Recently, as I was driving to Denver the new weight watcher
commercials with Oprah aired on the various radio stations. These commercials are not the typical weight
loss product commercials. They started
me thinking about small doable changes I could make to be healthier in the New
Year. There is power in one change. So what is my change? Several years ago, we had a group of people
that joined me for a series of programs called Small Steps to Health and Wealth
that also looked at the power of small changes.
As I drove, I thought about possible changes I could
make. One of the secrets to success, is
to not try too many changes at once.
What would be my first small change?
Change number one to become healthier.
Drink more water. This should be
an easy one, right? Water is free and
easy to find. But for some reason I
choose different beverages. For me I want
flavor.
To count for water a beverage cannot contain caffeine. So there are some options around. Available on the market are flavoring drops
and packets to add to water, some even tout added vitamins and minerals. I can keep some flavor in my desk and handy
at home. I enjoy flavored hot tea, so
choosing a decaffeinated option is doable.
Adding fruit or cucumbers to water is another way to add flavor. At the hotel they have big glass containers
of water around with various fruits in them.
They are pretty along with adding a light flavor to the water. There are new bottles that help people make
their own fruit infused water on the go.
If you are a container person, there are many cool water bottles that
you can take with you and help you track the amount of water you drink.
Water is the perfect beverage to fight dehydration even for
most athletics after all our bodies are mostly water. We should avoid sports drinks which add lots
of sodium and carbohydrates if we are not doing an exercise where we are
sweating a lot over a period of time. We
should drink a minimum of 8 glasses of water a day, how many times have you
heard this? It really is not as much as
it sounds, eight glasses is 64 ounces or 2 quarts. Most of us use glasses that hold at least 16
ounces, so we would just need to drink 4 glasses during the day to get the
minimum water amount.
An easy way to get the minimum water a day is to start your
day with 16 ounces when you get up and then have a 16 ounce glass with every
meal. Once you master getting the
minimum amount of water, challenge yourself to find additional times to add 16
more ounces a day.
Why is it important?
When our bodies are hydrated we feel better and bodies function
better. Water will help our bodies
removed waste and toxins. Water helps
our blood pressure and help us reduce inflammation and arthritis pain. It is the base of almost every diet from
proven to fad.
So as I was driving I challenged myself to get the minimum
every day even while I was busy working with the team putting on the various
National 4-H Contests. How did I do?
Wednesday – Great, thanks to the bottled water I had in the
car with me.
Thursday – No Problems
Friday – Slow start to the day, as we were busy, but I took
advantage of those glass containers of fruit infused water.
Saturday – Not so good, missed my breakfast opportunity for decaffeinated
tea, but I did have some water during the day and before bed.
Sunday – Traveling home, I purchased bottled water at the convenience
store along with my soda and made sure to drink it.
Now the challenge is to keep it up, until it becomes a habit
even during my family’s crazy schedule. Join
me in this challenge and lift your glass of water in a toast.
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