(… that’s ‘Wobble’ not ‘Womble’)

We harp on about drinking water, water, water – with good reason!

I bet I’ll get your attention when I say that not drinking enough water can make you fat (wobbly). That’s because even when you’re mildly dehydrated, you can raise your stress hormone cortisol one to two percent.  Among the many things cortisol does is store fat and break down muscle.

Now, you’re going to hear naysayers claim the dehydration issue is overhyped. They argue there’s no double-blind, placebo based study to show you need eight glasses of water every day and that by drinking tea, coffee or fizzy drinks, you will actually reach your water quotient for the day.

This is not true. Whereas there certainly is some truth that most beverages are made up of water – the fact of the matter is – pure water is better. The ideal is to drink half your weight in water ounces. So if you weigh 200 pounds, you need to drink 100 ounces of water a day.

If you’re shaking your head that doing so is impossible, here are some tips that’ll easily help you achieve this:

  • Buy a funky monkey water bottle – if you have children – perhaps they can help personalise it for you (nothing like a few glitter star stickers to vamp up your bottle). Or, personalise it yourself.
  • Rally round the water cooler with your colleagues, or make a breakfast / tea / lunch time appointment with said colleagues to meet at the water cooler and fill up your water bottle. Take the bottle with you back to your desk.
  • Teach yourself to sip from your water bottle. Repeatedly. Throughout the day.
  • Replenish your water bottleHead back to the water cooler (the in-place to clear the cobwebs, catch up on the jibber jabber and do a 5 minute de-stress).
  • If you’re not able to buy a water bottle, then carry out the above 3 steps anyhow. Fill up your cup at the water cooler and finish the cup before you head back to your work station.

Now how easy was that?

You will save money, the environment and you won’t have to worry about that cortisol sneakily storing fat. You’ll also stay hydrated and enjoy the countless benefits water provides for your body.