water

I’m now halfway finished the thirty-day trial of drinking only water. I’d like to give a brief update on how it’s going, both to document my own progress and as assistance for others.

Beginning with the technical aspects of things; obviously, some system of measurement is necessary, if we’re going to accurately determine the amount of water we’re taking in (and to ensure that it’s enough). My free, Duke-issue water bottle served this purpose, as would any washable, sealable bottle. I measured the amount of water it held by pouring a purchased bottle of water in. Since the bottle held 20 ounces, I decided to consume 6 bottles per day (the equivalent of 15 eight ounce glasses per day).

Remembering the number of bottles consumed was the next requirement, which I accomplished with a simple piece of masking tape, upon which I marked a tally for each day. I found this was very effective, though I’d recommend marking with pen. When filling the bottle up, the tape often gets wet, and pencil marks then easily wipe off.

As far as the actual “challenge” goes, I’ve found that my cravings for non-water beverages have significantly declined, especially after the first few days. I actually miss milk the most, and this desire is more academic than emotional; without milk I can’t drink my protein shakes. On the other hand, I feel as if I’ve been eating slightly more unhealthy food, but I can’t tell whether this is because of final exams or trying to replace sugary drinks and such.

Physically, I haven’t noticed any image changes of significance. The biggest benefit has been my sleep. I’ve slept extremely well, and felt very refreshed in the morning, more so than usual after my standard 7 hours of sleep.

We’ll see how these things progress over time, but thus far it has been a relatively easy challenge with relatively small benefits. More than anything, it’s been a good introduction to the world of thirty day habit changes. Next month I’ll have to take on something more difficult, but potentially beneficial.

-III

After reading about it at numerous personal development blogs, I’m finally beginning my first 30-day trial/improvement/challenge.

The concept is simple. Breaking or building a habit out of thin air is extremely difficult. There is a lot of pressure not to fall off the bandwagon (and lose significant progress), and the idea of internalizing a behavior forever is scarily permanent. This fear makes people either not attempt to change the habit, or give up after a few days. In either case, excuses are made to rationalize the failure, and no progress is made.

A 30-day trial is much less intimidating. You only commit to the behavior in question for 30 days. After that, all bets are off, and you can make a decision on how to proceed from there. This is a huge psychological benefit, as there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. The idea of never sleeping in again is prohibitive. Not sleeping it for a month is a reasonable, attainable goal.

The benefits are strong. Many people find that after living with their change for a month, they don’t have a strong desire to return to their old ways (especially if they can see the benefits of the change, such as better health, or more productivity). Further, once a habit is formed, it’s easier to be flexible with the behavior in the future. After working out daily for a month, it’s easy to return to schedule if you have to miss a day for a business meeting, for example.

The Challenge

Thus, I have decided to begin a 30 day improvement (actually 31 day). During the entire month of December, I will not drink any beverage but water. Further, I will drink at least 12 glasses of water per day.

Why do this?

Well, in recent weeks, I have slacked off with nutrition, since I haven’t been cooking my own meals. In eating the campus food, I’ve been buying (and consuming) more soda and juice than I should. Switching back to water is a simple fix that will remove a lot of unhealthy sugars and salt from my diet, as well as carbohydrates not conducive to my weightlifting goals.

Further, the benefits of drinking enough water are widely known in the nutrition world.

So how do I plan to accomplish this? It’s very simple (and cheap). Here is my (free) Duke water bottle:

My water bottle

The white stripe near the bottom is a piece of masking tape (the roll cost $1.59). On the masking tape, I’ve partitioned off boxes for the first 5 days. Then, every time I drink a full bottle, I’ll mark a tally in the appropriate box (pen costs… not much). Each day, I need to make sure 6 tallies get in the box (that’s 6 bottlefulls). This, plus any water fountain activity, will ensure I get the desired amount of water each day, and it makes it very easy to track how I’m doing mid-day. A simple method for a simple change.

The first of the month is a great time to try a 30 Day habit changer; let me know (in the comments) if you’ve got ideas for changes you’d like to make, or if you’ve had experiences with similar endeavors. I encourage all of you to give this challenge (or another) a shot this December!

-Barry