Articles

Last month I read an article about a woman who drank 3 litres of water per day for 4 weeks and how much of a change it made to her life.  I realised how guilty I can be of not keeping myself fully hydrated during the day and thought I would give this a go for 4 weeks, to see if I notice any difference in myself.

Whilst my own experience with this, wasn't quite as noticeable - or remarkable - as the woman in the article, I certainly did notice a vast difference in overall energy levels.  The original article can be seen here --> "Woman drinks 3 litres of water every day …."


First of all, I decided to do this without changing any of my own usual daily routine.  There was the normal, general lack of strenuous exercise, and I ate chocolate and ice-cream and fried chips if I felt like it (not all together though!)

Week 1

I found it a little difficult drinking quite so much water, but got myself into a routine through the day.  There was lots of running up and down stairs to the bathroom, but I felt good.  I had stopped noticing the occasional headache that I can get from tiredness, and the early morning stiffness from my joints was almost gone.  I didn't really notice any spots on my face, but still hoped that maybe some toxins were being eliminated from my body.

Week 2

There was a definite difference in my ability to focus.  My mind just felt clearer and I had more energy, even though I wasn't sleeping as long as I would like.  My stomach wasn't any flatter, but I did feel fitter in general. 

Week 3

There were some days when I felt somewhat waterlogged, but as I was half-way through this challenge, I wanted to finish, so kept going.  Day 3 of this week (the day after my chips and ice-cream), I put on a clean pair of jeans and didn't have to fight with the waistband, or do that silly type of breath-holding dance to do them up.  This, was a real incentive to keep going!  Oh, and I wasn't sure if it was my imagination, but my skin felt smoother too.

Week 4

I was actually really pleased to reach the last week of this.  I definitely felt more energetic and clear-minded.  I don't usually have a huge sweet tooth, but I did notice that my favourite fruits tasted sweeter than usual.  I also noticed that even on days when I had finished my 3 litre quota, if I ate something sweet, I felt thirsty afterwards and would need to drink even more.

I did take photos of my progress, one before starting and then one at the end of each week.  I tried to do them at the same time of night, without makeup and with hair back.  The photos here are the first and the last.  I wasn't going to show them, but on request, here they are!   I don't think there is much of a difference in them, except maybe for clearer looking eyes.  I know some people though who claimed to look years younger than when they started and some who lost cellulite!

Generally, I am a pretty healthy person.  I prefer to eat freshly prepared foods, cooked with fresh organic produce, so I don't think there were too many toxins that needed flushing from my system.  I wasn't even concerned about losing weight.  I only did this to see whether keeping myself fully hydrated would make a difference to how I felt …. and YES it did!

If you decide to try this experiment for yourself, I highly recommend adding a few slices of your favourite fruit to your water.  It will change the taste from boring to interesting and will even add some nutrients along the way.  Even though I generally like plain water, when drinking this much, it does help to have a little variety - even herbal tea (non-caffeine), without milk or sugar, will count towards your 3 litres a day!

Another suggestion is NOT to overdo it.  If your body is telling you to stop, then you need to listen and act!  I will not be continuing with 3 litres per day because it feels like too much for me personally, but I am now more aware of when I need more fluids and how my body reacts when I get them.

Let me know how you get along.

Love & blessings,
Caryl ♥