My latest hydration plan
The process of stacking habits to simplify your life...with a dog
For years I was somewhat obsessed with hydration.
I would keep track of all water intake using the Hidrate App along with their smart water bottle that automatically calculated how much H2O I was gulping throughout the day.
It was a pretty decent system. Not perfect by any means, but a solid way to gauge how much water I was drinking and more importantly, how it was making me feel.
My daily hydration goals were recorded and accomplished for a streak that lasted over one thousand days! It's the magic of apps that push you to keep streaks going. It can be annoying while also being an extremely powerful motivator.
But then like most habits, I eventually softened on it. It's not like I just gave up drinking water. I just had a better natural sense of how much was enough after years of tracking it so closely. I could feel what a 150 ounce day felt like compared to a 60 ounce day. For what it's worth, I was typically shooting for a minimum of 80 ounces per day in the height of my hydration streak. I certainly exceeded that on most training days, if I had extra caffeine or alcohol, or if it was an abnormally hot day.
So I just drank the amount of water that felt right like any sane person for a few years.
But in the last few months, I've felt the need for something else. Maybe not a specific tracking app, but I needed some more guidance and framework on how much water I ingested and when.
Behold, I have a new hydration plan. It's the Canine Aqua Mobility Plan. That gives it the fine acronym of CAMP! Maybe I just made up that name, but hear me out!
Last year, I started wearing the fantastic Wild Gym Ruck Pack for all of my dog walks. At minimum, I'm doing two walks per day that average at least 30 minutes in length but sometimes push 45-60 minutes. So I'm already getting the added benefit of some strength training and resistance to work my body a bit harder than a typical walk in the park.
The fine folks at Wild Gym were also selling a hydration bladder designed to slip into the Ruck Pack. A lightbulb flicked on in my head. Why don't I associate the act of dog walking with drinking water? Maybe it's the product of BJ Fogg's Tiny Habits principles resurfacing in my mind. I'm always on the lookout for easy ways to stack habits. Things like brushing my teeth, walking the dog, etc. are prime for some additional habit forming.
So the plan that has been working well for me is keeping the hydration bladder filled to one liter before every dog walk. Over the course of said promenade with fido, I slowly sip on the water in the bladder. When I approach my home on the return, I aim to feel the resistance of a hydration pack that has been sucked dry.
Some walks it's really easy and I'm naturally thirsty enough to consume it all. Other times, it can be a real struggle to get through a liter of water. But now the habit is established. The morning walk in particular is important for hydration purposes. If you're groggy in the morning, a brisk walk to pick up feces while throwing down a liter of ice cold water will get your day in gear! Say goodbye to that morning brain fog!
Of course, it isn't like I'm only drinking water during dog walks. I'm still getting the same intake throughout the day, but those two liters put me on a fast track to a properly hydrated day. They can even out a particularly busy day where drinking water slips down the list of priorities.
There are clearly some downsides here. When the dog needs a late night walk, I'm hesitant to drink the full liter for fear of excessive nocturnal trips to the toilet. So common sense should prevail if you're attempting to down a liter of water just before bed. The same logic applies when I have sequential meetings following the morning amble around the neighborhood. Drinking a ton of water all at once can also upset the stomach if you're not careful.
Do I really think CAMP is a life-changing new hydration plan that all of you should start following immediately? Um, no probably not. This whole piece is written with a tongue partially pressed into a cheek. But it has actually been a good framework for me to stay hydrated without the need of an app telling me when I should drink.
The point of the story is to look for more of those daily habit inflection points. Could you stack a few positive things onto that thing that you already do pretty automatically every day? Ten pushups after brushing your teeth? A gratitude practice before checking email? And yeah, how about drinking a few liters of water while you're picking up some poop?
Hey! Could you use some help establishing healthy habits? Do you have a big project or new business that you want to get off the ground but could use some advice? Maybe you could benefit from hiring me as your coach. If you’re interested, read more about my coaching services here, or go ahead and book some time on my calendar to discuss further.
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