Upping your hydration game

Upping your hydration game
Are you keeping yourself properly hydrated?  

I've heard several different things about how much water you should drink in a day to keep yourself properly hydrated but the bottom line for me is, I'm not a huge fan of plain water unless I'm exercising.  

I also have a love/hate relationship with soda and in particular Coca Cola.  It just tastes good.  

I'm involved in an 8 week challenge at Orange Theory Fitness and we focus on different things each week around your overall health.  This week the focus is on hydration which is good because when you pay attention to something, light bulbs go off.

This challenge started at the end of January and I knew that Coca Cola was not serving me well so I decided I was going to eliminate that from my diet for these 8 weeks.  Now, it's a challenge for me because I like the sweet and I like the bubbles!  If this is you too, I have some ideas for you on how to up your hydration game and eliminate soda.  

1.  Black Currant Tea - The flavor of this tea is better than your standard iced tea and I love it with a squeeze of lemon in it.  It provides a little naturally occurring caffeine like the soda but it has antioxidants and anti-inflamatory benefits which soda does not!  My favorite tea comes from Duncan Coffee and it's delivered to my door!  Click here to see Duncan Coffee Black Currant Tea

2.  Vitality Drops + Energy - Sometimes I need a little sweet in my water and the YL Vitality Drops + Energy provide that sweet flavor using Stevia along with optimal levels of natural caffeine so you can enjoy it multiple times per day. Spearmint Tangerine Flavor,  Jade Lemon Berry Flavor, or you can get a  Variety Pack.   Pro tip:  I use a squirt in my water and try to refill the cup before it's empty because I can stretch out that flavor for at least 3 cups of water.

3.  Ningxia Zyng - NingXia Zyng® is a refreshing, lightly carbonated drink that combines Ningxia wolfberry puree, pear and blackberry juices, and essential oils with naturally occurring caffeine for an energizing boost.  My go-to first thing in the morning was a Coke since I don't like coffee.  This was an easy replacement because it has the carbonation, a little sweetness and it's only 35 calories instead of 140!  

4.  Water with Vitality Essential Oils -  Young Living has essential oils that are specifically labeled as safe to ingest, they have a white label and are called Vitality Oils.  One drop is enough flavor in a cup of water!  Lemon, Orange, Citrus Fresh are some of my favorites.  Pro Tip:  only use glass or stainless steel cups.

5.  Water with Fruit - Now this is an easy way to add some flavor to you water.  Squeeze a lemon, add an orange slice, add any fruit you like to infuse flavor and vitamins from those fruits into a refreshing drink.  You can grab a water bottle like this one on Amazon for under $15 made especially for fruit infusion.  

6.  Water straight up - So there are times that just plain water is what you need, for me, that's especially when you're going to be exercising or taking a hike or something.  If I'm going to be gone all day, sometimes I'll freeze a bottle to take so it can stay cold til the end of the day.  I like these insulated bottles from amazon - they freeze well and hold it through a whole school day.  Great for kids that need to take water for after school sports practices.  

I may drink a variety of things in my water each day, but what I find most helpful is to keep a cup like this one with me at all times and just keep filling it up all day long.  

Drop a comment below with your favorite ways to stay hydrated!