Week 5: Drink More Water Challenge

Water is the essence of life and the key to maintaining good health. Sixty percent of your body weight comes from water.  There is no clear cut answer to how much water you should drink each day. Just as no two individuals are alike, individual water requirements depend on many factors including health, activity levels and environment. However, we all agree that we should drink more water, so this week we are going to follow the recommendation to drink 1/2 your body weight in ounces of water each day. 

Challenge Yourself: Use the chart below to determine how much water you should be drinking each day of the challenge. Find your weight in the first column, in the second column find how many ounces of water you should be drinking, and in the third column find how many glasses of water you should be drinking each day.  If you are already drinking your daily amount of water – congratulations!  However, if you are not already drinking your daily amount of water, challenge yourself this week to begin drinking more water. Work up to your daily amount by the end of the week.



Water Drinking Tips

• You can drink your water in the form of tap water, spring water, sparkling water, coconut water, or herbal tea (coffee does not count towards your water requirement).
• Vitamin water or flavored additives (such as Crystal light) are acceptable; but should not make up more than half of your water intake daily.  The healthiest beverage to quench your thirst always has been and always will be, plain old water.  
• Spread your water out over the course of the day!  Do not try to drink all of your water at one time or right before bedtime.  Trust me, you will not be a happy person and you will not get a good night's sleep!

Food for Thought:

1. Were you able to do this week's challenge as outlined above?  

2. If yes, what were your successes with this week's challenge?

3. If no, why not?  What were you difficulties with this week's challenge?
4. Did you notice any changes in your weight as a result of drinking more water?

5. Are you incorporating any of the previous week's challenges into your lifestyle?  Being mindful when eating? Eating breakfast? Eating more whole-grains? Healthy snacking?

We want to hear from you, so please add your comments to the blog.  Thank you!

Water Chart

Body Weight in Pounds (lbs)	Ounces of Water Daily	Glasses of Water Daily
100	50	6
105	53	7
110	55	7
115	58	7
120	60	8
125	63	8
130	65	8
135	68	8
140	70	9
145	73	9
150	75	9
155	78	10
160	80	10
165	83	10
170	85	11
175	88	11
180	90	11
185	93	12
190	95	12
195	98	12
200	100	13
205	103	13
210	105	13
215	108	13
220	110	14
225	113	14
230	115	14
235	118	15
240	120	15
245	123	15
250	125	16
255	128	16
260	130	16
265	133	17
270	135	17
275	138	17
280	140	18
285	143	18
290	145	18
295	148	18
300	150	19