A goal of many people looking to improve their wellness is to consume more water, with 1 gallon of water per day being the target goal. If you’ve ever tried it (I have) you know it’s not easy. In fact, it can be a serious challenge. You have to make a conscious effort to keep drinking, which also involves frequent trips to the bathroom, an inconvenience for many, but for those working from their car or in an office setting, it’s a serious hurdle.
Since COVID, and with the new year, I’m going to attempt this goal again. I’m working from home with a bathroom 12′ away and a faucet not much farther. I’m not 100% sold on the supposed benefits of a gallon a day, but I do know that I need to drink significantly more water – daily – than I do now. I’d like to at least test what a gallon a day might feel like as others have done.
Pre-Gaming Strategy
Back in college, we used to “pre-game” before going out to the bars. The idea was simple, start having drinks at home before going out as a means of saving money.
My plan – to ease the challenge of moving directly to 1 gallon of water per day – is to apply the pre-game technique. Not to save money, but to build tolerance. Moving directly to a full gallon a day is too much. I’m going to ramp up incrementally. My body simply isn’t used to that level of H2O intake.
This way I can monitor the impact on my body incrementally. Maybe my bladder will also have time to adjust so those frequent trips to the bathroom will be a bit less frequent.]
What I am Expecting
Based on others’ experiences, I know not to expect some of the more unsupported claims of benefits:
- more energy
- amazing skin
- no bloating
- fresh eyes
What I am expecting, at some level of daily intake yet to be determined, is to generally feel better. I’m hoping it will mean that when I wake up in the middle of the night my mouth is not so dry. Maybe I will have fewer headaches.
I am not planning to chronicle this in any measurable way (beyond actual water intake), so it will be more anecdotal. It will be a “controlled” analysis in that I will not make any other dietary changes during this time, so that if observations are made, they can be more reliably attributed to water intake.
Water is Life
Life (as we know it) is not possible without water. Our bodies are made up of approximately 60% water. Increasing the intake of that water might yield an impact on health and wellness. I plan to find out if 1 gallon of water per day is the amount that might drive a difference beyond bathroom trip frequency.
Pre-gaming might be the transitional stage needed to make the gallon goal more achievable.