Water Makes Muscles More Elastic?!


Before you say, "yeah, yeah, yeah I know to drink 8 cups a day and live until a hundred. Boring, heard it all before" and close the page? your best bet would be to read on, for what you are about to learn may indeed not only broaden your circle of knowledge, but save your life.

I feel like the end of June is the perfect time to bring the topic of "water" to the attention of my fellow athletes.

We all heard stories of dehydration. Temperature climbs over a hundred. A senior citizen is taken to the emergency room due to a heat stroke. An overeager jogger collapses experiencing muscle spasms while exercising. These stories go on and on.

I have to say that the majority of Martial Arts instructors do not have degrees in Exercise Physiology. What they do have is tradition. We can only hope that the tradition they follow is safe. For instance, when I was a student, my master never allowed his students to drink water. He would turn on the fan, and spray the water on every student, yet would not allow us to actually consume it. It was considered as "lack of self discipline" to drink during a workout session. I guess marathon runners don't have any discipline, for all I know.

The fact is that a properly hydrated body can withstand a workout session 30-45 minutes in length without water. After that it must be hydrated. Yes, we all heard about the Special Operation Forces; they workout the whole day and don't eat or drink. That may be true, but this type of training doesn't last long. Few days, a week at most. However, most of us are not training for special missions (although we sure do wish we were). We want to know how to defend ourselves, or win a tournament. Going for a long time without water, is not a requirement for us.

Let's look at some facts. I am not trying to bring back H.S. biology class. Just want to give you some general ideas. An average human body is 80% water. Muscles however are 75% water. The fact is that muscles loose elasticity with diminishing water content. They get tight and if nothing is done, spasms might develop.

Martial Artists happens to be on the higher end of the water loss, as compared to other athletes. Our sport is highly aerobic, thus highly heat producing. When sweat is excreted to cool the body, water is lost. Let's not forget about exercise metabolism. Fat is burned, sugar is burned, and protein is converted. Metabolic products are produced. Some are very toxic. If they are to sit in a body for too long, illness can develop. Our bodies try to prevent it from happening. Toxic metabolites are quickly diluted and excreted. There goes water loss through the kidneys.

Oh, and let's not forget about shouting. Most martial arts styles yell, like there is no tomorrow. There goes water loss, and a lot of it. Lungs facilitate water loss, just as much as the next guy. Who is "kia- ing" now? Don't take my word for it. Remember what happens when you speak a lot? Long speeches make the throat mouth and lips dry. That's what most of us notice, but the train doesn't stop there. To hydrate those areas, water is drawn out of the muscles. No wonder your performance suffers. Remember drinking water is not only necessary to keep the mouth moist, but everything else as well.

It is safe to say that most people are dehydrated but don't even know it. Thirst is not the fist signal of dehydration. It' may not even be the second. So if you do experience thirst, watch out.

Here are some very common symptoms of dehydration:

Fatigue
Digestive discomfort
Headaches
Constipation
Anger
Etc.

As a matter of fact, some experts related dehydration to more serious conditions, such as:

Ulcers
Obesity
Asthma
Allergies

If you want to know more, feel free to do some research.

Remember an elder person, will experience these symptoms more than a youngster, even if the level of dehydration is the same.

If after reading this you decide to drink more water. Remember pure water is the best choice. Go for bottled or filtered variety. If you are active 10-12 glasses will serve you right.

Tip:

Heard about athletic drinks?To replace expensive and artificial re-hydration beverages, try this:

Into a litter of water add sea salt and raw organic dehydrated cane juice. These substances are the most natural and pure sources of salt and sugar. They are not refined and contain many useful vitamins and minerals. The pureness of this substances, minimizes the negative effects of salt and sugar that we are used to hear about. Experiment with taste. Besides replenishing nutrients lost while sweating, this drink helps to prevent water loss, and facilitates water retention in your cells.

Try this for a few weeks as a supplementation to your ElasticSteel program, and you may be marveled by the results.

Best Wishes,

PAUL
ElasticSteel.com
ElasticSteel - Method of Athletic Conditioning
Get Your copy Today!

Got questions? Post them on ElasticSteel.com's Forum and ElasticSteel Team and your fellow Martial Artists will answer them for you in no time. Click here now!

The statements put force in this newsletter had not been evaluated by the FDA or the Main Stream Medical Community and is for investigative and informational purposes only. It is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Before trying anything suggested in this and future newsletters, Paul Zaichik, ElasticSteel.com and its Affiliates, urge you to seek the advice of a Physician.

Paul Zaichik is the founder of the Elastic Steel method of Athletic conditioning. http://www.elasticsteel.com He transformed many Eastern European Stretching and Gymnastic techniques to meet the needs of the modern martial artists. More and more students are practicing Paul's techniques, acquiring great strength and flexibility in return.

Studying Exercise Science and Nutrition on the Undergraduate and Graduate level, Paul kept experimenting, combining the modern research with his own experience. Over the years Paul had developed many techniques, to meet individual needs of his students. Collectively those techniques became know as ElasticSteel.

More Resources

Unable to open RSS Feed $XMLfilename with error HTTP ERROR: 404, exiting

More Building Muscle Information:

Related Articles

The Anabolic Evolution of Modern Bodybuilding
Since the early days of physical culture, modern man has been searching for the elusive ''Fountain of Youth''. The promise of radiant health, enduring strength and a Herculean physique has drawn millions on this quest for physical perfection.
Bodybuilding Sins That Cause Back Pain and Missed Workouts: Part 2
Welcome to article number 2 in our series "Bodybuilding Sins That Cause Back Pain and Missed Workouts". In this article we are going to talk about how bodybuilders tend to create massive muscle imbalances and what you can do to not be one of them.
Dorian Yates Secret: What Lean People Are Doing To Get That Way
A consensus has arisen within the bodybuilding world over the past twenty years regarding the exact modes and procedures needed to become lean as humanly possible while retaining muscle mass. Across the nation and the world, bodybuilders are lifting weights, hitting aerobics and eating with discipline in order to melt body fat.
Scientific Principles For Effective Muscle Gain
It's an unfortunate reality that throughout the years there has been a growth of strength training techniques that have no scientific proof to back them up. Have a look at the facts presented in this outline of muscle gain principles and make up your own mind.
Shoulder Exercises For Beginning Bodybuilders
The main shoulder muscles that concern bodybuilders are the deltoids and although they work closely with the arms and chest muscles, it is possible to isolate the delts in a training session. Unlike other body parts though, the shoulder is not designed for heavy lifting in all directions so beginners need to take care and use lighter weights than usual for shoulder-isolating exercises.
Increase Your Training Intensity - Forced Repetitions
You can only build muscle tissue if you can generate progressively stronger muscular contractions, so this calls for an emphasis on finding ways to increase exercise intensity. This should not be confused with exercise duration as maximum training intensity will actually shorten the time needed to achieve maximal muscular growth.
A Champion Bodybuilder - Do You Have What It Takes?
My career began in the eighties. I never found myself going to a health club, much less taking time for myself, until I was in college.
BMI Calculator Results
BMI, Body Mass Index, is the most popular and simple way that health professionals use to determine if you are a healthy weight. This article concerns how to interpret your results.
What Do You Mean Low-Intensity Training Isn't The Best For Fat Burning?
But how can this possibly be? Everywhere you look, it's always said that long-duration, low-intensity training is best for fat loss. All high-intensity work does is burn carbohydrates, right?Wrong.
Exercise The Right Way - The Triceps Pushdown
Other articles in this series looked at a number of exercises, mainly from the perspective of developing a comprehensive muscle building program. Sometimes we take things for granted, especially when it comes to performing the basic exercises that constitute the core of most bodybuilders' training regimes.
Complete Pec Training Tips
Put these pec techniques to use and develop that full, muscular chest today.For most people I see in the gym, the bench press has become more about building an ego than building a quality set of pecs.
Building Better Biceps
Two of the nine pivot points - those stunning body parts located precisely where they attract the most attention - are the lower biceps and long head of the triceps. When fully developed, these muscles lend a mystical beauty to the physique that size alone can't.
Strong To The Core of Your Being - The Benefits Of Core Training
If you were to ask me which muscle group in your entire body you could work to get the greatest benefits in the shortest amount of time, I would tell you without hesitation, "the core." Strengthening the core can realize tremendous benefits to anyone regardless of his or her training experience and can do so very quickly.
Two Major Training Mistakes You Must Dump Immediately!
The number of myths about natural bodybuilding are too numerous to mention. For every guy who knows the principles of effective bodybuilding, there are countless others who don't.
The Role Of L-Glutamine In Building Muscle
L-glutamine remains the supplement of choice for many bodybuilders. It is a free form amino acid that can be found naturally in beans, meat, fish, poultry and dairy products.
What Is Strength Training?
Traditional strength training consists of performing one to three (or more) sets of exercises on a specific, isolated muscle group. One rep, or repetition, equals one complete movement of the exercise from start to finish.
Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle (Lose Body Fat) - Product Review
At first glance, this product manual's title (Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle) was a bit distracting. While the 300+ page manual does a good job of explaining how increased muscle strength helps lose body fat and why its more important to lose body fat versus lose weight; I wasn't sure about the content of the product manual until I read it in its entirety.
Sneak a Little Intensity into Your Workout
You know you're on autopilot during your workouts when, halfway through you're set on the pec dec, you realize you're sitting on someone's lap. It's time to shake things up a bit.
The Health Risks Associated With The Use Of Anabolic Steroids
Anabolic steroids are classed as illegal drugs and are banned by most legitimate sports organizations. There can be no disputing the fact that testosterone boosts the development of muscle mass and aids sporting performance.
How To Get The Greatest Possible Muscle Gains... And... Still Have Time Left Over To Just Goof-Off!
The number one thing you need to get from this article is this. Significant increases in the muscular size of any particular muscle group, can not be achieved without similar increases throughout the entire body.