Hi, everyone. So the last time I checked in with you guys, I confessed that I hadn't been drinking enough water. After admitting that, I continued my effort to start drinking more again. I've been doing pretty well (and my Brita water filter is on order). But over Father's Day weekend, I went to a Phillies game with my boyfriend and his family. We tailgated for hours in a big tent before the game. Good eatin' and drinkin', let me tell ya -- but not that good for you, of course.
I found myself the next day sitting at the breakfast table with the family. Everyone was eating croissants and jam, drinking coffee. But I was still feeling rather full from the filet mignon sandwiches, sausages, and all that hard cider. I was also decidedly dehydrated. So I went in the fridge to find something a little differentfor breakfast -- and I saw the grapes. Lovely, plump seedless purple grapes. I ate two huge bowlfulls and grabbed an Aquafina. Just what I needed.
A lot of y'all know that it's just in the past few months that I've started living healthier. There's just something about turning 30+ that makes you start reevaluating your habits. Though I'd steered clear of water (and exercise, and eating well) for most of my life, I decided to make a change for the better. And perhaps the most important change of all was that I started drinking water -- a goal of eight glasses a day. When I drink it, I look and feel so much better. Water has zero calories, it plumps up your skin, and it hydrates your muscles. It's the very fluid of life.
Straight water or water with a little splash of flavor is really the best way to go; I don't think anyone will argue with that. And though sodas, iced tea, coffee, and other popular drinks contain water, they also have caffeine, of course. Trying to hydrate with those drinks is counterproductive, because they act as diuretics, pulling a little extra fluid from your body even as you hydrate. But as I ate my yummy seedless grapes that morning (and started feeling better), I thought about how there are other good sources of hydration, just like the grapes.
Some good alternate sources of water include hamburger, chicken breast, soup (or stew or broth), and gelatin; meat can actuallycontain up to 60% water. And the following foods contain 90% water or more: carrots, red grapefruits, lemons, limes, water
melons, papayas, red bell p
eppers, strawberries, and tomatoes. Yum!
melons, papayas, red bell peppers, strawberries, and tomatoes. Yum!
I've also been wanting to try a dietary supplement by Murad called Wet Suit Cell Hydrating Dietary Supplement. It helps your skin cells hold onto water, even while protecting against inflammation and oxidation. It also contains Vitamin E, zinc, copper, manganese, and CoQ10 help promote general health. It even helps with skin conditions like eczema and psoriasis! I've read reviews on makeupalley.com, skinstore.com, amazon.com, and plenty more sites (as I'm rather addictive to product reviews!), and the results are resoundingly positive. Water in a pill? Not quite! But the closest thing out there to it. That's the good-for-you product I'm going to try next.
So tell me: what are your favorite alternate ways to keep your body hydrated? I think I might stop by the grocery store today and pick up some more grapes.
sources: thefruitpages.com, webmd.com
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Comments: 9
What a great post! We often forget that there are other ways to get what we need from foods. I love water, and iced tea and all that other good stuff. I drink about 2-3 liters of straight water per day, sometimes more. So that is how I do it.
Thanks so much, Pamela! 2-3 liters is a lot. Great job!
LOL believe me when I say the bathroom is my best friend though!
I know what you mean! I like to think of it as extra exercise, the path to the bathroom and back.
Fantastic post here! Thank you for the information. I drink water, water, water, 1 cup of coffee a day and maybe a soda at lunch, but followed with water!
Awesome, Pam! That's definitely the way to do it if you have the occasional coffee or soda. It's a good thing the soda Mr. Pibb is hard to come by up north, because it was always my must-have naughty drink of choice growing up.
Watermelon, I love it and during the summer I eat it almost daily either as a snack or sidedish with a meal.
Watermelon's the best! Down south where I grew up, people put salt on it; not a fan of that! And I'm sure none of us need any more salt in our diets.