I
have a secret to share. I think I’ve found the fountain of youth. Yeah, I know
you’re laughing. But really. This is sorta big. And I can’t just keep it to
myself.
It’s
water. Now, you’re really laughing. So f’ing cliché and stupid, right? “Drink
more water.”
Whenever
I read that or somebody spouted the “drink 8 glasses a day” drivel, I just brushed it off or ignored it. Well that’s not exactly true. I
actually tried it a few times but oh my god it’s so hard. And truly, who has
that much time in a day to spend running to the toilet anyway?
But
then New Year’s. And with it came a few new resolutions, one of which was try
to drink a ton more water. Mostly because the holiday season stress and naughty
eating did me no favors in the health department. Drinking more water is on
every health list, so that’s where I started.
I
don’t actually like to drink water. At all. I will drink tea, or put lemon in
it whenever I was trying to take in more fluids. But this time, I tried to make
myself drink plain water and maybe even begin to like it. I started with a huge
glass jar (64 oz), which should have been the requisite 8 glasses. I filled it
up in the morning and tried to down it regularly throughout the day. I’m not going
to lie. This takes real commitment. WOW. The first week I think I ran to the
toilet every 15 minutes. But I stuck it out. Mostly because the results were
fast and amazing. My skin felt better (way, way better) in only days and looked so much different,
even in a week. Softer, dewier, younger than it had in years. Especially around my eyes. In the last few months they had gotten wrinkly in the lids, hollow underneath, and just plain tired looking. I thought I was just getting to that point where, duh, aging catches up with you. But maybe that was just dehydration?
The
second week was easier and I was actually getting thirsty if I somehow missed
drinking my glass of water in an hour or so. At this point, I was trying to
increase my water drinking to add another half of that jar before the day was
done. The bathroom breaks stretched out longer. I felt like I had more energy.
I didn’t feel so stiff – in fact I was feeling sort of bendy and stretchy. No
more creaking in the knees. But there was also backlash – a couple of
devastating floods across my desk, destroying piles of work, when I knocked the
stupid water glass over that I wasn’t used to having there.
And
then I found this article: a woman in the UK who had done the same experiment
and her results. Nothing short of amazing. Holy cow, LOOK at her face! It claims that she started drinking a gallon a day, but that's not actually true. I found her original article, the one she wrote herself, and it was only 3 liters a day, which was my own jar and a half amount. If you only have a minute to spare - check out that first article because it's short and succinct, outlining how the proper amounts of water are essential for really every function of your body, from digestion, to joints, to skin, all of it.
And then, if you want to read her week-by-week diary of what it felt like for her for the first month, check that article out here. It's nothing short of miraculous. It is honestly the fountain of youth. Or as close as we're going to get anyway. Convinced? Headed for your water bottle?
I'm not at a full month, but I've got reason enough to make this a regular thing now. Still working out the "making it a habit" part. Like remembering to take it with me in the car when I run errands. Or how not to tsunami my keyboard. It's a work in progress. One that I highly recommend if you're a water-avoider like I was. And yes, it's supposed to help you lose weight too. Flushing toxins, keeping you feeling full, curbing cravings. Gah! Even more benefits. :)
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