Elixir of Life: H20

WATER: The elixir of life, that which sustains all. The trees that help us breathe, the plants that grow in the yard, but most importantly (at least to us), our bodies, and we need LOTS. It’s everywhere, we’re mostly made of it, but yet we need to sustain our intake, or we can experience nasty side effects, and the crazy thing is that most people don’t know that negative things we experience every from headaches to the feeling of not being able to concentrate, usually stems from poor water consumption.

The Facts: You need a cup (250mL) of water for every 20lbs you weigh, every day. If you do physical activity (like hot yoga), depending on how much you sweat (you know, like a full bucket in class) you need 1-2 litres of water to replenish. WHOA THAT IS A LOT! Yes, it is, but having a water bottle with you all the time makes it easy. Tip: Deck out your bottle! Make it your own, put some stickers on it. You’ll become strangely attached and proud of it. You’re also doing the planet a huge favor by not buying plastic (studies show bottled water is bad for you anyway). But come on, who has enough time to be going to the bathroom that much all day? This is true, you will have to go to the bathroom a lot more, but only at first! If you make a dedicated effort to staying consistently hydrated, after about 3 months, your body will adapt, your bladder will become stronger, and you will go back to your regular pee schedule, but you will pee more when you do go.

When I did my first training with Moksha back in 2011, we had an amazing functional anatomy teacher named Pierre. Pierre was fascinated by water, you could not find a better advocate for it. He told us of a study where a group of people who suffered from a wide range of illness’ participated in an experiment. These people also had very little or in some cases, no water intake. The experiment was simple: Introduce one glass of water a day into their life, and gradually over time, introduce another, and another. The results of the study were published and were astonishing. The patients showed majorly reduced effects of their particular illness and in a lot of cases, were relieved completely.

If you’ve ever had a headache after class, your probably poorly hydrated. If you feel irritable and tired during your work day, have a glass or two of some o’ that good ol’ H2O! We have filtered taps at the studio that produce some of the freshest natural compound you can get. So until next time, stay hydrated, and pee often. PEACE.