The Water Challenge

So, I was visiting my Aunt last month, and she tells me all about her new health improvements. She is seeing a good doctor and also had a few visits with a Naturopathic doctor. Between the two, she has figured out (along with some other clues from our family) that there are many MANY things taxing our immune system. One of the courses of action, is to cleanse the body from the sugar overload that our North American diet encourages. The first challenge... a week of just water. And the amount is 3-4 Litres per day.

I am talking strictly beverage wise (what choices I made to eat would still be the same). No coffee, tea, juice, pop, sugar free of any of those, nothing artificially sweetened, nothing at all...but plain old H2O. If you are a milk drinker, that could be a problem...as milk is also a protein and therefore also a 'food'. I didn't have to worry. I only had cereal 3 times in 7 days, and I don't drink milk as a beverage.

You need to understand though, how much pop I drink usually. It's embarrassing really... I remember watching a show once, on how people were changing their diets etc, and how much bottled pop this one guy drank in an average day. I remember thinking, "WOW, I never drink that much!"...interesting how 5 years later, guess what - I am worse than he was. And that is just pop. Never mind how much water I DIDN'T drink! A few days would go by where my only source of liquid was pop, ice tea, regular tea or juice.

I am tired all the time, I  have trouble concentrating now more than ever, and I have so many food sensitivities, I wouldn't know where to begin on what I should eat to feel better. So, on the cue of my Aunt, I tried the same thing. 7 days with nothing but water as my beverage...you have GOT to be kidding me...

Day 1

Today was spent trying NOT to grab for a pop, tea, milk, juice, ANYTHING that wasn't water. It's just habit! I don't know if I even drank a litre of water that day.

Day 2

Today was the headache day. The problem is, I don't know if it was sugar related or caffeine withdrawal, since it was probably that I was dehydrated! Today was not pleasant. And I was at work to boot...again, I don't know if I made it to 2 Litres for that day. Spent the day again trying not to grab for things I shouldn't. My taste buds just wanted something else!

Day 3

Today was a bit better. The headache was gone (and that was a lot faster than about 10 years ago when I did a cleanse. That headache was about 3 days long!). The other notable thing was that I was no longer bloated, or felt like constantly passing gas. I was having to 'p' a lot more, and it was NOT a pleasant color! Still having trouble getting more than 1 1/2 Litres into me.

Day 4

Still hard to not reach for something else to drink. My taste buds are board. Mom and I did some errands and I had to remember to bring my water bottles with me so I wouldn't be tempted when I went out somewhere. My mind felt a bit clearer today too. Drank 2 Litres today!

Day 5

Starting to feel a little bit more energy. And I notice that my ankles aren't retaining water like they usually do. Still sort of puffy, but NOTHING like they were. I noticed I slept better last night. More relaxed. Still didn't exceed the 2 Litre mark. My skin is starting to clear a bit too.

Day 6

Hand another good sleep, though not nearly long enough. I think maybe I caught a cold, but I don't know. I haven't felt this alert or energetic in a LONG time, and at the same time, parts of me were aching today...like the kind when you had growing pains in your limbs as a child? Or flu ish...Very odd to be awake, alert, and wanting to do something, and not having some parts of your body comply. I still feel hopeful. It seems today was the day my natural thirst for water returned. I WANTED water!

Day 7

Small set back but HUGE revelation. I ate pasta last night. And right away, the bloating came back, pain in the stomach and TIRED!...blah! But, my 'p' color is now clear, my sleeps are more restful (if I could just make sure I allow enough time to get enough sleep!), I usually feel more alert and more energy, and food sensitivities seem more apparent.


So this was a successful experiment in my mind. While I never made it up to the 3-4 Litres of water a day, I know I eventually will. And I know it also takes 31 days to form a new habit. With summer around the corner, and being hot will help me want water even more, I feel hope. I am going to continue until 31 days has past, choosing water more often then anything else. I am allowing one non-water beverage a day. Either one cup of pop, one cup of juice, one cup of tea, OR one cup of coffee a day. I may opt to not have anything but water. But I will make water my first choice.

There is so much I am leaving out since I am just not up to typing it all out. So much of the literature I read that my Aunt was given before she started this. How GOOD water is for you! (shouldn't everyone know that?) How much you getting the right liquid in your body helps your liver (not to mention every other part of your bodily functions!) That drinking water helps you lose weight? Helps your thyroid cool you down...helps your joints to have enough fluid between them so that when you go and visit the chiropractor, it's actually easier to move you into the correct positions to correct what is out of place? (and I experienced that last one first hand more times that I can count!). There is so much....

I will do my best to update on the progress I note as I continue this... I am fast approaching the end of week 2, with better beverage choices. Start small. Don't change everything about your diet right away (unless of course your doc tells you too!). Make slower, more manageable choices that can stick. If you overwhelm yourself right away, you will set yourself up to miss step, fail, and get discouraged. That is how I have been for the last 10 years. Time to change. The only person not living my life to the fullest - is me.