How to Make Sure You're Drinking Enough Water Every Day

Are you drinking enough water every day?

Many reports say that you should drink at least half of your body weight in oz of water each day, so if you weigh 150 lbs, that means 75 oz.  For reference, that's more than a half gallon!  (There are 64 fluid ounces in a half gallon).

Water is essential to life itself, and drinking enough water is beneficial in so many ways.  I always drank a lot of water throughout the day, but never actually kept track of how much.  Since living in the hotel (yep, still displaced from Hurricane Florence, almost seven months later!) and drinking bottled water, it's easier for me to keep track.

The water I buy is 16.9 fl oz, so I put five bottles on the counter in the morning, and make sure to drink it all before day's end.  That plus the mug of warm water with ACV (apple cider vinegar) and lemon first thing in the morning and either a second cup or green tea in the evening, and I've got my suggested daily intake covered.  I eat plenty of veggies and some fruit daily too, so the water content in those foods is a bonus.

There are apps that can help you keep track of how much you're drinking each day, but that only helps if you remember to enter it.  By putting the bottles of water where I can see them, I can tell at a glance if I'm on track or need to start chugging.  If you work outside the home, just figure out how much you drink before and after work, and set aside the other bottles in your workplace.   If you're aiming for 5 bottles a day, you might have one in the morning, at least three while at work, leaving two for the evening commute and at home.  Broken down that way, it seems much more doable.

Do you keep track of how much water you're drinking?  What is your method for tracking it?

~ Marie Anne

Best Way to Eat Turmeric for Maximum Health Benefits

If you follow any natural health news at all, you've probably heard that turmeric provides many health benefits, the most notable being its anti-inflammatory properties. But did you know that how you ingest the bright yellow-orange spice is a big factor in how well it will work?  You will if you continue reading!

Whether you buy turmeric capsules or add the ground spice to a morning drink or sprinkle on food, its effectiveness isn't nearly as potent unless it is paired with - are you ready for this?  - fat!  Yes fat.  That thing that you were always taught made you fat, but probably have since learned isn't the case at all.  Our bodies needs a certain amount of good fat each day, and turmeric is fat soluble (meaning it is absorbed much more readily when combined with fat), so remember to marry the two for optimum health benefits.

So what are the best ways to incorporate fat and turmeric into your daily routine?  Natural Society has a list of several ways that you might try, but my favorite is to add it to avocado.  Avocado is full of good fat, and I try to eat it in some form at least a few times a week, and it's easy enough to sprinkle a small amount of turmeric on a slice before munching down.  Another yummy way to enjoy the fatty green fruit (nope, it's not a vegetable!) is to make avocado toast (mash ripe avocado, add a sprinkle of lemon or lime juice), so add a shake of turmeric to that or blend into your favorite guacamole recipe.

Turmeric is also thought to help with depression and high blood pressure, so it's definitely something we all should consider as a supplement, but as always, check with your doctor before taking anything new that might not be a smart idea in your particular case, or that might interfere with medications you are taking.

What other ideas do you have to add turmeric with fat to your healthy meal plan?

~ Marie Anne

Painless Workouts for Lightweights

(courtesy of Healthy Living)

Are you overweight, getting up in years, or have health issues that make it difficult to do more strenuous forms of exercise?  Do you get frustrated because you can't do even two reps of traditional workouts that others breeze through?  Do you get winded trying to run on the treadmill, or feel uncoordinated on the elliptical?   Don't let it get you down!  Find modified versions of activities that work for you, and just do what you can for as long as you can.  Any time spent in movement of any kind is better than parking your butt on the couch in front of TV with a bowl of popcorn.

Use your hands

Hand weights can help you tone up when used alone, or burn more calories if you hold them while walking.  There are various types and sizes available, but before buying a set that is too heavy for you, rummage in your pantry for a can of soup or jar of peanut butter!  They're very lightweight and won't make a big difference right away, but it's a good place to start before moving up to traditional equipment that weighs more.  While watching TV, get off the couch during commercials and punch out a few different exercises while stepping in place.  It might seem silly, but it's better than starting with a higher weight than you can easily manage, and getting discouraged or hurting yourself.

If these walls could talk

Pushups are great to work your core, arms, chest, abs (basically everything above the waist) and don't require any special equipment, but I can't do them at my weight, and I can't even manage bent-knee pushups because of a knee injury.  What can a fat old lady do instead?  Wall pushups!  While you won't get the full benefit of lifting your body weight from the floor as with the traditional exercise, you also aren't likely to hurt yourself by trying.  You'll still be working the same areas of the body, just to a lesser degree.  You can always add more reps, or more sets to your workout to increase the benefit.  Still find it too easy?  Graduate like I did and rest your hands on a counter top instead of the wall.  You might surprise yourself and eventually work up to regular floor pushups.

Dance fever
I've tried a number of difference aerobic exercise videos, and even at times when I thought I was in decent shape, I found them difficult to keep up with.  I also don't always have the time (or desire) to devote 30 minutes or more to following along with an instructor in a regimented fashion.  What works for me?  Dancing. While watching TV, I'll get up when a commercial is on and either step in place, side to side, or throw some kicks in (with my can of kidney beans in hand), or, if music is playing, start shaking my booty (there are benefits to living alone with my dogs).  One local television station broadcasts music and dancing from shagging clubs and my feet will start moving before I even realize it.  I don't really shag, but the music gets me doing my own thing in a more exaggerated fashion that just a walk.  I find that I can keep moving just about the whole show with just a few seconds break here and there, and I can't imagine just walking in place or doing an aerobics video for that long without being bored to tears.  Crank up your favorite radio station, or better yet, one of the television stations that features music so you have the visual stimulation as well.  Music (without the interruption and distraction of someone telling you what to do ) makes everything more fun!  Want to get the kids involved?  Do The Locomotion or Bunny Hop around the house.

Exaggeration isn't always a bad thing
Since I don't work outside the home and am not busy keeping up with a family, my life is pretty sedentary unless I make a real effort to move.  I try to exaggerate my movements whenever I do get up, to add more steps and activity to my day.  If I get up to go to the bathroom, I'll add a few laps around the interior of the house before sitting back down. I'm still displaced from Hurricane Florence and living in a hotel, so if I have to go down to the laundry, I'll take the stairs instead of the elevator, then walk the halls or jump on the recumbent bike in the fitness area while waiting on clothes to wash or dry.  If I'm not pressed for time while out shopping, I'll walk every aisle instead of just those that I need to shop from.  When tidying up a room, I'll carry one or two things at a time to put it away instead of trying to do it all in one trip.  Most everyone can walk, and you're already doing it while going about your regular daily routine, so find little ways to expand on it.  Every extra step counts!

What're you doing today to increase your activity?

~ Marie Anne

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