Before beginning this journey, it wasn't uncommon for me to go a whole day having drank nothing more than a single cup of coffee. No joke!
(Even worse, I'd microwave that same cup multiple times throughout the morning and afternoon because it would get cold before I'd finish it. How gross is that!?! I digress...) ;)
My point is, I was functioning in a chronically dehydrated state. Not good!
I also suffered from fatigue, confusion, memory loss, brittle hair, cold extremities, constipation, and headaches... ALL of which can be caused by severe dehydration.
Because of this, increasing my water intake was the first thing I wanted/needed to tackle.
After consulting many different sources, I decided to follow the school of thought that I should be drinking half of my body weight in ounces.
(For example: A 170lb person, should drink 85oz of water per day.)
I currently weigh 280lbs (YIKES! I know! Hence this year-long journey!), SO my magic number has been 140oz of water per day.
Going from barely drinking anything to 140oz was a bit overwhelming, so I eased myself in with a starting goal of 100oz. By day three however, I realized that the water bottle I'd been using actually held 32oz instead of 24oz like I thought. Which meant, that while I was celebrating drinking four full bottles a day, which I thought was 96oz... I had actually consumed 128oz!! WOOT WOOT!!
I've been up to my final goal of 140oz ever since and already I'm noticing a HUGE difference (besides the frequent trips to the ladies' room! HA!)... I'm no longer feeling tired, or experiencing brain fog, and my skin already looks better too! I find myself after only a week, craving the water, and actually feeling thirsty... a sensation that I haven't felt in decades!
My advice to you is this, even if you don't plan to change anything else in your lives... You ABSOLUTLEY must increase your water intake. Make sure that you are consuming the appropriate number of ounces for your body. You won't be sorry!
I had planned to share with you some of the amazing benefits of drinking water, but this article from THORBJÖRG at MindBodyGreen sums it up perfectly.
Give it a read!
Then, go and grab your favorite water bottle and join me! CHEERS!
xoxo -Kara
