fitness

Christine and the Giant Water Bottle

Christine Hennebury

I thought I was drinking plenty of water but it turns out that I most definitely was not.

On a day-to-day basis, I mostly drink water and tea with the occasional glass of juice for variety’s sake.

GIF description: A large husky is lying on some grass with its snout submerged in its water dish and it is blowing bubbles from its nostrils. The water dish is resting on concrete.​
This husky has opted to blow bubbles instead of drinking their water but perhaps they absorbed a few drops all the same. GIF description: A large husky is lying on some grass with its snout submerged in its water dish and its paws on either side of the dish. The dog is blowing bubbles from its nostrils. The water dish is resting on concrete.

And I really thought I was having the recommended 8 glasses a day…until I actually thought it through.

If I have a glass of water with each meal and then one or two at other times during the day, I was getting a maximum of 5 glasses a day.

And yes, I know that the 8 glasses is a fairly arbitrary recommendation and I didn’t fall for the idea that ‘By the time you feel thirsty, you are already terribly dehydrated!’ that some ‘experts’ were touting a few years back. If that was the way the human body worked, we would never have survived this long.

But, still, I know that 8 glasses is a good guideline.

And I know that drinking more water can be beneficial for people who are monitoring their blood pressure.

And I just had this sense that the way I felt in the morning had something to do with not getting enough fluid overall.

And I know that my ADHD brain might mislead me about how much water I drink and when I drink it.

So, I decided to do an experiment.*

a lab coat, safety glasses, and a blue cap covering their hair uses an eye dropper to add liquid to a series of large test tubes filled with blue liquid. Beakers and other science-related containers filled with containing the same liquid sit on their work surface. A microscope sits nearby.
This scientist is doing a far more elaborate experiment than I am. Image description: A scientist wearing a lab coat, safety glasses, and a blue cap covering their hair uses an eye dropper to add liquid to a series of large test tubes filled with blue liquid. Beakers and other science-related containers filled with containing the same liquid sit on their work surface.

I know that part of my issue with remembering to drink more water is that I have to interrupt whatever I am doing in order to refill my glass or water bottle. Any interruption in my work day has the potential to lead me down a rabbit hole of other tasks so I try to avoid extra stops in my work flow. (Hyperfocus plays a role here, too, but it is mostly a conscious decision not to avoid possible distractions.)

So, I decided to buy a large water bottle that I could fill up in the morning and then sip all day until it was gone. By getting a large bottle, I would avoid having to stop what I was doing in order to get more water and I wouldn’t have to track how many times I had refilled my glass/bottle.

I thought about buying one of those bottles with the time recommendations down the side but I couldn’t get one locally and I wondered if the time markings would get on my nerves. After all, it doesn’t matter if I drink a specific amount by 11am and I know myself well enough know that I might resist drinking it all, just because I don’t like being bossed around, especially by inanimate objects.

As you can see, the bottle ended up buying is enormous.

It’s 2.2 litres and I cannot sip from it, I have to swig which lends a fun pirate-y feeling throughout my day, me mateys.

GIF description: A light brown guinea pig in a pirate costume turns its head and the word ‘Arrrrgh!’ appears in white beneath it. The background features some ship elements and a red light that flashes on before the caption appears.​
I am not as much of a guinea pig as this one because I am running my own pirate experiment instead of being subject to someone else’s science. This guinea pig is adorable though. GIF description: A light brown guinea pig in a pirate costume turns its head and the word ‘Arrrrgh!’ appears in white beneath it. The background features some ship elements and a red light that flashes on before the caption appears.

As I write this, I am on Day 10 of my experiment and I will definitely be continuing.

Since increasing my water consumption, I have a greater feeling of well-being overall.

I feel better when I wake up, less groggy, and my movements are easier. (I feel more fluid! Ha!)

I’m drinking fewer cups of caffeinated tea and some days I haven’t had any caffeine at all.

I haven’t been having as many snacks. I still snack when I’m hungry obviously** but I think I have reduced my number of ‘unconscious boredom’ snacks.

Of course, I’m sure some of this is psychosomatic but, truthfully, I don’t care. This experiment has been all upsides so far.

At this point, I know there’s big question in your mind and it goes something like this:

“That’s all good, Christine, but do you have to spend half your day going to the bathroom now?”

Nope. Pretty much the same as before.

(Which kind of makes me think that I really needed this additional water.)

So, I’ll be sailing on with this experiment for the foreseeable future.

Yo-ho-ho-ho and a (giant) bottle of water!

The photo shows my giant water bottle, a white mug (with yellow interior) containing ginger tea, a banana, a slice of cinnamon bread on a star-shaped plate, a week-sized pill-sorter, and a notebook opened to a white page covered in sketches of robots in yoga poses. A pen and pencil sit next to the notebook.​
A glimpse of the start of my Sunday (I’m part of an online
art group that has tea/coffee ‘together’ each week, hence the photo.) The photo is of the corner of my wooden kitchen table and shows my giant water bottle, a white mug (with yellow interior) containing ginger tea, a banana, a slice of cinnamon bread on a star-shaped plate, a week-sized pill-sorter, and a notebook opened to a white page covered in sketches of robots in yoga poses. A pen and pencil sit next to the notebook.

*I am VERY excited about my ability to do these kinds of experiments in the last few months. It’s all due to the mental space my increased ADHD meds are giving me. More on that in another post!

**I am strongly pro-snack. I cannot be swayed on this point.

Published by Christine Hennebury

I'm a writer/storyteller/director/creativity & lifestory coach with a black belt in ITF Taekwon-do. I read voraciously and I write like my fingers are on fire. I'm the founder and Chair of the Association for the Arts in Mount Pearl and I'm a former president of the St. John's Storytelling Festival. I bake a mean chocolate chip cookie.

4 thoughts on “Christine and the Giant Water Bottle”

  1. Ahoy there, Christine! Loved the post. And the giant water bottle can also serve as occasion for mini-weight-lifting. Just sayin’… Seriously, it’s good for all of us to remember to keep hydrated, especially since we have fewer cues when we’re working from home and doing different or fewer things than we used to.

    1. Avast ye, Catherine! Thanks!

      Great minds think alike! I have been using it for a few reps here and there (still working on my mindset, trying to remember that stuff WILL add up.)

      And you are definitely right about the fewer cues. This has been a very strange year indeed.

  2. I almost didn’t read this as I am also trying to drink more water and not succeeding most days!
    I have a bottle. I am going to follow your lead and fill it tomorrow morning.
    I’m lucky if I normally drink 3 8oz glasses. Plus, I drink a couple coffees….

    Thanks for the nudge.
    Anne

    1. You’re welcome! I wish you luck and ease.

      It’s a hard habit to establish but I’m sure you can figure out a way. Try not to be hard on yourself about it.

      💚

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