#Eatpretty15 Week 1: Hydration

Happy Friday my friends! Congratulations, you survived the first full week of the year. How are you feeling? Are you ready to start #eatpretty15 and #barrefocus15 challenge? I sure am! We are kicking off the challenge with this weeks theme being- hydration. Did you know that according to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, women are suppose to drink 9 cups of water per day? I don’t know about you but I definitely don’t meet that recommendation. Staying properly hydrated is essential for getting healthy. According to various studies, drinking just 2 cups of water before meals helped dieters lose an extra five pounds yearly. Additionally drinking the right amount of water daily can actually speed up your metabolic rate and help you maintain your weight loss.

So here is this weeks challenge- you can ONLY drink water for a week {Monday – Sunday}. For some of you this might be incredibly easy, while for others it might be the most difficult week. Rules:

• Carbonated water is allowed but cannot be flavored- according to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics carbonated water is a healthy way to add flavor to your water.
• Adding fresh fruits, vegetables, and herbs to your water is allowed and encouraged.
• Tonic water is NOT allowed
• Coffee is NOT allowed. I know, I know- this might be a death sentence for some of you but this is a challenge not a walk in the park. If you absolutely cannot not function without coffee- try drinking black coffee or even green tea instead. But try to challenge yourself to live without it for 1 week.
• Wine is unfortunately not water.

Pretty straight forward right? An easy way to figure out how much water you should be drinking every day is by dividing your weight by two. This number will show you how many ounces you should be drinking per day. For example, if you weigh 100 pounds, you should be drinking 50 ounces of water per day.

Instead of sharing a healthy recipe for this weeks challenge, I will just give you a few ideas for naturally flavoring your water. Try adding cucumber, strawberries, lemons, limes, watermelon, mint, and fresh herbs to create flavorful water. Make a big pitcher of flavored water at the beginning of the week to help you stay on track. I posted a few great ideas on my Pinterest if you want to re-pin them!

Also, try buying a really cute water bottle you can carry with you at all times. How beautiful is this Renee Redesigns glass water bottle I used to make cucumber infused water? I think its absolutely perfect for our #eatpretty15 challenge because it will encourage us to Live Fully every time we drink from it. Renee Redesigns has even been kind enough to give all you pretty ladies 20% off your purchase by using promo code “LIVEFULLY20” at checkout.

Remember to post your pictures on social media throughout the challenge and use #eatpretty15 to join the community! And don’t forget the workout aspect of this challenge. I’m pledging to attend Pink Barre (my favorite workout routine) 4 times a week. What will you be doing to stay active?

Xoxo,