Water is one of the most powerful wellness tools, and drinking it is a great way to begin a healthy habit. But, it is much more important for weight loss than you think.

Exercise nuts always claim that exercising makes them feel great. This is probably true, because exercising increases the production of endorphins, which activate the pleasure centers in our brain. However, there are plenty of people who feel tired, grumpy, and just physically and mentally bad after exercising.

These people are dehydrated.

It's as simple as that. Sweating in the gym, even for just half an hour, can cause you to lose enough water to actually be dehydrated, especially if this is your first week into a new exercise routine. Normally, your body will automatically make you more thirsty over the first few days of exercising, and you'll be able to make up for the water you lost.

The down side is, you may give up on exercising completely before you can make up for that lost water. Dehydration has some awful side-effects including headaches, muscle soreness, dizziness, negative mood, and many others. If those aren't enough to make us quit exercising, I don't know what is!

But you can easily avoid these post-workout hangovers by simply drinking plenty of water for a few days before you exercise. If you are't drinking any glasses of water during the day, definitely start. If you are getting at least one glass per day, why not bring that up to 2 or 3 glasses a day before you start your new weight loss routine? You want your body to have extra water going into the workout, so that rehydrating after the sweat session is fast, and the side-effects are minimal.

Here's a funny way to know if you have enough water to exercise: your pee should be totally clear. Clear urine means that your blood is free of waste (which is what normally turns your urine yellow) and it means you have absorbed as much water as you can, so your body is releasing the excess.

So go drink some water and good luck with your exercises!