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Swollen ankles. One of the telltale signs you're coming along with your pregnancy. And when you've got two babies on board, that swelling may begin sooner than if you were carrying only one baby, so it's important to keep up with your water intake.
When I was expecting my twins, I was very in tune with my body and followed its cues for everything along the way. If my body told me it needed something—what to eat or drink, or what to avoid—I listened. That, along with my bi-weekly, and then weekly, visits to my OB-GYN and fetal assessment team, had me feeling great and had the babies on track with where they were expected to be.
Throughout my whole pregnancy, I'd gained 36.1 pounds, so within the suggested amount for someone with my body type expecting twins (the suggested weight-gain range is 35 to 54 pounds, but discuss this with your doctor), and I was feeling really good. And then, out of nowhere, my ankles exploded when I hit 30 weeks.
And then, out of nowhere, my ankles exploded when I hit 30 weeks.
I hadn't done anything out of the ordinary; I just woke up one day and realized I couldn't see the shape of my ankle bones anymore. I could still walk normally, and everything felt fine, but I missed being able to actually see my ankles, so I did some reading.
From what I could tell, despite the fact that I'd been staying well-hydrated and getting in the recommended amount of movement for each day, I had to increase my water intake even further. I'd talk over these suspicions with my OB-GYN in a few days' time, but in the meantime, that seemed to be the culprit.
Up until that point, I'd been drinking just over four liters of water per day. This was based on my body telling me what it needed and my doctor agreeing that I should listen to my body's cues.
And now, upping my water intake further meant I was drinking five liters of water a day (check with your doctor or OB-GYN on the amount you should be aiming to drink each day; the recommended amount of water intake per day ranges from 64 to 80 ounces for someone carrying a single baby and is higher for someone carrying multiples, due to the increased demands placed on your body).
As if I weren't already having to head to the bathroom enough in a day before adding this extra liter to my water bottle. But if it meant taking some of the pressure off of my feet, I'd give it a whirl.
As if I weren't already having to head to the bathroom enough in a day before adding this extra liter to my water bottle. But if it meant taking some of the pressure off of my feet, I'd give it a whirl.
Magically, after 24 hours with the increased hydration, I could suddenly see my ankles again, and it was marvelous. My body only craved the extra liter of water for a few days, and then I was back down to my usual twin pregnancy amount of just over 4 liters of water per day.
In either scenario, that's a lot of liters to keep track of, but I wanted to be sure I was staying on track with my hydration goal.
And, yes, there's an app for that—there's an app for everything, isn't there?
But I already felt like I was focusing all my attention on learning so many new things about parenting AND about having TWO babies, AND I was already using so many pregnancy tracking apps to track their growth and progress in utero that I didn't have the energy to add tracking my water intake in that high-tech of a capacity.
So, I went old-school.
I grabbed my favorite reusable jug. I love Contigo's Ashland water bottle. It's BPA-free, has an auto spout that pops up with the touch of a button, and has a cover to keep the straw clean. It also has a lock to prevent spills and leaks into your purse or bag when you're on the go, which I'm a huge fan of. The 24-ounce bottle fits into a standard car cup holder (the 32-ounce does not).
And then I did the math based on my bottle's 24-ounce capacity and grabbed a handful of hair ties and pulled them over the jug like I would wear them on my wrist.
For every bottle of water I drank, I removed one hair tie. When I had no hair ties left, that meant I'd successfully hit my intake for the day.
I really liked having a quick, visual reminder that I could easily peek at while I was working at my desk to see if I was on track.
With a glance before lunchtime, I could tell if I had about half of my hair ties left that I was right where I needed to be…even though that PROBABLY meant that where I needed to be right then was on my way to the bathroom to get rid of some of that much-needed water I'd been drinking.
What tips or tricks did you use to make sure you were staying properly hydrated throughout your twin pregnancy? Did you have a favorite water bottle with a bigger capacity? We'd love to hear about your experience in the Comments section below.
Contigo Ashland 2.0 Leak-Proof Water Bottle
This is the Contigo Ashland water bottle. It's BPA-free, is leak-proof, and has a built-in cover to keep the straw clean when it's not in use. The 24-ounce bottle fits into a standard car cup holder (the 32-ounce does not).
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