are easily incorporated in one's life, delivering wondrous effects that reflect greatly on our health and, most importantly – our weight loss journey. Rely on water therapy to provide the help and guidance that you seek throughout the weight loss journey to achieve the best possible results.

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