Category Archives: Hydration

Health, Hydration

Water and Responding to the Body’s Feedback Systems

Water saves the day again. I’ve gotten used to the refreshing feeling I get shortly after drinking 1 quart of water after I wake up for the day.

Because of my PSC diagnosis (briefly discussed in my about me post), I like to keep hydrated and eat low fat. Every once in a while I find myself eating what is probably too much fat for me. Staying well hydrated keeps the increased flow of bile in my liver from getting too sludgy and blocking things up, which can be extremely painful.

Today, I had a large avocado, a bunch of pistachios and pumpkin seeds, way more fat than I usually eat. I guess I wasn’t drinking as much water as normal either. I started to feel the earliest stages of a possible PSC related problem. Half hour earlier, I had about 8 ounces of water, but it wasn’t enough. I immediately downed about 24 ounces of water. Within minutes I felt the water absorb into my body and the discomfort disappeared. I’ll be sure to stay on top of my water intake the rest of the day, but experience has taught me that I should be OK. Of course I’m probably done with fatty foods for the day too.

I’m still heading out for a short run to work out some tightness from yesterday, but I think I’ll take a water bottle with me.

The body has great feedback systems, and I love learning how to be aware and respond to it.

Food, Health, Hydration, Smoothies

Smoothies without Recipes

I eat food mostly for fuel. Of course I prefer things that taste good. I like foods that are easy to prepare and eat. Smoothies are great. Wash, maybe peel, blend and drink. Salads are great too, but you can’t really chug 64 ounces of salad in a minute or two. And I almost always hit the 64 ounce max line on my Vitamix carafe.

I don’t use recipes. I use what I have on hand at the time. My regular smoothies are not desserts. I want to get a bunch of vegetables and some fruits to my stomach quickly. It’s a big carafe of vitamins, minerals, micronutrients, fiber and water.

There are generally three parts to my smoothies: vegetables, fruit and water. I think of vegetables in two groups: greens and other. Fruit is for calories and flavor. Water is for hydration, texture and ease of blending.

Vegetables
I put greens in just about every smoothie I make. I use at least half a bunch, which comes out to 5-8 ounces by weight. I’ll use more if there’s room. I also add wild greens occasionally.

My favorite greens for smoothies:
*Collards
*Chard
*Kale – all types
*Beet Greens
*Bok Choy
*Nettles
*Spinach
*Cabbage
*Brussels Sprouts
*Plantain (the weed not the fruit)
*Sheep Sorrel
*Wood Sorrel
*Dandelion

I started adding other vegetables as well earlier this year. I think it was after seeing a video of Rich Roll adding broccoli to his smoothie. I love broccoli, so I gave it a try. I’m going to go by the culinary definition of vegetables, rather than botanical.

Some other vegetables I add to smoothies:
*Beets – I love beets. I add them to almost all my smoothies.
*Broccoli – florets and stems
*Cucumber
*Zucchini
*Carrots
*Cauliflower
*Radishes
*Celery – use sparingly, it gives a salty taste
*Kohlrabi

Fruit
I like fruit, but I don’t normally add much more than 16 ounces of fruit to a 64 ounce smoothie. I often use less, just enough fruit for flavor. However, if I’m looking for more calories, I’ll add more fruit. My choice of fruit often goes by what’s in season, and hence cheap.

Some favorite fruits for smoothies:
*Bananas – At least 1 in nearly every smoothie. Good soluble fiber. Can reduce nasty froth on top.
*Strawberries – I don’t cut off the leaves. They’re greens, and I make green smoothies.
*Blueberries
*Mangos
*Watermelon
*Peaches
*Blackberries
*Huckleberries
*Papaya
*Oranges
*Lemon – with or without peel.
*Pineapple

Water
I add enough water so everything blends well and get the texture I want. I know some people use juice or coconut water instead of water. I prefer straight water. I rarely drink juice and prefer to consume my food whole. Fiber is important.

Other
I used to add other things more often. Now, occasionally, I may add some rosehips powder for vitamin C, vegan protein powder, reishi or chaga mushrooms.

Blenders
A good blender makes a huge difference, but I got by with a $5 thrift shop model for a couple years. I love my Vitamix, though.

Make the Smoothie
1. Wash ALL produce. Unless you picked it from your own garden, you don’t know how it’s been handled. In the last few years, there have been E-coli outbreaks from spinach and cantaloupe, probably others too.
2. Peel, core, removed seeds and de-stem. Sometimes I don’t peel lemons, but always remove the seeds. I never skin beets. I know some people eat mangos with the peel, but I always peel them. I’ve occasionally added watermelon rind. I always peel kohlrabi.
3. Cut up produce. I cut things up into chunks small enough so they don’t get stuck in the carafe, wedged against the sides. Sometimes I cut greens. Other times I add them whole at the end.
4. Add produce to blender. Depending on your blender, you may need to add things in a certain order. When I had a cheap blender, greens took the most time to break down to my desired consistency, so I added them first. With a powerful blender, it may not matter.
5. Add water. I start with a couple cups of water, less if I’m using something like watermelon with a lot of retained water.
6. Blend. Start on low. Increase speed slowly to get everything moving. If needed, use a plunger to dislodge any stuck produce. Increase speed to high and blend until it’s as smooth as you’d like.
Optional: Add more water. If it’s not circulating well or too thick, slowly add more water until it reaches your desired consistency.
7. Enjoy!

It’ll take some experimenting to get the greens, vegetables and fruits ratios you like, and to make the right volume for you. Cleanup is a lot easier the sooner you get to it. I drink a whole 64 ounce smoothie, 32 ounces at a time, in one sitting. If you’re going to save some for later, it’s best to pour the remainder into another container and store in the fridge.

Finally, definitely experiment with other greens, vegetables and fruits. The only precautions I’d urge are to make sure the produce is ok to eat raw, whether they need to be peeled, have the seeds removed, or something else.

Health, Hydration

I Love Water

Other than smoothies, I drink almost exclusively water. On rare occasions I’ll have some organic juice or use my home juicer.

Most people don’t drink enough water. I think water in place of other beverages, and more water in general would probably benefit the health of many people. Hydration is important. Water helps expel toxins and waste from the body more quickly. Water helps with blood flow. Water is amazing.

I started drinking more water after coming to the conclusion that dehydration was one trigger for my liver condition, primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC), flared up, causing me abdominal pain and general malaise for a day up to a week. It make sense. If the body is dehydrated, fluids in the body will tend to become thicker. In a condition that can lead to bile turning sort of sludge-like potentially blocking the bile ducts, anything that thickens the bile isn’t good. Dehydration isn’t the only thing I have to worry about. Eating a lot of fat promotes bile production and flow, which exacerbates any thickening and blockages.

When I first figured the link out, I tried to just drink more water throughout the day. Without anything specific to remind me, I’d occasionally get wrapped up in something and forget. A couple minor PSC flares later and I made a more specific hydration plan.

I start every day with a 1 quart glass of water shortly after waking. I’ll usually mix something in it. I’ve done 1 tsp raw unfiltered apple cider vinegar. I currently add 1 tsp rosehip powder, which is an excellent vitamin C source. It doesn’t dissolve, so requires mixing and swirling to keep in suspension. I’ve also previously added bee pollen, which is one of the most nutrient rich foods on the planet.

Almost immediately after drinking my big glass of water I can feel it start to wash over my system. I don’t always feel so great when I wake up, but I always feel better after drinking my water.

After my morning quart of water, I usually have another quart of plain water over the rest of the day. I also have several cups of water in a smoothie during the day, and a lot of high water content fruit.

On days that I run, my water intake can reach 1-2 gal total per day, depending on distance, elevation gain and temperature.

One quart of water may seem like a lot, but it’s really not. You’ve just been sleeping, hopefully around 8 hours or more, without taking in any liquids. You still sweat in your sleep. If you got up to pee in the night or went first thing after waking, that’s more liquid lost from your system. You need to replenish the liquids your body goes through.

If you’re not used to drinking that much water at one time, you may need to work up to it. Try using a 1 quart glass, jar or other container, so you can get used to the amount. If you have trouble drinking the whole thing, just have as much as you can comfortably drink in a short period of time. If that’s only 8 of 32 ounces, that’s fine. Try to drink the rest over the next hour if possible.

You will probably have to pee afterwards, likely within an hour. So, if you won’t have access to a restroom when needed, such as during a commute, try just 8 oz right after waking and then the rest once you have better access to facilities.

Pee is great for checking your hydration too. Urine color can tell you whether you’re drinking enough water. Light yellow to nearly clear is well hydrated, dark orange is very dehydrated. There can be other things that change urine color, so it’s not a perfect test. Things like medications, certain medical conditions and some foods might affect urine color.

I pee fairly often since I’ve increased my water intake. It was kind of annoying at first, but I’m OK with it now. In general, I feel better when I stay hydrated, so it’s an easy trade off to make.

You can drink too much water, though. A condition called hyponatremia is caused by an electrolyte imbalance, low sodium levels, often from drinking too much water. In serious cases, it can be fatal. Over-hydration cause hyponatremia is more common in endurance sports. To avoid it during a marathon, ultra or Ironman, stay on top of electrolyte replacement. As for day to day, hyponatremia is probably not something to worry too much about.

Drink more water!