12 Months to Better Health: January – Water

For 2015, I really wanted to share some knowledge that I’ve learned over the years on simple ways to lead a healthier lifestyle. I’ve found that making slow adjustments make for longer lasting changes in lifestyle and diet – the tortoise always wins the race. Every month I will post a new focus, something to pay attention to and improve for well-being. I have to remind you that I am not a nutrition expert, dietician or physician – I am a massage therapist. The information that is given here is meant to help facilitate a healthier lifestyle, but is not given out of professional, medical directive. As always, please consult your (traditional or naturopathic) doctor if you have further questions regarding diet, vitamins, weight loss, cholesterol, etc.

I’ve found the more of a plan and structure I have, the more the changes stick. One thing that has really helped me be accountable with diet and exercise is utilizing an app on my phone and/or a device like FitBit. If you have a FitBit, get it out of the drawer, charged up and log-in to your online account. If you don’t, download an app like My Fitness Pal or Lose It. These will help you to be accountable for what you are really eating, how much exercise you are doing, and how much water you are drinking. And speaking of…

This first month our focus will be water: it’s benefits and your consumption. If you don’t already have a reusable water bottle, please go and pick up one or two, or more – I have three. I really like the Nalgene (BPA-free) bottles and also the Camelback bottles, and you can find them readily at Target or Walmart. It should have ounce markers on the side of the bottle so you know how much you are drinking. There are wide-neck bottles that are great if you like to add ice or lemon to your water, or small neck bottles that are easier for drinking on the go.

How much water should you be drinking every day? The recommendation by many experts is 1/2 of your weight in ounces – for example, if you weigh 150 pounds, you would aim for 75 ounces a day. Use your tracking app, or a paper and pen to write down how much water you are actually drinking right now, and gradually find ways of adding more in to meet your water goal… Not juice, coffee, tea, beer, wine, soda…. water. Our bodies are made of about 70% water – our brains, discs, bursas, muscles, fascia, and blood (to name just a few) need it to function properly. You will be amazed how much more energy you have just by keeping yourself properly hydrated. 🙂

Happy Drinking (water)!