How Much Water Should You Drink?

I went to a backyard birthday bash this morning — involving about a dozen families and a bunch of kids running around squirting each other with water guns. A tall, blow-up water slide was involved. We ate hot dogs, watermelon, and an ice-cream cake.

By 11 am, it was burning up hot, and as my wit began to wane, I was dying for a Diet Coke. Not water. Yuk. Water is boring — I wanted something with caffeine. But the cooler only contained iced-down bottles of water. So I drank one — and felt immediately refreshed, charging back into the mom banter.

I’m trying, really trying — to drink more water. Especially in the summer, where the heat can leave you dehydrated if you’re outside. I used to think my goal was to drink 64 oz. of water a day, which is the recommended daily amount for healthy adults. But I found out recently that’s not enough.

According to an article in Women Fitness, I should be drinking about half my body weight in ounces of water.

To maintain normal, adequate hydration, a simple calculation of bodyweight, multiplied by 0 .55 will equal the amount of water a women should drink in ounces on a daily basic. For example, a women who weighed 110 lbs, should drink 60.50 oz. (110 x .55) of water every day. If you are indulging in strenuous activities which involve more sweating, such as long-distance running or exercising in extreme heat, the water amount should be increased by multiplying the bodyweight by 0.66.

I won’t tell you how much I weigh, but … um … 64 oz. ain’t enough!