A drop to drink . .

imported
#1

Every so often when I’m hiking, I can get fatigued, and this may sometimes be attributable to lack of decent carbs. So I’ll eat something and everything is okay.

But other times, I’ll just have a great gulp of water, and 10 times out of 10, I feel (for a while) greatly rejuvinated. As this is rarely mentioned, I wonder if its just me, or if plain ol’ water does everybody good.

And you know all those water filters (like the one I have, one micron) that filter out all those nasty viruses, may they also be filtering out whatever nutrients that are in water?

Which begs the question; what kind of nutrients are in water, anyhow? Well - as I came across on

http://www.freshlysqueezedwater.com/pages/minerals.htm

the good folks there claim that “there are a number of minerals in water which are beneficial to the human body. These include calcium, magnesium and zinc.”

They go on to state that only a small amount of these minerals (minerals, nutrients, whatever) can be absorbed by the body.

Kineo Kid

#2

As every runner knows, performance falls off rapidly if you start to get dehydrated (usually after about an hour of running or so). That’s probably what is going on if you aren’t drinking enough. Carbs are also very good. Sport drinks are the best, as they contain a scientifically tested amount of carbs, water, and electrolytes to help improve performance. However, it’s not as yummy as koolaid to me :slight_smile:

Gravity man

Gravity Man

#3

Just take vitimins, and don’t worry about filtering minerals out of the water, very small trace amounts of them in water anyway. BTW the bad water thing is way overdone, there is some bad water on the trail, but lots of good water too that will not make you sick. Problem is, it is hard to tell the difference.

Agree with Gravity man.

As dehydration sits in, performance goes down. A drink of water will perk you up. Also it will lessen your hunger if you are hungry.

As sugar levels and other levels go down in the blood stream and body, performance also goes down. So snack and snack often. And drink and drink often.

Most people walk around dehydrated most of the time. The only way to stay hydrated well is to carry a water bottle or sports drink with you all the time, which I do.

See you out there.:cheers

Maintain

#4

i read recently (possibly in Outdoor magazine) the cold water causes you to lose weight, because the body has to warm the water up to body tempature to be able to absorb it. therefore, if you are low on energy, it’s better to drink ambient tempature water. that cool or cold drink of water is soothing and cooling, but at the same time, if you are needing enregy, it actually reduces your energy reserves because of the body having to use energy to warm it to absortion tempature. i guess there’s a trade off for everything. it doesn’t bother me as i have energy to spare (made by goodyear, worn around my middle)… :lol

Big Dee

#5

Yeah, it takes 1 Cal (note the big C which is what our food is measured in, not the little c) to warm one liter of water one degree C. So if you drink a liter of 50 F (10 C) water, then your body will have expend 27 calories to warm it to body temperature.

Wow, 27 calories… big deal…

Gravity man

gravity man

#6

Very interesting, that means you only have to drink about 32 gallons of cold water to lose a pound :-)…Hey, maybe we could start a new diet sensation, the “Nalgene diet”; I think I’ll write a book :lol

RockyTrail

#7

Isnt it one calorie to heat one MILILITRE(a cubic centimeter or cc) of H2o one degree?I am not familliar with the large C Cal ,is that a Kilocalorie mayby?

nb

#8

The body is constantly working to maintain its internal temperature at 98.6 deg Fahrenheit. If too hot, it works hard to cool itself, sweating, etc. If too cold, it shivers so we will put on more clothes, etc. Putting on or taking off clothes, we can function safely from 40 degrees Fahrenheit below zero or thereabout to about 110 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. The higher and lower temps are very hard for us to function in. Temp too high, we die of heat stroke and heat exhaustion. Temp too low, we freeze.

Cold water will suck the heat right out of you. And heat equals calories, it takes to maintain body temperature. So if you want to lose weight, spend an hour or two a day in cold water and you will burn off some calories. But it will zap your strength as the body works very hard to maintain internal body temperature. After some time in cold water, you will feel drained of strength and energy.

It does take one calorie to raise the temp of one cubic centimeter of water one degree Celcius. So you do expend some energy heating up cold water, which you drink. This is the reason, I believe it is said that you cannot survive eating snow and letting it melt in your mouth. You spend too much energy to get the small amount of water, which you do get doing it.

See you out there.:cheers

Maintain

#9

The reason drinking water makes you feel better does not relate to minerals in the water. Your blood transmits oxygen to your cells, and if you’re dehydrated, it doesn’t do it efficiently. That’s why you feel better when you drink water.

So I wouldn’t worry too much about the minerals your water filter is removing.

Bob

#10

I heard a thru-hiker, who started northbound in November, that would drink water, but before actually swallowing it, would swish it around in her mouth, to let it heat up that way.

Whereas, I guess, it would cool her off too much if she swallowed it cold.

Anyone ever try that?

Kineo Kid

#11

Yes, the big C is a kilocalorie, and is what food “calories” are measurered in.

Maintain has all kinds of wrong units. It takes one little c calorie to heat 1 ml of water one degree C. If you assume a little c is the measure of food, then it would take 27,000 calories to warm one liter of 50 F water to body temperature. WOW! That’s what happens when you get units wrong. This couldn’t possible be right.

It’s 27 food calories (the big C or kilocalories) to warm 1 liter of water from 50F to body temperature. Trust me, I have my phd in physics :slight_smile:

And drinking cool water is very useful when it is hot, and Maintain mentioned. It actually helps cool you. Makes sense, don’t it?

Gravity Man

Gravity Man