Stay hydrated to stay fit

Did you know that the average human body is 60% water? That's why staying hydrated is just as important as eating well is to your fitness routine!

An interesting case study done over 8-weeks revealed that focusing on water intake alone, without any other dietary changes, resulted in improved metabolisms and significant weight loss. The participants simply drank two cups of water half an hour before every meal, three times a day, and lost weight!

Simply put, if you have some pounds to shed, drink more water.

How water keeps you healthy

1. Thermogenesis is your body’s ability to produce heat and burn calories. It is stimulated by your water intake, which increases your metabolic rate. Studies like the one I mentioned above proves that simply drinking more water every day can dramatically increase your metabolic rate by up to 30%!

2. Nutrient absorption and digestion are also aided by water intake. The cells in your body use water to transport fats, proteins, and carbs throughout your body, as well as remove waste efficiently!

3. Water helps suppress your appetite. So, rather than trying to satiate your thirst with unnecessary calories between meal times, drinking water instead of snacking can help you reduce the amount of food you eat by up to 20%! So next time you're feeling like a little more than a piece of fruit or a few crackers between meals? Grab a glass of H2O!

How much water to drink when you exercise

The American College of Sports Medicine recommends that when you’re physically active, you drink:

• 2-3 cups of water 2-3 hours before you exercise

• 1/2 to 1 cup of water every 15 to 20 minutes while you exercise

• 2-3 cups of water after your exercise for every pound (0.5 kilogram) of weight you lose during the workout…

Also, don't forget that the hotter it is, the more you sweat, the more you will need to replenish your fluids.

And, while water is great, if you're planning to exercise for more than an hour, consider using a sports drink to help you maintain your body's electrolyte balance, or better yet, make your own by adding a little lemon, honey and salt into your water, to create a similar effect.

How to tell if you're drinking enough water

Research shows that drinking 8 glasses of water a day isn’t as important as simply staying hydrated. Everyone's body is unique. An easier method than counting cups is to simply focus on staying hydrated.

Easy ways to stay hydrated:

• Stay on top of your thirst - Grab a water bottle you like and keep it by your side. Simply feeling thirsty means that you’re already dehydrated, so drink up!

• Keep an eye on the porcelain throne - Dark yellow pee is a sure sign of dehydration, so drink more and aim to make it as clear a yellow as possible.

• Keep an eye on your moodiness – Feeling tired, grumpy, unable to focus, and headachy are all signs of dehydration. So if you want to pop an over the counter painkiller, consider munching on a saltine and drinking a glass of water first to see if that helps.

Whether you’re getting active or not, simply choosing water over everything else is your best bet to fitness and hydration success. Everything you drink counts towards your daily fluid intake, but remember to choose healthy alternatives like low-fat milks, low-sugar juices, and do your best to avoid sugary soft drinks and caffeine filled coffees and teas.

Check out our Vacation Flex Meal Guide for more ideas on how to build your own perfect meal plan without having to count calories.

The best way to eat around your workouts

Fasting before a workout does not help you burn extra calories. In fact, it’s downright terrible for you, especially as you get older.

So, if you are one of those that thinks that by not eating before hitting the gym, your body is going to burn your stubborn fat stores away more quickly? Think again.

Some folks think that doing that is a great way to jumpstart their metabolism, but that’s just a myth.

What will happen instead is you will starve yourself, deplete your energy stores, and burn right out to the point that, not only will you NOT make it through your workout; but you could even hurt yourself!

Some of the consequences of not eating enough to sustain your workouts include:

1. Depleting energy and blood sugar levels.

2. Burning muscle instead of fat

3. Burn out, feeling too tired to push through.

Not too much, not too little

While it is definitely possible to out-eat your workout and negate the entire process, meaning you might as well have just skipped the whole thing, eating too little is just as bad for you, if not worse.

Your body needs you to give it calories via the food that you eat to perform even its most basic functions, like breathing air, and pumping blood. And you get calories from the food that you put into your body.

Waking up and going for a jog without anything in your system could be the reason you don’t feel able to push through, unless you have a small snack. So what do you need to do? Grab a little cereal bar!

This will be just enough food to keep your engine running during your jog, much like tossing ten-bucks in your gas tank. It’s enough to get you where you need to go, but not so much that you’ll feel too full or heavy for your jog.

Before, during and after

Aim to eat a full meal at least three hours before your golf game, jog, or workout; another high-carb snack, such as a cereal bar, two hours before; a smaller, high-carb snack, such as a banana, about 30-mins before you hit the green; a high-carb snack during your workout if it’s going to surpass the 60-minute mark, and some protein and a full meal afterwards.

Here’s a quick look at the best way to eat around working out:

• Meal 3 hours before

• Carb snack 2 hours (max), to 30 mins (min) before

• Carb snack during, if your workout is 60+ minutes

• Protein snack at least 60 mins after

• Meal 2 hours after

Here’s why

Fuelling up with a small snack about 30-minutes before you exercise will optimize your workout. The boost in calories will help you burn more calories, resulting in an increase in endurance levels, decrease your hunger afterwards, and keep you from burning muscle instead of fat! Talk about a good return!

An expert in the field of sport nutrition, Heidi Skolnik, MS, CDN, FACSM, says that it’s important to balance your nutritional intake with fitness in order to support and balance your body’s hormones! If you don’t, the consequences could range from: irregular periods (in females); low libido and erectile dysfunction (in males); and brittle bones leading to an increased risk of osteoporosis and fractures as you age.

“Even if you’re trying to lose weight, it’s essential to make sure you’re taking in enough energy to fully benefit from your workouts and achieve the strength, endurance, agility and flexibility that you hope to gain,” she explains. “Eating a balanced diet and being smart about snacking can help you stay fueled throughout your workouts.”

Check out our Vacation Flex Meal Guide for more ideas on how to build your own perfect meal plan without having to count calories.

Log your way to success

Studies show that when you write down your goals, and keep track of your achievements, you are much more likely to succeed.

This is why our Vacation Flex Program recommends you not only set goals for yourself, but also log your progress - daily.

Maybe you’d like to live longer, feel happier, or look better in a swimsuit. Whatever your motivation, this important aspect of maintaining a healthy lifestyle will not only help you keep your goals in sight, it will also help them feel realistic and attainable!

Tips for tracking your progress

Whatever your overarching lifestyle goals are, developing a beautiful, manageable daily log of your progress towards them will drastically help you improve your overall health. From white boards, to food and fitness journals, to meal planning and workout tracking apps, there are many ways to log your progress.

And while we offer an excellent logging method in our Vacation Flex Program, it may not be the best route for you. So, we have put together a list of elements that make for a fun, useful, and easily implementable logging system.

So, grab a pen and piece of paper, or open your notes app, and let’s get started!

1. Make a list of goals

Draft 2 to 4 goals (keep it light) along with a few very brief reasons below each as to why each aspect is important to you, so you can check them off as you go.

• Examples:

  • Goal - “Increase my endurance”

  • Reasons - “Keep up with Tom on his morning jog” - “Play with grand-kids at the park for 20 minutes”

Pro tip: Make your list cheery by using bright colours, sparkles, stickers, or pictures that visually represent your goals; and hang it in a high traffic spot, such as: your fridge, mirror, or bedside table - where you can see it every day.

2. Create a “Daily Log”

Choose a nice notebook to use as a log book, or a whiteboard that you can photograph and print out later, and choose any or all of the following to keep track of:

• Date (at the top)

• Wake/Sleep - times

• Mood - description

• Weather - description

• Weight/dress size - description

• Meals (Breakfast, Lunch, Snack & Dinner) - times & descriptions

• Water intake - checklist (2L minimum per day, or 8 glasses of water)

• Caffeine intake - checklist (400 mg max per day, or 1 to 2 cups)

• Exercise routine - times and descriptions (you can even break it down further into the following:)

  • Stretching routine - times and descriptions

  • Walking/Jogging routine - times and descriptions

  • Rest day routine - times and descriptions

  • Workout/Yoga routine - times and descriptions

• *Notes - snapshot journal entries

Pro tip: You can also use our easy to use Vacation Flex Logging System and Meal Guide.

3. Create your ideal routine

Either on the first page of your log book, or as your first run through on your whiteboard, fill out your log list to create your ideal schedule and use it as a reference in the days and weeks to come.

Pro tip: Put a copy of this up next to your goals list so you can look at it every day!

4. Log your progress daily

Fill out your daily log and do your best to meet your goals. Whether you write down your goals and track your progress in point form using any of the methods mentioned above, nothing is as satisfying as checking off your goals.

Pro tip: Don't spend too much time writing a lot, just try to give yourself a snap-shot of how your day went in as few words as possible.

5. BONUS: Making notes

Writing down mini journal entries in your notes section is a very important part of the process that we highly recommend. Noting every success and frustration, either as you go, or at the end of your day, every day by keeping it short, sweet, and to the point will help you take a snapshot of your progress. It will help you know what you're good at (celebrate!) and what you need to work on (progress!)

Pro tip: Here are some examples of the *Notes you may write:

• “Walked around block after dinner while listening to a new podcast made time fly!!"

• “Alternating walking/jogging - day 3, got to 5-5-5!! Not long until I am jogging the whole time!" <https://www.agelessgolffitness.com/post/building-your-endurance-with-walking-jogging-intervals>

• "New breakfast = win! Oatmeal with peanut butter = yum! Fast, easy, filling!”

Whatever your goals are, the proof is in the science. Logging your progress is the magic ingredient that will help you hit your personal wellness bullseye! You can take your goals to the next level by tracking your journey.

To get started on your logging journey, try our Vacation Flex Program free for 7 days!