Drink Water to Boost Energy, Focus, and Productivity: Here’s How

Photo by Jake Charles

Yup, it's that simple... not really. It turns out drinking that recommended 8 glasses of water a day is a lot and you have to make a concerted effort to achieve that goal.

But wow, it really makes a difference to your productivity.

To caveat my post, I am not a medical professional, however, I have personally seen the benefits of drinking water. I have also read lots of literature on the topic, covering everything from targeting 8 glasses (12 oz cups) to drinking 1/2 your body weight in water (measured by oz). I have also read about drinking too much water pulls the electrolytes out of your body (which need to be replaced- remember all of those commercials from the company that sells those flavored electrolyte replacement drinks) and certain types of water is better for you than others (that is way too advanced for me at this point).

I was also really disappointed to learn that drinking other liquids doesn't count, especially if those liquids are dehydrating such as liquor, coffee, and tea. I am a big tea drinker consuming about 3 glasses a day only to learn that the way you are supposed to calculate the number of glasses, drinking tea (and other dehydrating liquids) actually counts against your total (by a negative 1 or 2 depending on the studies and reports I have read). That means for me, using the 8-glass target minus 3 cups of tea, that means I now need to drink 11 glasses of water a day to get to my 8-glass target.

You may be thinking I am throwing a wet blanket (pun intended) onto this post, but this information is good to know and worth doing your own research.

Now for the benefits (again, I am not a medical professional), drinking water hydrates your body (mind and muscles and everything else), sending oxygen to where it is needed. I have family members (dad if you are reading), who drinks 3 cups of coffee and maybe 1-2 glasses of water a day. By the equation above, that puts the total into the negative and starving his body of key resources.

For me, here is my approach (and I am better in the work week than the weekend). I drink a glass of water when I get up, 1 after my walk, 1 after a 15-minute calisthenic type exercise, 1 while making my tea, maybe a 1/2 during the 4 hours of work in the morning, 1 at lunch, maybe the other 1/2 during the afternoon, 2 at dinner and 1 while watching TV. That puts me at 9 minus the 3 cups of tea so a total of 6. I can tell you it feels like I am drinking a lot more than 9 cups. I have also started putting some lemon in my water at times during the day which I enjoy. Recently, I also started adding some Himalayan salt to my water to help with the electrolyte draw from the water dilution.

Since I started this process and routine, I found I feel better, have clarity at work, and am more productive.

Try it and see how it affects you!

Cover photo by Joseph Greve

How Cold Water and Ice Baths Boosts Alertness and Productivity

Growing up, my neighbor had a heated pool and kept it pretty warm, upwards of 88 to 90 degrees.

Every day during the summer, we would swim in this water and my mom would tell me how unrefreshing it felt (but I was little and didn’t know any different). Fast forward to present day, I still like the warm water, which is why we vacation and swim in Aruba and not in the lakes of northern Maine like my wife did growing up.

The idea of swimming in cold water just didn’t seem fun but now I understand the perspective of feeling refreshed. On the flip side, I once saw my dad get into a hot tub in Palm Springs when it was 110 degrees outside and I thought he was nuts. So, I guess it is all about personal preference and perspective.

That said, I watched a documentary called Limitless with Chris Hemsworth. In the second episode, he challenges himself to do a cold plunge into a lake. The science behind this is that the cold water opens up your arteries and you get increased blood flow in your body which drives increased oxygen to your brain. More blood flow and more oxygen (again I am not a doctor or scientist), means you are more alert. Being more alert means being more productive.

As a side benefit, I also heard that if you leverage the cold water/ice bath like this, even for 30 seconds, it helps keep your body temperature lower for a few hours and you burn more calories. There were stories of the Olympic swimmer, Michael Phelps, using a pool that was pretty cold each morning and he was burning 12,000 calories a day (extreme I know but I heard he attributed burning some of those calories to the cold water swim).

Since I don’t have a pool at my house and ice baths aren’t practical on a daily basis, I have used the last 30 to 45 seconds of my shower with the ice-cold water. I have been doing it every day for about a year now (started out at 5 second). I can tell you it definitely wakes you up. Honestly, the first few times I did it, I felt like my body was seizing up but over time, I have mentally prepared myself (that concept of mind over matter) and it has been helping. I am trying to get to more seconds each day, but it is a work in progress.

Are you ready to make the plunge? If so, let me know how it goes.

Cover photo credit to Ian Parker

How Quality Sleep Boosts Productivity and Performance

Photo by Julian Hochgesang

We have all been there. You are just going through the motions of the day because you didn't get enough sleep.

I believe sleep is the number one contributor to having great performance and productivity.

We have also all heard the statements from experts as well as our parents, "you need 8 hours of sleep a night". I know some of you may actually require less but the vast majority of us need to be close to that 8-hour mark. However, as much as we hear the 8-hour target, do you actually invest in your sleep?

You invest in other things like the stock market but what about investing in your sleep? Do you have a quality mattress, comfortable pillow and good sheets?

Think about it for a second. There are 24 hours in a day, and we are supposed to sleep for 8 of them. That is 1/3 of the day but also 1/3 of your life in bed. Should you be investing 1/3 of your income on a bed and pillows, probably not, but I would recommend investing the time to research a comfortable mattress and pillow. There are probably reasons why we see mattress advertisements every three seconds on TV!

Mary Beth and I didn't realize how uncomfortable our bed was until we went on vacation to see my dad about 10 years ago. During that 7-day vacation, we slept great and realized that our mattress at home wasn't nearly as comfortable.

When we got back to our home, we immediately went mattress shopping, and it was the best decision we ever made.

At that time, we also bought a quality pillow, not just for ourselves but for our kids too. Recently, we just bought a new set of pillows, and I was fascinated in the depth of research and type of pillow needed based on how you sleep (side/back/stomach).

If you have a limited budget and need to choose, I recommend starting with a great pillow. This will help you get your 8 hours of sleep but improve the quality of the sleep as well. As your budget allows, a really comfortable bed is a game changer for your productivity during the day.

Again, we can all choose on what we spend our money on. Think about prioritizing your sleep because if you sleep better, your productivity and performance will improve... and then you will be happier and maybe even get a promotion out of it giving you a great Return on Investment!

I will leave you with this quote from Dr. Angela Holliday-Bell, "Instead of thinking of sleep as the ending of your day, start thinking about it as the beginning of your tomorrow".

You may just change how you think about sleep.

Cover photo credit to Jordan Whitt