Water

My first change to make is to increase my fluid intake, preferably with water. Today I actually started it, but not until the afternoon. I have been spending a lot of time on my computer lately (something I will get to soon enough), so I filled up a 30 oz water bottle and just sipped on it constantly throughout the afternoon. I got down about half of it and then went downstairs to wash some dishes before dinner, only to hear a loud plastic-sounding clang. My husband then announced that our toddler had opened my water bottle and dumped the remainder of it all over his bedroom floor. Awesome.

Considering how well I did in a few hours, though, I know I can do this. My goal is to drink 76 ounces of fluid a day (not counting anything carbonated or caffeinated); this is based on what my professors told me as a general rule of thumb for water intake--take your weight in pounds and divide it by two....that is the amount of water in ounces you should drink a day. I know there are a lot of skeptics to this, those who say you only need 8 cups a day and others who say you don't even need that much because a lot of your fluid needed comes from your food. In the past, I have gotten close to my goal before, and it didn't hurt me at all. Granted, the first few days I was needing to pee like a race horse, but after that I found myself craving water. Anyway, I also figure that since I am pregnant, I need a little more of just about everything, so a bit more water won't hurt.

My plan is to drink a cup first thing in the morning (water or decaf/caf free tea), eat breakfast, wait an hour, and then fill up my bottle and sip away. My big problem is that I tend to drink too much during a meal and end up with either wet burps (sorry), mild heartburn, or being just really uncomfortable. I have to time out my last drink with my next meal, probably 30 minutes to an hour, and then leave about the same amount of space after the meal to digest a bit. That is my biggest obstacle besides my slacking off, because if I get too full, especially on fluids, I won't touch a drink for the rest of the day.

Here's to a more fluid tomorrow!