I am not the most hydrated person. I drink maybe 2 cups of water on any given day, 3 if I’m lucky, which is about a quarter of the generally recommended daily intake. I’m also a cross country and track runner, which means drinking enough water is extra important, so I’ve been worrying lately that drinking so little water must be affecting my health in some way. That’s why, when proposed with a 7 day challenge to break a bad habit as a Journalism assignment, I knew I would choose to fix my drinking habits. I ended up choosing a gallon of water a day because it had a nice ring to it.
I decided to start on Monday, MLK day, and I was already off to a bad start. In the morning I went to the Environmental Advocacy Club’s school cleanup and I forgot to bring any water. After the cleanup, we went to Super Duper where I got a milkshake, and then I headed to my dentist appointment, which I missed because there was a tree that fell on 19th Ave, so I was on the 28 bus for an extra 20 minutes. As soon as I got home around 5:00 I fell asleep on the couch. When I woke up that’s when I realized that it was already 7:00 and I hadn’t had a single oz of water. I was fully committed to drinking the full gallon that night, but I didn’t really comprehend just how much a gallon was, eight times what I was used to. That was until I talked to my dad and sister, and they told me to my surprise that drinking that much water in a short period could lead me to die from diluting the sodium in my blood. So with defeat I decided to give up completing my first day, but I was motivated to do well the next.
My plan I followed through on was to drink a quart before I left the house, two during school, and one before bed. Unfortunately, the next day I was too in a rush to eat breakfast (I did bring water though), so while everyone in my 3rd period AP Lang was silently writing practice FRQs the half gallon of water on an empty stomach was growling louder than I thought was possible. At least that day I did complete the gallon.
The next day, Wednesday, I had a DMV Appointment so I decided to delay most of my water intake until afterwards so that I wouldn’t have to go to the bathroom while I was in the middle of my permit test. I drank a liter before the test (and I passed the first try!). That meant in the evening I drank 3 liters to complete the gallon so after I fell asleep, I had to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night four times.
So I was really tired the next day, day 4, but I had found that it was getting slightly easier to drink water after having been able to successfully drink a gallon for two days. I had track practice that afternoon, but beforehand we watched the soccer game so we got a pretty late start for our run. Usually I have a few bathrooms along the route I can count on, but because it was so late, the bathrooms were closed and I had to pee in some bushes, not my best moment.
Luckily the next few days were less eventful. Friday was a very normal day and on Saturday I spent most of the day at home, where I could always access a bathroom. I managed to complete both gallons, but it was getting very annoying to keep track of and keep up with.
On Sunday, I went on a hike to the Dawn Falls Trails, which is near Larkspur. It took a few hours for us to complete and there were no bathrooms, so unfortunately I found myself peeing in some bushes again. I can say Sunday night I was very glad to finish my last gallon and be done with the challenge.
I expected drinking more water would magically help me, but I actually didn’t feel much of any change other than needing to go to the bathroom way more. However, the challenge has definitely helped me increase my water intake after the week. Since the challenge has been over, I’ve felt the sensation of being thirsty, which I haven’t for a very long time, and this has led me to drink more than I used to. So I wouldn’t necessarily recommend drinking a gallon a day just because of how inconvenient it made my week, but if you really want to increase your water intake, I can say it worked for me.
