You need to stay hydrated. Mindlessly forcing yourself to down gallons of water each day just doesn’t make sense. You’re just going to be spending more time in the restroom.
You need to look at water as a vehicle for trace minerals. Hydration isn’t about drowning yourself in water. It’s about drinking to thirst and replenishing yourself with electrolytes.
Don’t be afraid to have fresh fruit, juices and to hydrate yourself with nourishing broth and kefir. Liquid calories aren’t the enemy when you do it right, and they’ll hydrate you incredible.
When it comes to actual water, you really have two options.
The first is to buy water ‘perfect’. This means looking for something that has minimal toxins that’s mineral-rich. Look for water without sodium fluoride (calcium fluoride is absolutely fine and is naturally occurring). You also want to minimize the presence of chlorine, pesticides, microplastics and heavy metals. You’ll want to avoid everything that comes in thin, plastic bottles for a start and opting for companies that sell in large jugs / cartons of glass… especially if you're going to be storing it for some time. Choose ground, spring and natural mineral water that's bottled at the source. Some of them even deliver by the gallon. There’s nothing more refreshing than a glass of sparkling water under the hot sun with a squeeze of fresh lemon.
Myth: You need 8 glasses of water a day to stay hydrated
Truth: Hydration is MORE than just drinking water. Ask yourself the right questions. How's your electrolyte balance? How much do you lose in exercise? Optimize for sodium, magnesium & potassium NOT just liters of water.
The other option is to make it yourself. This means filtering water with something like a reverse osmosis machine and then remineralizing it. What you want to focus on here is to re-introduce minerals as they would be in nature. The main ones are Magnesium, Sodium & Potassium. If you already drink coconut water daily and use a lot of sea salt on your food, an easy way is to just add some magnesium chloride flakes into your water.
DISCLAIMER: Not ALL municipal tap water is complete garbage. Many countries in Europe take pride in the quality of their tap water.. Some even provide spring water! Some studies have shown that some of these tap waters are actually better than mineral waters you buy at a supermarket!
Remember, don't chase an arbitrary 8 cups. Instead, drink to THIRST, and drink more post exercise. A good barometer is that your urine should not be concentrated. That will lead to a whole host of problems like kidney stones, UTIs, etc. Adjust your water intake accordingly, and you might need to ‘force’ yourself to drink more initially, especially if you've been dehydrated for a while and you're used to how that feels.
Issue 33
Conversation pits
The conversation pit needs to make a comeback
Submerge yourself in a pool
Hot baths were the original magnesium supplement
Sweet strawberry rolls, filled with fresh strawberry filling and topped with cream cheese icing and fresh strawberries, these sweet strawberry rolls are incredible. You will love serving these for breakfast or a special brunch. They are sure to become a family favorite. Enjoy!!
❋ CARLOTTA IS A LONDON HOMAGE TO 1980s ITALIAN-AMERICAN COOKING
The new Carlotta restaurant in Marylebone is the closest most Londoners will ever come to stepping into a Scorsese movie. A homage to 1980s Italian American culture, Carlotta has all the chintz and meatballs of Brooklyn’s best red sauce joints transported to one of London’s most upper-crust neighbourhoods.
Baguettes are one of the best-known types of bread. On the surface, they seem very simple—they’re just a long, thin loaf, or a “pointy stick,” as I sometimes call them—but the truth is, there is incredible depth and nuance not only in how to shape baguettes but also in managing fermentation to achieve the best flavor and texture possible.
One of the beautiful things about baguettes, and especially sourdough baguettes, is the fact that they are made from very simple ingredients. Usually, just one type of white flour, salt, water, and either commercial yeast (which is traditional) or, in the case here at The Perfect Loaf, a sourdough starter.
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Completely agree about the drinking gallons of water. Whenever I see a challenge like that, it just makes me cringe. I don't believe remineralizing RO water hydrates you in the same way as it would if them minerals weren't taken out in the first place. I'm walking proof of that. I was experiencing itchy skin for 8 whole years and after I started drinking spring water (which completely stopped my itching), I realized the issue started when I started (over)filtering my water. The impact itchy skin had on my life was incredible. I could only wear certain fabrics to not make my skin itch more, I resorted to using cooling muscle cream to feel anything but itching when I was trying to sleep at night, it literally impacted every waking moment of my day. And to find out that switching to spring water fixed this issue was mind blowing and of course some cognitive dissonance because all I ever heard before this is to filter filter filter your water! Get all the crap out. But that also gets out all the beneficial elements of the water too.
Good advice!