We have come to the end of my 30 Day Water Challenge. I wish I could say the whole event was a bed of roses. It was not nearly as bad as I thought it would be, but it certainly had challenges. I expected the challenge to be convincing myself to drink water every day. I found that to be the easy part. Once my body was accustomed to water, it just seemed natural that it became my go to drink of choice.
When I began this challenge I designated some rules and parameters so that I would not feel so pinned in while completing it. I fully expected to quickly tire of the boring taste of water. Therefore, I allowed myself the possibility of adding natural flavor from fruits and herbs. Interestingly, I found that adding those flavors made the water less appealing to me. The fresh, cool taste of ice water became my preferred drink.
In the evenings before bed, my tummy longed for that cool sensation of ice cold water. It was quite soothing. I tend to run hot while I sleep. I wake frequently to remove covers or create fort style ventilation to cool me off. Drinking cold water seemed to lower my body temperate and helped me fall asleep more quickly. It is advised by some that you should not drink just before going to bed. It can cause you to wake to go to the restroom in the middle of the night; thus, disturbing sleep patterns. For me, a water only beverage routine required fewer restroom visits; therefore, my nighttime visits actually declined.
I mentioned in previous posts that the improvement in my skin has been nothing short of phenomenal. I have lotion in every room of my house to alleviate my constant dry skin. I realized this week that I have not touched the lotion in most rooms in a few weeks. Once I realized after an earlier post that I had not been using my usual facial creams, I did become conscious of this and returned to applying lotion to my face each morning. The dry patch that once created a semi-unibrow effect has now cleared completely. My hands are silky smooth and the rough edges of my feet just feel like firm skin.
I struggled with adjusting to less sugar in my diet. Those symptoms have now evened out. I still include a glass of all natural juice in my day. This serves as a good afternoon snack that tides me over until dinner. Occasionally my after dinner sweet craving sneaks up, though it is in a different form than in the past. I once just craved sweets of any kind, but preferably chocolate. When the occasional craving comes now, it is for a specific item, such as a Krispy Kreme doughnut. This could be attributed more to the fact that I use doughnuts as a reward for myself when I accomplish really hated tasks, such as doctor visits. Fortunately, there are not many tasks that I hate enough to deserve a reward for accomplishing.
Overall I feel like I did really well with this challenge. The benefits outweighed the negatives by far. Now water is a habit, not something that I have to give a lot of thought. I expected that when this final day came, I would thank God that it was over, return to my old patterns, and go get a Krispy Kreme doughnut to reward myself for the effort. I find instead that water just feels natural now, and the challenge was not great enough to deserve a doughnut, although Krispy Kreme makes some pretty awesome ones.
I recommend this challenge, with the warning that, if you have health concerns, you may want to include your doctor in your plans. Going water only is a healthy option, but if your body is trained to operate on an unhealthy diet, as mine was, you may need some assistance to learn how to balance your body as it transitions to a new way of life.
When I began this challenge I designated some rules and parameters so that I would not feel so pinned in while completing it. I fully expected to quickly tire of the boring taste of water. Therefore, I allowed myself the possibility of adding natural flavor from fruits and herbs. Interestingly, I found that adding those flavors made the water less appealing to me. The fresh, cool taste of ice water became my preferred drink.
In the evenings before bed, my tummy longed for that cool sensation of ice cold water. It was quite soothing. I tend to run hot while I sleep. I wake frequently to remove covers or create fort style ventilation to cool me off. Drinking cold water seemed to lower my body temperate and helped me fall asleep more quickly. It is advised by some that you should not drink just before going to bed. It can cause you to wake to go to the restroom in the middle of the night; thus, disturbing sleep patterns. For me, a water only beverage routine required fewer restroom visits; therefore, my nighttime visits actually declined.
I mentioned in previous posts that the improvement in my skin has been nothing short of phenomenal. I have lotion in every room of my house to alleviate my constant dry skin. I realized this week that I have not touched the lotion in most rooms in a few weeks. Once I realized after an earlier post that I had not been using my usual facial creams, I did become conscious of this and returned to applying lotion to my face each morning. The dry patch that once created a semi-unibrow effect has now cleared completely. My hands are silky smooth and the rough edges of my feet just feel like firm skin.
I struggled with adjusting to less sugar in my diet. Those symptoms have now evened out. I still include a glass of all natural juice in my day. This serves as a good afternoon snack that tides me over until dinner. Occasionally my after dinner sweet craving sneaks up, though it is in a different form than in the past. I once just craved sweets of any kind, but preferably chocolate. When the occasional craving comes now, it is for a specific item, such as a Krispy Kreme doughnut. This could be attributed more to the fact that I use doughnuts as a reward for myself when I accomplish really hated tasks, such as doctor visits. Fortunately, there are not many tasks that I hate enough to deserve a reward for accomplishing.
Overall I feel like I did really well with this challenge. The benefits outweighed the negatives by far. Now water is a habit, not something that I have to give a lot of thought. I expected that when this final day came, I would thank God that it was over, return to my old patterns, and go get a Krispy Kreme doughnut to reward myself for the effort. I find instead that water just feels natural now, and the challenge was not great enough to deserve a doughnut, although Krispy Kreme makes some pretty awesome ones.
I recommend this challenge, with the warning that, if you have health concerns, you may want to include your doctor in your plans. Going water only is a healthy option, but if your body is trained to operate on an unhealthy diet, as mine was, you may need some assistance to learn how to balance your body as it transitions to a new way of life.