Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Water, water everywhere

About a week ago, my wonderfully talented, super motivational Zumba instructor issued an "8 X 8" challenge to her "divas" where she promised to send out a couple of text messages throughout the day, reminding us to drink at least eight 8-ounce glasses of water a day. Now, we've all heard the benefits of consuming this much water each day (more in a moment) but how many of us actually do this on a regular basis? Not me, for one, but I'm always up to a challenge! I got on board and starting getting the texts...more importantly, I started drinking (that much!) water, and oh! what a difference it's made in my life!

Our friends at the Mayo Clinic extoll the virtues of this much daily water consumption, reminding us that good old H2O flushes our organs of harmful toxins and carries nutrients to our body's cells. (Hey, we are what we eat - and drink - and the human body is composed of about 60% water.) But did you know that too little daily water consumption could actually lead to dehydration, fatigue, lethargy, muscle cramps and body pain?

I'm standing here today (sipping water, of course) to tell you that I am living proof of this fact. Before climbing on board with the 8 X 8 challenge, I frequently experienced horrible episodes of pain all over my body, in my joints, neck, wrists, hips, knees and back. I know the benefits of daily exercise, but a lot of times the pain would interfere with my daily three-mile walk. Occassionally Zumba class would leave me so whipped, I'd feel like crying as I limped and crawled out of there. And approaching rainy days would practically send me over the edge with achy, throbbing bones and fatigue. I'm no spring chicken, but I'm not ancient by any means, not even in horse years, so I knew deep down this agony I'd experience wouldn't be considered normal. But then I took the challenge and started consuming at least 64 ounces of water a day.

Literally (magically!), within two days of starting the challenge, I noticed a much higher energy level than in previous weeks or months. My tummy seemed to get flatter, I noticed my clothes appeared to feel looser, and (best of all!) my pain levels miraculously dropped all over my body. Woo hoo!

Encouraged by early results (but wondering if it was "all in my head"), I kept up the challenge over the weekend. Last week's Zumba class marked the first time in months where I bounced out with a smile on my face, energized and not hurting all over (who is this girl?!). I knew the real test would come when I saw the weather forecast for this week, which promised at least three days of steady, get-under-your-collar and ache-your-joints rain. Thankfully, continuing the 8 X 8 challenge provided me with more pain relief than I've had in a looooong time. In the words of the old rock song, "I (now) love a rainy night." How awesome is that?

Try the 8 X 8 challenge yourself, even for just ten days. See if it makes a difference in your daily routine. I have a feeling it will - for the better! And to that, I'll gladly raise a glass (of agua)!

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