No 5am & SPoH: Day 5 - Bottled Water

Still really sore today, so I did not workout.  I did not have much time or opportunity to rest yesterday.  Today I hope that I will have more time and that I'll be ok for tomorrow.

SPoH: Day 5 - Bottled water. From the book - Bottled water is actually less regulated than tap water and can be just as toxic. It is only tested yearly, while our tap water is tested daily. Penta Water, one of the top-selling bottled waters in health food stores, is considered the purest bottled water on the market. I find it especially beneficial for my patients with fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, headaches, arthritis, and most degenerative diseases. The other major problem with much bottled water is that it comes in plastic bottles. I suspect that many other companies will be following suit [by distributing in glass bottles] because as the price of oil increases, so does the price of plastic. Reusing your water bottle may seem kind to the environment, but it’s terrible for your body. Web sites that help in finding information about different bottled waters are www.AquaMaestro.com and www.mineralwaters.org. If you drink bottled water, check if the manufacturer of the bottled water is a member of the IBWA (International Bottled Water Association). Purchase clean bottled water, preferably alkaline and in glass containers rather than plastic.

COLBERT, DONALD; Mary Colbert (2006-12-11). The Seven Pillars of Health (p. 21-26). Siloam. Kindle Edition.

I have always assumed that bottled water is better for you.  Sure I knew about the BPA recently, but the fact that it is not regulated the same way as tap water has me questioning my habits.  Sure, it is probably better in Europe or another continent or even some other countries to have bottled.  I am definitely considering using a filter more.  It is possible that some of this has chanced since he wrote the book. I looked at IBWA's website and found a PDA file regarding Tap Water vs. Bottled Water if anyone is interested in reading something that is more current.  You can check it out at www.thefactsaboutwater.org.  Day 6, Colbert talks more about filtering water.

If anyone has any questions or comments, let me know.  I'd be happy to hear your thoughts and if you have questions, I love doing research, I will do my best to answer your questions or look it up.

No 5am & SPoH: Day 4 - Tap Water

So apparently the workout with Jillian Michaels I did was more taxing on my body then I thought.  I needed to take a day of rest.  Hoping I can get up tomorrow and workout.  Right now it is almost 9pm and my legs are still hurting.  Not looking for further injury, so I will just wait and see how I am tomorrow.  I'm thinking about doing pilates tomorrow if I can.

SPoH: Day 4 - Tap Water.  I always felt that tap water was ok.  that the little bit of chlorine that they put in it was good because it got rid of any bacteria that I don't want entering my body.  What I was reading today though is that chlorine may get rid of the bacteria, but it doesn't eliminate all of the toxins, metals,  pesticides, personal care products, and other chemicals that have seeped into the water.  It doesn't always eliminate the bacteria either.  Fluoride in the water is not good for us either.  Ever notice on tooth paste how it says 'Warning do not swallow'?  That's because fluoride is not good for our bodies.    At one time, tap water was ok to drink, but currently, there are too many things that can effect our health.  If you want to take a deeper look at your cities water, check out www.ewg.org.  There is more to come another day on what to do to remedy this situation.

Given the economical situations that many of us our dealing with in our country, not being able to drink tap water is a bit of a concern to me.  It's not free, but it certainly is a lot cheaper then buying bottles of water to drink every week, I think. Not to mention all of the bad things that I have heard about drinking from water bottles.  I'm interested in hearing what Colbert has to say about this.

Day 25 of 5am and SPoH: Day 3 - More Water

Today I did Shred-It with weights by Jillian Michaels.  I was really excited and ready to sweat, but my heart rate barely maintained 120.  So either I need a heavier weight to work with, or I need to vamp it up a little more.  There was one particular exercise that was difficult for me to do, but I was expecting more.  While it makes me feel good to know that the exercises are getting easier for me, on the other hand, I realize that means I'm going to have to work harder and push myself on the more difficult exercises so that I can perfect them more.  Mixed feelings today.

SPoH: Day 3 – More on water.  Interesting concept – when you take water away from a plum, you get a prune.  Just ponder that for a moment.  This is what water does for your skin.  For those who are losing weight, when you are dehydrated your body releases a hormone that causes water retention.  When you start drinking more water, your body releases all of the toxins and access water that it has been storing up.  So you may be going to the restroom more frequently for awhile, but over time as you continue to drink water, you will find that you won’t have to go nearly as often.  Your body is merely flushing out the system so to speak.  Experiencing memory loss? More recent studies show that our brains actually can grow new cells and since it is made up of 85% water, there is hope if you are drinking enough water.  Did you know that on average infants have about 80% water where as the elderly has less than 50% water?  Water can help to revive the cells in our body.  Basically, water helps to slow the aging process down.  I think I’m more motivated.  Colbert challenges everyone to start eating more salads, vegetables, and fruits because they contain a high percentage of water in them.

To follow up with yesterdays post, I drank a total of 112 oz of water yesterday.  How did everyone else do? Today I am currently at 78 oz.  After reading today's segment of the book, I'm feeling pretty good about it.  I am even encouraging some of my students to drink more water in hopes that maybe it will help some of them with what they are dealing with.  

Day 24 of 5am & SPoH: Day 2 - More Water

It is getting more difficult to drag myself out of bed when it is so cold, but after a month of getting up at 5am, I know how good it feels after I have done my workout for the day.  If you are doing this with me, you know that getting up on a cold morning and working out that your body warms up after the activity and you are ready to go for the day.  Today I did a workout with Denise Austin's Bootcamp.  I have heard of Denise Austin, but this is the first time that I have ever done a workout with her.  I liked this workout because she got my heart rate up in a quick amount of time and the movements were fast too keep it fairly consistent.  Great workout!

SPoH: Day 2- The effects of having a lack of water is today's topic.  In my last blog a few things were mentioned.  Today though Colbert went into more details.  Because water is such a high percentage of our bodies, there are certain parts of our bodies that begin to deteriorate or fail to do their job if we are not hydrating our body enough.  Some of the problems that he addressed were joint pains, high blood pressure, digestive problems, and asthma.  So many people look for other remedies or medications to treat the symptoms, but they are not treating the actual problem.  According to Colbert, it is because our bodies are dehydrated.  If you have popping joints or high acidity in your stomach, he says it is because your are not giving your body the proper amounts of water.  So, again, the challenge is to boost your intake of water.  Make this a goal.  Remember on Saturday, I mentioned that you should drink half your weight in ounces.  So challenge yourself for 6 weeks to do that.  If you want to go even farther, drink only water anytime you have something to drink because we know that other drinks can have adverse effects.  That will be my goal.

Saturday Workout & SPoH: Day 1 - Water

Today, I pulled out the Kinect game The Biggest Loser: Ultimate Workout.  I really like this workout game because I can see if I am doing the exercises right.  However, because we have a rather small living space, it is difficult to get any credit for doing exercises on the floor.  I realized today that I think I need to increase my intensity level on that game.  I did a "light" workout and while I was sweating a little at the end, I really don't feel like I worked as hard as I could have.  If you ever get a chance to try the game, it is well worth it in my opinion. :)

SPoH: Day 1 - Water! We have all heard that we must drink water.  Unfortunately, in our culture we have so many other options that are more tasty that we will often pass up the opportunity to drink water and make another choice instead.  What many people don't know though is that those other drinks often contain sugars or dehydrates of some kind.  So not only are we not taking in enough water, we are actually depleting ourselves of water.  God designed our bodies to thrive on water.  According to what I read in the book, our bodies are made up of 70% water! And to think of how little we drink of it.  So sad.  Colbert recommends that we drink 2-3 Quarts of water per day.  That is equivalent to 64-96 ounces or 4-6 tall glasses that we usually drink from today.  I read somewhere if you really want to get specific for your own bodies needs, you should divide your weight in half and drink that number in ounces every day.  So if you weigh 180lbs, you should drink 90 ounces of water a day.  Colbert also found that when people drank more water many of their ailments began to go away such as joint pains, headaches, heartburn, and even depression.  I know from my own experience that I feel much more energetic when I am drinking more water each day.  The book also said that if you wait to drink water when you are thirsty then you are probably already dehydrated.

I will admit that as of recent, I have not been drinking as much water as I should.  I have not been drinking as much of the other stuff, which is good, but I know I can do better.  The challenge to start with is to drink more water! I recommend having a water purifier and using your own bottles from home.  You could buy the water bottles, but with the amount of water you would have to drink, you may be drinking 4 or 5 bottles a day.  That's one and a half 24 bottle cases a week, basically.  I have a Nalgene bottle that I like to drink from.  It holds 32 ounces of water which is nice so I don't have to fill it up a lot during the day.  There are many options out there though.  If you decide to go with a stainless steel bottle, make sure you do your research.  Some stainless steel bottles have been known to rust in a short period of time.  They do have plastic bottles now that are BPA free.  Water may not taste good to you, but you may find that over time your taste buds will adjust to the dullness of the taste and you will find yourself craving it. I know some people who can't bear the taste of water will add a lemon, orange or other fruits to add to the flavor.  I've also read some people will add a mint leaf.  Many of the flavor packets you can find these days are actually dehydrates, so be careful.  Any other thoughts, suggestions, or comments, or responses to the reading?  I'd like to hear them.