Adding lemon juice is an excellent way to kick-start your diet, either by including it in your meals or by swapping out sugary drinks that are high in calories with lemon water.
So, does this actually work? We’ll explore this topic and discuss how lemon helps to stay healthy, hydrated, and in line to meet your weight loss goals.
Research has shown that adding lemon to your diet can improve your digestion, boost metabolism, keep you from getting sick, and give you the much-needed energy to kick-start your day.
Lemon water can not only help you lose weight but also improve your health. Here are just a few reasons why lemon water is beneficial.
Health Benefits of Lemon Water for Weight Loss
1. Low in Calories
Lemon water is very low in calories, especially if you’re not adding any sugar to your glass of lemon water.
A glass of water containing half a lemon juice has only 6 calories as compared to 110 calories per glass of orange juice.
Read more: 10 Foods That Are Very Low in Calories
Because lemon water is low in calories and can promote fullness in the same way as regular water, it can be an effective way to lose weight. Swap high-calorie drinks like colas and sugar-sweetened beverages with lemon water.
2. Boosts Your Metabolism
There is no question that drinking water is an important part of any diet, and it helps to boost your metabolism. Adding lemon to your water can enhance the same effect.
Read more: How to Increase Metabolism for a Healthy Life
Kickstart your day with lemon water to stimulate your metabolism and pump your body to burn calories. Sipping on lemon water throughout the day will keep you full longer and help control from piling on calorie-rich foods.
3. Makes You Feel More Full
Drinking water can promote satiety and fullness without adding calories and is usually recommended as an important part of any weight loss regimen.
A study revealed that drinking water before a meal decreased hunger and increased satiety.
Since lemon water is low in calories and loaded with vitamin C, it can promote fullness in the same way as a regular glass of water. It can help you reduce your calorie intake.
4. Keeps You Hydrated
Drinking adequate amounts of water to stay hydrated is a critical component of health. It plays an important role in carrying nutrients to our cells and transporting waste out of our bodies.
More often than not, our bodies cannot tell the difference between thirst and hunger. When our body craves water, we may reach for a snack instead of getting a glass of water. Opt for a glass of lemon water throughout the day to keep the hunger pangs at bay. Having enough water in our bodies is important to lose weight or to maintain good health.
Water helps our body to flush out toxins and waste that build up in our system. It also provides us energy, regulates body temperature, helps lubricate our joints and ease physical pain.
Research suggests that staying hydrated can aid in weight loss. Increased hydration may help in breaking down fats and enhance fat loss. Staying hydrated can also prevent water retention with symptoms such as weight gain, puffiness, and bloating.
The above benefits can easily be reaped by consuming lemon water, which is predominantly comprised of water.
5. Helps with Digestion
Although lemon juice is acidic, when mixed with water, it has an alkalizing effect on the body. Drinking more water can help to reduce the risk of constipation, and the lemon will help to stimulate healthy digestion and elimination of waste.
The acid in lemon juice will also help to break down your food more efficiently, making it easier for your body to extract maximum nutrients from every meal.
6. Helps with Detoxification
Water is key to any sort of detoxification program, and when you mix in lemons, you may get more benefits! Lemon water aids our bodies in the process of flushing the toxins out and restoring liver function.
For lemon water to act as a detoxifier, you need to consume it regularly and use fresh lemon juice in warm water. Lemon rind is an invaluable nutrient in detoxification.
The rind stimulates phase 2 of liver detox, which is an integral step in the body’s ability to rid itself of toxins. The easiest way to use lemons for detox is to take whole lemons, cut them in slices and add to your water jug and just keep refilling it.
7. Keeps You from Getting Sick
No one enjoys falling sick. It hinders you from carrying out daily activities, such as going to work, cooking, and going to the gym. A glass of lemon juice/water daily may prevent you from getting sick.
Vitamin C plays an important role in fighting off free radicals that can cause illnesses and diseases as you age. One lemon contains 30.7 mg of the daily recommended dose of vitamin C.
The naturally occurring vitamin C found in lemons boosts your immune system and can help you maintain your health and fight off illnesses.
8. Gives You a Boost of Energy in the Morning
Drinking lemon water in the morning can be beneficial. Our bodies go through restorative functions while we sleep. Many of these functions require the nutrients that are found in water.
Drinking a glass of lemon water in the morning will not only rehydrate your body but also give you a boost of energy to kick-start your day. It will help flush out any toxins that your body worked overnight to process out of your system.
Most of us also wake up hungry. Lemon water can be great to calm some of those hunger pangs!
Four Simple Lemon Water Recipes for Weight Loss
Try these lemon water recipes which are easy to make and will help increase your water intake, improve digestion, lose weight, and more!
1. Lemon Mint Water
Ingredients:
- 230 ml water
- 4-5 slices of lemon
- 2-3 sprigs of mint
Directions: Add fresh lemon slices and mint (you can chop up the mint leaves) to a large glass of water. Mix well before drinking.
2. Cucumber Lemon Water
Ingredients:
- 230 ml water
- 4-5 slices of lemon
- 4 slices of cucumber with skin
Directions: In a large glass, add water, lemon slices, and fresh cucumber slices. Give the mixture a good stir and drink.
3. Lemon Ginger Water
Ingredients:
- 230 ml water
- 4 slices of lemon
- 3 slices of fresh ginger
Directions: Add lemon and ginger slices to a glass of water, stir well before drinking.
4. Lemon Blueberry Water
Ingredients:
- 230 ml water
- 4-5 fresh lemon slices
- 8-10 blueberries
Directions: To a large glass, add lemon slices, fresh blueberries and water. Stir well and drink.
Caution: The acidity present in lemon juice can damage the enamel of your teeth. It’s advisable to either rinse your mouth with plain water or drinking lemon juice with a straw. This will reduce the impact it has on your teeth’s enamel.
Conclusion
Ultimately, there is no magic potion that you can consume that will provide you with immediate weight loss.
Even drinking lemon water is no guarantee. However, with a balanced diet, an exercise routine, and choosing to replace sugary beverages with lemon water, you will cut back on calories each day, and over time will notice a positive change in your health and fitness level.
Our coaches can help you curate a balanced meal plan and a workout routine that will suit you best – Chat with HealthifyMe coaches now!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q. When should I drink lemon water to lose weight?
A. In order to lose weight, you can consume 2 glasses of warm lemon water, i.e. once in the morning and once in the evening. You can also add a bit of honey to make it taste better. Also, keep in mind that if you want to lose weight, you need to work out to burn fat.
Q. How much lemon juice should I put in my water to lose weight?
A. You will need more than one wedge or slice to have an effect, 3-4 slices of fresh lemon added to your water is a good place to start. Drinking this lemon water consistently throughout the day, you will notice a significant difference. To make the drink as healthy as possible used filtered water and organic lemons.
Q. Does lemon water reduce belly fat?
A. Lemon water can promote fullness, support hydration, boost metabolism, and increase weight loss. However, lemon water is no better than regular water when it comes to losing fat. That being said, it is tasty, easy to make, and can be used as a low-calorie replacement for high-calorie beverages.