WATER - The Ultimate Performance Ally

Water may be considered one of the world's most fundamental nutrients for life. Therefore, a lack of water within the body is capable of negatively impacting nearly every activity that we try to perform. Since the perception of thirst is an inaccurate indicator of the need to consume water, dehydration has become a common ailment that often goes unnoticed until it's too late.

If we investigate the research, dehydration has a profound effect on physical measures. Acute dehydration has been linked to conditions such as headaches, irritability, muscle cramps and fatigue; while chronic dehydration can cause severe issues like weight gain, elevated cholesterol, autoimmune diseases, asthma and allergies. Jet lag and repetitive stress injuries can also be minimized with hydration strategies by boosting circulation and depositing more oxygen rich blood to the stressed tissues. As you can see, the consequences of dehydration are truly endless.

Athlete's lives are predicated by rituals and routines, which give them a sense of control over chaotic environments. Dehydration then, can cause a sense of uneasiness for athletes because they can no longer control variables they rely on to succeed. Dehydration of as little as 1-2% of body weight can begin to negatively influence strength, power and fatigue rates.

One of the most detrimental performance effects that an athlete can face due to dehydration is the lack of neuromuscular control in finite movements. If you look at a baseball pitcher, they are rewarded for control and accuracy. Strikeouts and home runs are the result of strict communication between the nervous system and the muscles they innervate. Dehydration results in decreased blood volume, which can lead to premature fatigue and ultimately result in this loss of control. In a study by Distefano et al., 2012, researchers found that when athletes were dehydrated, they displayed unwanted hip, knee and ankle movements as well as poor landing techniques on jumping exercises. Dehydration not only compromises our success, it predispose's our body to increased injury potential.

The usual guidelines given to instructors and coaches are that a person should drink approximately two liters of water per day. Exercise and heat increase the demand for fluids. As the body works harder, more heat is created, which needs to be lost. Approximately 75% of the energy used in exercise produces heat, with the remaining 25% going to useful work. The heat loss occurs when we perspire and also when we exhale. Although it is common to think of dehydration in the context of heat and exercise, if the environment is arid then significant fluid loss can also occur through the skin and exhaled breath.

Success in any endeavor is predicated by having the optimal resources in the correct amounts. Therefore, achieving our optimal performance cannot be achieved without achieving adequate hydration levels. Health, wellness, longevity, hormone balance and performance will all benefit from staying in-tune with your body hydration needs.

Proper Fasting

Fasting is commonly heard of today with the multitude of 'health' suggestions we hear, read and see being advertised. There usually is a dichotomous result during discussion though. People are either for or against it. Interestingly, there are many products online, in health food stores and usually in our friends and family's houses which can make coming to a knowledgeable conclusion difficult. Hopefully after you finish this article, you will be more able to fast healthily.

Studying the body, we know that the skin is the largest organ and second is the liver. The function of the liver is multifaceted but its largest task is detoxification. This is important to understand because it is not necessary to buy products, take supplements or flush anything out of the body with a particular substance. The liver has the ability to breakdown any and everything that enters the body. It can get overwhelmed like any other organ. So, for the liver to do an exceptional job at detoxifying our blood and tissues, the abstinence of ingesting food decreases its burden. When you buy any type of product to detox, understand that the liver is still the main laborer in the process of ridding the body of toxins. Nothing can take the primary position that the liver possesses in the body. The spleen and kidneys are also detoxifying organs but their function is not as abundant. The liver has already done some alterations and the kidney's responsibility is to extract the water soluble toxins from the bloodstream and eliminate them through the urine while the fat soluble toxins are excreted through feces. The spleen works to eliminate all cells from the blood which are not in optimal working fashion.

In addition, the amount of work that the digestive system does on a daily basis usually accumulates to the majority of the work in a day because the average American lives and works in a sedentary manner. There are studies that have suggested that digestion is directly related to aging. This would summarize that a person who eats multiple meals is aging each time they eat and the person who fasts regularly (no food in a 24 hour period) is resting their body and either suspending or reversing the aging process. When we eat, even if it is good quality food, we intake some toxins, we produce and absorb acid as well as the macro and micro nutrients from the food which activates work and storage in the body. This process of digestion and absorption is a process that produces an acidic nature in the body. This acidic phase is normal after absorbing acid but the body needs time to return to its alkalinic optimal working environment. Even eating alkaline foods requires acid to break down so the resultant state is that of an acidic nature for a period of time.

In conclusion, you can trust that there is no product that has a superior ability than the organ that was made to detoxify (liver). All of the elements on the periodic table are in the human body of course at varying amounts so the body has the ability to rid anything from it, given the time. When the chewing, swallowing, digestion, absorption and eliminating work being done by the digestive system is aborted for a day or a few days, the liver and other detoxifying organs can turn their full potential to their primary focus which is ridding unwanted toxins and byproducts so the body can concentrate on the 6 r's which are: repair, rejuvenate, remodel, renew and regenerate. If we rest (fast) our bodies, we will be decreasing the aging process, increase the optimization of its functioning and promote a healthy longevity.