Do you sometimes feel that you have taken a size overnight, or even from morning to night?
The bad news: you have really taken a size (the proof, you back your belt a notch and you are tight in your pants).
The good news: it’s water, and it can be eliminated as quickly as it came. To do this, get into the habit of walking each day with a good step and at least 30 minutes, so as to reactivate the venous return and thus facilitate blood and lymphatic circulation. Then, make a check-up of your plate: you probably eat a little too salty for you (because we are, there again, all unequal). Here are the 5 essential grandmother tips to adopt to fight against water retention:
“We eat 8 to 10 grams of salt a day.”
THE RIGHT REFLEXES TO PREVENT WATER RETENTION
1-LIMIT HIDDEN SALT
To function properly, the body needs salt, that is a fact. But in excess, salt helps retain water in the tissues: our legs and fingers swollen, our eyes puffy when we wake up and our lower face a little stuffed. On average, we absorb 8 to 10 g of salt per day, which is almost double the 5 g recommended by the WHO (World Health Organization). In practice, we avoid systematically putting the salt shaker on the table, but we also take care of other (enormous) sources of hidden salt: mustard, soy sauce, aperitif biscuits, certain sparkling waters, stock cubes, commercial sauces, prepared dishes, canned foods and other brick soups…
We also limit its consumption of bread: even though it is not very salty compared to the previous ingredients, it is one of the main vectors of salt in our diet.
food (inevitably, since we eat more of it). But to avoid eating bland, we possibly allow a little salt in the water of
cooking vegetables, potatoes, rice and pasta: it really enhances the taste of cooked ingredients, and will largely disappear when drained.
2-ADOPT HERBS
SPICES ARE ABUSED TO REPLACE SALT
Without salt, many recipes may seem bland, especially if you are used to eating salty enough. So reduce the amount of salt added gradually, while increasing the use of herbs:
Spices, pressed garlic, minced shallot, fresh herbs, homemade flavoured oils (dipping a clove of garlic, fresh ginger, sprigs of thyme or rosemary in a bottle of olive oil, frankly, there’s nothing simpler).
Also think of lightly roasted seeds or not (sesame, sunflower, flax, squash, poppy, chia… Your taste buds will see only fire.
3-PRIORITIZE POTASSIUM-RICH FOODS (K)
This mineral balances the sodium threshold in the body, and thus helps reduce the phenomenon of water retention. And where is he now? Mainly in vegetables and fruit.
Leek, avocado, zucchini and squash, banana, melon, apricot, peach, artichoke, kiwi… are excellent drainage allies.
4-EATING PROTEIN
How does this relate to water retention? Quite simply, proteins help limit water retention. If the blood does not contain enough protein, the water concentrates in the tissues. Meat, fish, eggs, tofu, legumes, seeds, nuts… are therefore essential at every meal.
5-DRINK PLENTY
Contrary to what one might think, drinking does not retain water, unless one drinks only sparkling water, because it is rich in sodium. Avoid drinking while thinking about eliminating is a miscalculation, because the body can start storing water if it feels threatened with dehydration. It is therefore better to drink regularly, throughout the day and in sufficient quantity.