Imagine stepping on the scale in the morning and finding that your weight has increased overnight by quite a few pounds. This has happened to me more than once. When such a thing happens even as you are trying to lose weight with exercise and proper diet, it’s natural to feel panicked. But then I found out that such sudden weight gain was often due to water retention by my body.
I was relieved to know that I hadn’t gained any fat to deserve such spike in my weight. But water retention can make you feel bloated and look swollen. The good thing is that you can get rid of water retention without much hassle. Check out these 7 proven ways to lose water weight fast:
Cut down on your salt intake
Excessive salt in your diet can result in water retention in your body. But if you believe that you can cut down on your salt intake by simply avoiding the salt shaker, then you are mistaken.
Are you aware that a major portion of the salt in your diet comes from various types of fast food and processed food? Common food items like packaged soups, potato chips, frozen meals, French fries, processed meat, seasonings, pickles, and canned food are rich in salt. Avoid having such food items if you want to bid goodbye to water weight quickly.
Swap processed food for natural food
Processed food can disrupt your efforts to lose water weight. With their high sodium content, additives, and preservatives, processed food stand guilty of causing your body to retain water.
Cross out processed food from your diet and replace them with fresh fruits, vegetables, lean meat, and whole grains. Intake of such fiber-rich food will enable you to drop water weight in an effective manner.
Get on with exercises
When it’s a question of reducing water weight, exercise is one of the best ways out. Exercise enables your body to sweat and, in turn, decrease the amount of water stored in it.
So, put on those jogging shoes and hit the road or head straight to the gym. Walk, run, swim, jog, dance, do whatever you like but make sure that you sweat it out. The sauna is also a great option to increase your sweat and lose weight gained due to water.
Take to drinking more water
Yes, drink more water to reduce water weight. If your body is not hydrated enough, it can lead to water retention. By drinking an adequate amount of water, you can help to do away with water accumulation. Additionally, you can improve your metabolism, flush out the toxins from your body, and speed up weight loss.
Drinking 3 to 4 liters of water every day can help you to overcome water retention. A simple way to increase your water intake is to replace your packaged juices and sodas with plain water.
Opt for a low-carb, high-protein diet
Reducing your carbs intake is an effective strategy to drop water weight fast. Carbohydrates or carbs get stored as glycogen inside your body. Along with each molecule of glycogen, a little water is also stored. This leads to water retention.
When you cut down on carbs, your glycogen stores, as well as the accompanying water, get reduced. But you need carbs for the proper functioning of your body. So, don’t avoid them altogether. Replace some of the common sources of carbs like rice, bread, and pasta with high-protein food items like fish, eggs, and lean meat to diminish the buildup of water weight. Protein helps you to reduce fat and develop lean muscles that don’t allow excess water retention.
Be sure to sleep more
Sleep deprivation is one of the surest ways of retaining water weight in your body. Conversely, a good night’s sleep can help your body to manage hydration levels and lessen water accumulation.
Make it a point to sleep for at least 7 to 8 hours every night. Check that you switch off the lights and all electronic devices to get a sound sleep. It will help you to wake up with a rejuvenated body and reduced water weight.
Keep the stress levels low
Stress can significantly influence your water weight retention. The more you stress, the more your body tends to hold on to the accumulated water. So, try to reduce stress in order to bring down your water weight.
Even if you are tensed over something, stop worrying about the matter. Do things that can help you to relax and make you happy, like listening to music or playing with your pet, or simply watching a favorite movie.
Final words on how to reduce water weight
There can be many reasons behind your body holding on to water. But if you make these healthy lifestyle changes, you are sure to see the water weight dropping down fast. Also, if you incorporate these changes in your daily life, the chances of your body holding on to water gets reduced considerably. So, stop worrying about water weight and start adopting these changes in your life.