Fascia (or connective tissue) is fascinating stuff.  But one of the more interesting things to me as a bodyworker, and you (as the recipient of massage) is how hydration plays a key into our pain issues... and that directly relates back to fascia.

Fascia thickens and sticks down in various areas of our body (I'll post about possible reasons why in a future post).  But, take it for granted (at this point) that it does get stuck and thick.  When the tissue thickens, it also becomes more dehydrated.  The more thick it gets, the more dehydrated it gets too.  And this cycle continues until it reaches a point at which it stops and rests at its level of thickness and dehydration.  Thus it should be an easy leap of thought that as we soften up stuck/thick connective tissue, it rehydrates and becomes more flexible.

To have a more concrete example of what this is like, think of an ordinary kitchen sponge.  If the sponge is dry it is very hard and inflexible (and one could also describe it as thick).  The more you moisten the sponge with water, the more flexible and soft it becomes.  In many ways, this is exactly how tissue behaves.  Of course this is a simplification of the whole process, but it works for illustrating the basic point.

So, drink your water and try and limit those foods that act as diuretics.  Your fascia will thank you for it.