How much water do we really need?:
No, you don’t need to count 8 glasses of water a day. But your body, your attitude, and your bank account will thank you for drinking more. Here are the numbers:
- Men: about 15.5 cups (3.7 litres) daily
- Women: about 11.5 cups (2.7 litres) daily
That sounds like a lot, but it’s not just straight water. About 20% comes from food, and more comes from other drinks. Everything in our body needs a constant supply of water to function efficiently. Deny your tissues enough water, and dehydration sets in. Getting thirsty happens after you’ve gotten dehydrated, and the dreaded headache after that. Dehydration affects our mood, outlook, and productivity level. If you can’t afford to waste time in your job, then you can’t afford to be dehydrated.
Science Says So:
A 2013 study at the University of London wanted to quantify if water makes us more productive. So:
- 34 people in Group A ate a plain breakfast with no water
- 34 people in Group B ate breakfast with water after
Both groups were asked to perform simple tasks, and Group B performed 14% better than Group A. In the world of business, 14% is a big margin. They tried it another way. Researchers asked teens to ride bicycles for an hour and half in heavy clothing. The exertion actually shrunk their brains to the equivalent of aging 1 year. After drinking water, the shrinkage reversed.
How drinking water makes us more money:
Without water, your blood can’t carry enough oxygen to your brain. Losing as much as 2% of your body’s water can kill your motivation, spike your fatigue, and make everything just a little more stressful. Your brain function suffers at the very beginning of dehydration; well before you even feel thirsty let alone get a headache. Your business won’t perform at its best if you don’t, so drink up.
How do we drink enough water:
First we need to know how much we need. There’s a formula: divide your weight (in pounds) in 2 and that’s how many ounces you need. So a 200 pound man needs 100 ounces or about 3 litres a day. And no, you shouldn’t guzzle it all at once.
We’re just not going to remember to go to the water cooler that many times (and we’re normally shushing our employees away from there, anyway). Here’s a hack: include drinking a glass of water in your daily routines.
- When you brush your teeth: have a glass
- Before you have supper: have a glass
- Before you turn on Netflix when you should be catching up on paperwork: have a glass
This will turn drinking water regularly into a habit. It will get you to your daily intake and get your brain at peak performance where it needs to be.
It’s your job to build your business. Don’t deny yourself the mental function to do that to the best of your ability.
Study Link Here
