It's the second day of my period, and I'm feeling lucky!

Noooooot lucky enough to go on a shark dive, but ummm, I feel pretty pleased with my situation.

Two incredible things have happened to me today.

I was scooping myself some power chocolate pudding (this recipe but with added chia, coconut, and hemp seeds) when I knocked my bowl off the counter (periods make me clumsy). My maternal instincts fired up, my turbo-boost powers auto switched on - my thighs lurched forward to guide the bowl's descent into a stunning 10.0 landing on my stool. The chocolate was unharmed.

Miracle shit.

The second thing is the more important thing, and the reason you know about my moon cycle. The second day of my period is when I experience all the discomfort we associate with periods. A few years ago, I was on a zero sugar (save for veggie sugar) diet. My period symptoms literally disappeared. I only felt a wee bit of pressure down by the (ahem) secret entrance.

Since then, my cramps/pain symptoms have never been as bad as they were before my sugar free diet, but my symptoms did come back as I've tried to fit in socially... eating things I wouldn't if making friends, having interpersonal connections, and sharing laughter weren't a thing. But they are a thing, and in the name of acting totally cool about things like conventional soy sauce in public situations, I've been continuously burdening my body (I'm sensitive to gluten). I knew it was time for a change, but I'd been putting off doing a rigid cleanse. I like eating, and I love freedom.

February first the answer fell straight into the palm of my hand!

Terry Givens was hosting a water challenge starting that day. Accepting the challenge was a no-brainer. I didn't even try to argue with myself, as I had been chronically dehydrated for quite some time:

• I know I never drink the proper amount of water.
• I teach hot yoga.
• I love coffee.
• I love wine.

Dehydration happens. But it's not cool.

I know full well, that when you're dehydrated your body simply cannot function as it's meant to. Dehydration impairs your body's ability to function properly on a basic cellular level. This effects everything! Everything.

For the challenge you're supposed to drink half your body weight in ounces daily for 10 days. Knowing my level of commitment and devotion to certain diuretics, I decided I would drink 80 ounces daily. That's 10 extra ounces of water... but it's a clean finish of two fills of my hydro flask. Health, clarity, and convenience. I'll take it.

I got really bloated the first few days. A tell tale sign of a chronically dehydrated body having to relearn filtering and appropriation. I decided to stick the course not matter what. After day 3 the bloating went down mostly, and I was comfortably drinking my 80 ounces.

Due to the nature of a challenge, my mindset shifted. I had been in the habit of thinking:

• "I'll finish my water later."
• "I'll just have a snack first."
• "I already drank quite a bit, I'm probably okay for now."
• "I'm about to get stuck in an appointment (or fill in your own blank), and I don't want to have an excretion emergency."

I had all kinds of excuses, until I decided to shift my mind.

Setting a goal to finish 80 ounces of water made it a priority. I began reaching for my water before snacking. I quickly realized how often I'd been distracting myself with food when my body was craving water. This felt great, and I noticed some immediate changes:

• My skin was looking healthier.

• My digestion improved drastically.

• I stopped craving empty calorie snacks. Chips are chips are chips. Gluten free is still empty calories.

• I felt satiated.

• My stomach was looking flatter daily.

I felt empowered! Around day 7 a friend asked if I was excited about the end of the 10 day challenge. I looked at him like this:

"WUT?"

Why on earth would I stop drinking the amount of water I'm already supposed to be drinking, especially when it's clearly having a positive impact on my body? I told him I plan to never stop this water challenge. Duh.

You're still wondering why I told you so much about my cycle. There is a reason, and it's not just because I love talking about blood...

It's the end of the second day of my period, and I have had no pain. Zero. Not even pressure. On a scale of 1-10, I have a 0 for menstrual pain.

God bless water. Hydration is happiness. Happiness is a warm gun. Water is a warm gun. Save the world with water guns.

#makeperiodsgreatagain ;)

Did you participate in the challenge? Want to start - or keep going? Talk to me!

Thanks for reading, make hydrating choices. :)