One of the best parts about the new year is that we’re all super eager to jump into setting new goals and intentions, which I love!
But around this time—when February hits and real life starts to kick in—it’s estimated that 80 percent of people will have already abandoned their goals. Eighty percent!
So many of us fall into the New Year’s trap of setting goals that are a little too ambitious for where we are right now and wind up giving up on them before we even get started.
And hey, if that’s you, no shame! Sometimes the best thing we can do is take a step back and double down on the basics.
That’s why I’m re-sharing one of our most popular newsletters to date, my Try This: Morning Hydration Challenge, AND a brand-new study on the link between hydration, healthy aging, and longevity.
If you’ve been here for a while, this is your reminder to hop back on the morning hydration train! And if you’re new here, you’ll find that starting the day off with water and electrolytes is a total game-changer for improved energy, focus, productivity, and overall performance.
But don’t just take my word for it. Here’s a quote from an email my dear friend and past podcast guest, Shelly Lefkoe, sent me:
“Dhru, the water challenge has changed my life!!! It was the best thing ever. I send it to everyone! I fall asleep at night easily and I’ve never done that my whole life. And I don’t get up a million times to pee. I’ve been doing it for almost a year, and it’s amazing.”
Today is all about getting into (or back into) the habit of hydration. Who knows, good hydration might be just what you need to supercharge your goals or pick them back up again.
☝️ ☝️ ☝️ Use the protocol above to start your day off properly hydrated and see how your day (and your life) improves.
Why Hydration Is an Important Area to Focus on (RECAP!)
We are dehydrating ourselves all freaking day long! From the time we wake up to the time we go to bed, our bodies are constantly using and losing water. Even while we sleep, water is being used up to power our immune system and metabolism and to carry out cellular processes.
But the effect hydration (and dehydration) has on your brain function (or lack of brain function) is probably the most obvious. Why? Because your brain is made up of mostly water! Even being slightly dehydrated can shrink your brain and negatively impact its function. This shows up as a lack of focus, poor memory, fatigue, headache, and a reduced ability to think, organize, and plan.
It’s safe to say that hydration is crazy important for your cognitive health and performance, but a new study is showing that it can also play a major part in aging and our risk for chronic disease.
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New Study Links Hydration to Healthy Aging
Heart disease is the leading cause of death in both men and women. A new study is showing how hydration could potentially help those at risk for heart disease stay healthier and develop fewer complications than people who are chronically dehydrated.
In the study, heart disease risk was assessed in over 11,000 middle-aged adults. Researchers measured participants’ serum sodium levels to determine how their hydration habits impacted their biological age, risk of chronic disease, and premature death (high serum sodium is linked to low fluid intake).
The findings showed that high serum sodium levels (a sign of dehydration) were associated with a 39 percent higher risk of developing chronic disease, a 21 percent higher risk of premature death, and 50 percent higher odds of a participant’s biological age being higher than their chronological age, which means their inner age was older than their age on paper.
And that’s not all…
Participants with a biological age higher than their chronological age had a 70 percent higher risk of chronic disease and a 60 percent higher risk of premature death. WOW! That’s some pretty powerful stuff right there.
Getting into the Habit of Morning Hydration
We know that hydration is a simple and easy way to optimize your health; that’s the easy part. The hard part is getting into the swing of adopting proper hydration as a new habit. A great way to do this is to have a trigger that you see or do every day that will remind you to hydrate.
I picked first thing in the morning (hence the “morning” hydration challenge) because 1) it’s an excellent way to wake up your brain and body at the start of your day, and 2) it already has a built-in trigger—waking up!
As soon as you get out of bed, walk to the kitchen and start preparing your first 16 oz. glass of water and electrolytes (don’t forget the electrolytes!!!).
Another trigger could be preparing your water while your coffee is brewing or leaving your glass and electrolyte mix out the night before in a place that you’ll see first thing in the morning.
How do you plan to hydrate this year? Have you tried my morning hydration protocol? Did it work for you? Hit reply, and let me know!
Here’s to your hydration,
Dhru Purohit