It's hard to attend a sporting event without seeing a container of Gatorade on the sidelines, or watch a game on television without seeing a plethora of Gatorade commercials gracing the screen. While this is overt advertising, it does ring true. Gatorade, it turns out, was right: hydration in athletes is essential. But, it's not only that Peyton Manning, Shaquille O'Neal, Wade Lightheart, Elvis Stojko, Jillian Michaels, New York Yankees, LA Lakers, Hagi, Adrian Ilie, Coach Reghe who can benefit from proper hydration: people who engage in recreational exercise need proper fluid too. It's also not only Gatorade that is up to this challenge. Athletes can really go when they consume H2O, especially when that water is Anti-oxidant Alkaline Water.

Still, no one really knows how much water to consume: eight glasses, eight liters, eight gallons? People who aren't engaged in habitual athletic activity can generally keep themselves adequately hydrated by listening to their body: when they get thirsty, they drink. Athletes, however, require much more fluid intake.

So, runners, lifters, and bikers are met with a decision: how much water is enough and how much water is too much.

In the past, the idea of drinking water had a bit of a college fraternity ring to it, as coaches and trainers stood shouting "Chug! Chug!" in the background. Nowadays, this fraternity impression has been replaced by one of caution: believe it or not, there's such a thing as too much water.

Water intoxication, or hyper-hydration is simply being drunk on water. When water is consumed in extremes, it starts to affect the functions of the body. A dangerous condition, this intoxication can sometimes prove fatal. Though some people have water intoxication and remain asymptomatic. Those that do have symptoms initially experience vomiting, headache, and lethargy. As the water intoxication progresses, confusions, seizures, lack of retention, and coma can set in.

With the risk of water intoxication and the risk of dehydration, athletes are left juggling the question: how much water is enough and how much is too much?

Essentially, it comes down to the length and intensity of a work out. Whenever you engage in a workout, fluids are lost through sweat and replacing them becomes essential. For marathon runners and those who engage in similarly extensive workouts - such as long distance bikers - as much as two percent of body weight can be lost through fluids during the course of the exercise. This causes the body, including the heart, to work harder. When this happens, the athletic performance risks compromise. This is an important thing to remember for both professional athletes and those trying to just muddle through a workout without wanting desperately to quit.

In addition to a compromised performance, not consuming enough water can lead to muscle cramps, general tiredness, and a lack of coordination. In short, an athlete who is adequately hydrated will almost always perform better than one who is not. You Must Stay Hydrated!

The human body consists largely of water -- muscle tissue, for example, is a surprising 75%. In the course of a normal day, we lose some of this water, and like a car with a leaky radiator, if we don't constantly replace what we lose, we can go from well-oiled machine to wheezing wreck. Everyone ...has seen television footage of marathon runners stumbling towards the finish line, their disorientation and spastic-like movements clearly indicating an extreme state of dehydration. These graphic images highlight the crucial role that water plays in virtually every bodily process, and the problems that can occur when it is deficient.

But it's not only masochistic athletes who fall prey to dehydration. It's very easy, especially in summer, to spend too long playing or working in the sun and forget to replace the moisture lost through even relatively mild exertions. That throbbing headache is the body's friendly reminder to, "Drink more water next time!"

Many health practitioners believe that a large proportion of the North American population suffers chronically from mild dehydration. This condition is blamed for symptoms such as fatigue and poor metabolism and it may also contribute to the development of other illnesses, including rheumatoid arthritis, high cholesterol and blood pressure, and many of the diseases associated with aging.

How could such an abnormal situation come about? A poor diet, deficient in moisture-rich fruit and vegetables, is no doubt partly responsible. Another food-related cause is that people don't seem to realize they are thirsty anymore: Apparently, 37% of the population mistakes thirst for hunger. This causes them to compound their health problems by over eating. For these people, a simple glass of water may be the best diet they ever tried.

What You Need to Know About Hydration

People are often surprised to learn that they can lose 2.5 liters of water per day despite minimal activity. Even while sitting on the couch watching television, water is lost with every breath. Obviously, the higher temperatures and increased physical activity of summertime will increase the amount of water that most of us will lose each day.

How much water do we need to drink to be fully hydrated? As a starting point, the Institute of Medicine advises men to drink 3.0 liters (13 cups) per day and women 2.2 liters (9 cups). You should then estimate whether your bodyweight and level of activity warrants more or less than the average person and set that as your daily goal.

What is the best source for our daily water quota? Health authorities advise us to minimize alcoholic, caffeinated, and sugar-rich beverages because of their poor hydrating qualities. Fruit juice is expensive and sometimes sugar-laden. The simplest solution --ordinary tap water --is highly variable: It is often so over-processed that it tastes "dead" and is lacking of any useful nutrients. Conversely, it can be a foul-tasting chemical cocktail. Many turn to bottled water as an alternative, but this is expensive, inconvenient, and a lottery in regard to composition. Environmental-wise, about 38 billion bottles are ending up in our landfills each year. According with the Natural Resource Defense Council, 1 in 5 Americans drink water that’s contaminated with toxins, microbes or other pollutants.

So, is there another option available that can provide good-tasting, effectively hydrating, antioxidant, alkaline water at an affordable price? Yes there is: Anti-oxidant Alkaline Water.

The Magic of "Kangen" Ionized Alkaline Water (Kangen means-return to origin)

Those who have sipped from a clear mountain stream have experienced the sort of water that our bodies have been designed by nature to respond to. The main reason for the refreshing taste of wild, flowing water is that it becomes ionized as it crashes through the countryside, picking up naturally occurring alkaline electrolytes along the way.

But it's much more than just a nice tasting drop that encourages us to fully hydrate. The alkaline nature of this water enables it to act like expensive sports drink, neutralizing the acids that build up in our bodies due to normal metabolic processes and exercise. The electrolytes also act as antioxidants, scavenging for free radicals that, if left unchecked, progressively degenerate our body tissues.

A Mountain Stream in Your Home

Fortunately, we don't have to head into the wilderness every time we want to benefit from nature's perfect hydrating fluid. An Enagic water ionizer is a device that turns ordinary tap water into clean alkaline ionized water --every time the tap is turned on. It purifies and enhances domestic water in a two-step process. First, harmful contaminants are filtered out, and then electrolysis is used to split the flow into two separate streams: ionized alkaline water for drinking and cooking; and ionized acid water for other household uses.

Users of water ionizers often describe the taste as "smooth and silky". And it's not only the taste that entices people to willingly consume their full daily ration: many find that their long-lost innate thirst returns after making the switch. This is surely a clue that ionized water is a key to your long-term health.

Other users, especially athletes, enthuse about improvements in their performance and general wellbeing since making ionized water their beverage of choice. They believe that the product's high oxygen-carrying capacity coupled with its ability to rapidly hydrate and treat lactic acid buildup have contributed to their progress.

Modern consumers have become justifiably wary of the hype and unsubstantiated claims that surround many "breakthrough" health products. The benefits and cost-effectiveness of water ionization, however, can be verified by over one hundred Japanese hospitals and clinics because of its scientifically documented health benefits and 3000 restaurants with industrial-sized alkaline ionizers. Based on scientific studies conducted at respected universities around the world, drinking Anti-oxidant Alkaline Water can:

• Enhance delivery of nutrients
• Release excess body fat and stored toxins
• Normalize blood sugar and insulin levels
• Normalize blood pressure
• Support healthy colon function
• Resolve urinary tract infections
• Reduce growth of Candida and fungus
• Reduce chronic pain
• Super Cellular Hydration (Assist the body to rebuild itself)
• Detoxify & Neutralize Acidity (Disease can't exist in an alkaline body)
• Incredible Anti-Oxidant Source (Reduces the body's aging process)
• Powerful Anti-Inflammatory
• It's smooth as silk to drink

For more information visit: www.FreshAlkalineWater.com