Now that summer is rapidly approaching, I cannot stress how important it is to stay as hydrated as possible!!! In fact I highly recommend over-hydration… On a bad day, I get about 100 fluid ounces of water and on a good day I get close to 150!
The biggest problem is finding time to drink your daily requirement… After all, who has time to count how many 8oz glasses you’ve had. Luckily, there are other ways to make sure you get as close to your daily water requirement without completely rearranging your life (either at work or at home). First let’s look at a trick for the office.
If you work in a traditional 9 to 5 job, visit the office water cooler often! I used to work in a law firm, so I know how tempting it is to get up and talk to your coworkers when you’ve got a little bit of a lull in your workload. To make sure you get as close to your daily water requirement as possible, make a pit stop at the water cooler before visiting them. Those cups are small, but if you’re having 3 or more each day, you’ll see a dramatic improvement in your health.
When you’re at home, you have a couple options. The first tip applies if you’re just chilling out and think you’re hungry (especially if you have just recently finished eating). When you get the urge to get a snack from the refrigerator, drink a tall glass of water and wait 10-15 minutes. Most of the time when we think we’re hungry, it’s actually our bodies saying it needs more water.
Option number two is to suck on an ice cube; this is an awesome tactic to use every time you need to cook, either for yourself or your family. I stumbled onto this shortly after I moved out on my own and had to make meals for myself.
I had a limited budget for food, but time after time I kept running out of food faster than expected. At first, I didn’t fully realize how I blew through the food so fast. But then one day, I was making a recipe that had a decent amount of prep time, and I noticed that every time I went back to the kitchen, I’d grab a small snack (specifically a protein shake)… A few hours after I had eaten my meal, I counted how many protein shakes I had left and I realized what I had been doing to run out of food so quickly.
This epiphany prompted me to keep several ice trays in my freezer, especially for when I’m getting ready to cook. Every time I started to feel like I’d want to grab something from the refrigerator, I’d grab an ice cube and shove it in my mouth before I could reach down and open the refrigerator door.
I’d love to hear from you about how these tips work for you. Or even better if you have one of your own!
Before I go, I want to leave you with an interesting graphic that shows why water is so vital to a healthy life and lifestyle!
Bottoms up!
Let Food HEAL Your Body! 