Two years ago I started  drinking a glass of water in the morning, and this graduated to 500mls a day and then as of last year 700mls. The 700 mls was inspired by a nice shinny new bottle that I received at the beginning of 2017, and I liked seeing it on my desk every day. It made me feel very healthy and grown up.

So I thought I was a star at hydration...I mean I was walking around telling anyone that would listen about the miracle of drinking water when let's face it, I had only just scratched the surface of the  benefits of proper hydration.

So this year as mentioned on the blog I have incorporated some regular exercise into my daily routine. I  intended to make time every day to be active but now it's every other day. I alternate; one day of rest and one day of exercise. My body responds to this better. This coupled with regular upcountry travel, and the hot weather we experienced for the first part of the year, lead me to drinking more than 700mls a day. It's possible that I was up to a litre. I am not sure. I never measured my drinking habits but I am now certain it was still not enough...

Only on one of  my most recent trips did I randomly decide to take a litre of water two hours before bed time and something weird happened. All the uncomfortable bloating that I usually experience near the end of the day disappeared. So I decided to continue.... and the results just left me flabbergasted. Who knew something so simple could make such a huge difference?



Now when I first started exercising I complained to my big brother (who's also on a personal fitness journey) that I was unprepared for the hunger pangs. They would hit right after exercise and could not be controlled. The hunger monster would dominate my thoughts until I ate something..anything in carb form would suffice.  I once sat down and made my way through a whole bag of popcorn by myself and felt no shame afterwards. The hunger monster was ruthless. I even considered stopping the whole exercise routine because I was eating more, and my goal had been to curb my weight gain.

But when I started drinking two litres of water a day, the hunger monster all but disappeared, and I was left to wonder if the hunger monster was just the dehydration monster in disguise. Another unexpected result is the slight weight loss, which I attribute to the water because I discovered that my daily sodium intake was high, and to balance this out my body must have retained water. 

To make this a permanent habit, I bought myself a 500ml glass that sits beside my bed and a huge cup for work, I use them both to monitor my water intake throughout the day and to reach my goal of two litres. On days when it's hot or my exercise is a bit more intense I drink more.

After I started seeing results I did the most predictable millennial thing and started researching on You tube. I found a ton of videos... from the benefits of 8 glasses a day to the benefits of  a gallon a day.


Disclaimer: I am not a Doctor, so please don't be mad at me if it doesn't work for you. Learn how your body works and always consult a physician.