Thirst Trap

Feeling Parched?

 Just so we’re clear, I am of the generation who drank out of the hose and only got one post-recess, sweaty, 10 seconds at the water fountain kind of hydrator. I don’t ever really remember drinking water except for during cross-country, basketball, and track seasons. Even then, we didn’t take our own water bottles, and we certainly didn’t carry around our emotional support gallon tanks wherever we went.

But, I believe in adaptation, and I have learned firsthand how much better my body functions with at least a minimum level of hydration. The first realization came after I discovered basement frat parties in college. That big cup of water downed in the middle of the night, or slurped from the bathroom tap with cupped hands was vital to making it through the next day.

Even more important, was when my best friend was pregnant having her first round of Braxton-Hicks contractions, sharing the all-important secret of drinking a glass of water to get them to settle down. I really do not know the fact checking on this, so it may just be an old wives’ tale, but I realized that so many things can irritate a pregnant belly, so why add dehydration into the mix?

Throughout the last decade or so, I have noticed how much better my skin looks and feels when I’m drinking a decent amount of water consistently. And for SURE, my digestive system works more efficiently (you can read my post about fiber here) However, while I try to have a cute, trendy cup of ice water with me, I’m not hauling around a gallon jug and sipping on it all day long. I drink several ounces before I get out of bed, and try to drink several ounces every couple of hours. Like, when I’m thirsty. 

It’s not an exact science for me, and I don’t claim to really know what I’m talking about. I try to meet the traditional 8 8ox glasses a day, since that has been the popular recommendation for most of my adult life, but I don’t go crazy if I miss the target. It’s all about the average for me, and so far that’s worked better in my real life than trying to drink upwards of a gallon a day, which in actuality can be TOO MUCH of a good thing! Where do you fall in the hydration game??

xx, linds