In this post I’ll be sharing what I’ve done recently to drink more water daily and how it’s affected my mood, energy, sleep, and productivity!
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Today I wanted to share a very simple “hack” I found to help up my daily water intake – by a lot!
It’s this water bottle. (And if you’re someone who finds it easier to drink more when there’s a straw involved, these extra long ones are the perfect fit!)
That’s it… that’s the hack!
To backtrack a bit, my goal at the beginning of the year was to drink more water daily. After months of holiday indulgence (comfort food, cocktails, etc) I was feeling slowwww, low energy, and completely creatively burnt out with almost zero motivation. To top it all off, I was sleeping terribly – waking up every few hours with pounding headaches, constant nightmares, and bouts of random insomnia.
Not sure why, but my gut instinct was telling me this was all caused by one thing – dehydration.
So I set out to drink 1 full gallon of water per day for 7 days straight.
I failed at day 2. BUT, I managed to consistently drink 1/2 a gallon of water per day for the remainder of the week.
This is already much more water than I was drinking before (my typical 1-2 glasses a day).
There are tons of articles and research about all the benefits of drinking more water. After reading a few, here are some of the most prominent benefits that I gathered: reduced inflammation, increased energy, aids digestion, boost metabolism, and help decrease headaches.
Here are some notes I jotted down along the process, and some things I’ve noticed after the 7 day mark:
- day 2: had the worst headache ever (was I detoxing?)
- obviously peed an exaggerated amount of times per day
- felt less hungry throughout the day – surprisingly didn’t crave snacks
- by the 5th day, I had a GREAT night’s sleep. For once I actually felt rested in the morning.
- made no difference to my weight
- felt really bloated at night, but then woke up with a flatter tummy in the mornings.
I also wanted to take some close up photos of my skin (no makeup, no filter) to see if upping my water intake would make a difference.
To be honest, I don’t notice much of a difference. But, I think maybe 7 days isn’t enough time to show significant results. This just gives me more motivation to continue drinking more water moving forward.
Final Thoughts:
Other than the few nights of better sleep, the most significant change I noticed was in my overall mood and motivation. As a creative biz owner, having a lack of focus or feeling burnout really does affect me in more ways than one. After this first week of drinking more water daily, I am feeling more inspired and have already come up with some new ideas.
If you need a boost of water intake, I highly recommend kicking things off with a “7 day challenge” just to get you in the mindset of prioritizing it. The big gallon water bottle also helps (even if you only drink 1/2 per day) as it’s literally a giant reminder that follows me around all day long. And of course, the key is to continue the habit far beyond the 7 days, which is what I hope to keep up with.
Hope this inspired you to go grab a glass of water!!
Xx Laura
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Your body can only absorb small amounts at a time. (Even water soluble Vitamins.) An example, when my son come home tired and thirsty, he will drink 16 ounces at 1 time. Our body’s need a slower hydration, which is why I also use a straw. That 16 ounces at once doesn’t hydrate our cells. We need it to process. If you pee too often, you may be drinking too much at 1 time, which is less flushing of our toxins.
~Heidi
Hi Heidi, thanks for your comment! I agree, it’s best to hydrate over longer periods of time so that our bodies best benefit. Have a great day! – Laura