How to Stay Healthy and Hydrated Year-Round with OMI Bottle

This post is generously sponsored by OMI Bottle. 

As the temperatures drop, your motivation to stay healthy and hydrated may fall just as much. After all, Thanksgiving dinner and Christmas cookies are right around the corner - and who wants to sip on ice water or go for a run when the weather already has your teeth chattering? 

Today, though, I’m partnering with OMI Bottle to share my top tips and tricks for staying healthy and hydrated all year long! As usual, I want to say that I’m neither a doctor nor a health expert. However, I’ve had plenty of experience with staying healthy and hydrated year-round as a chronically ill college student.

So keep reading to learn my top four secrets on how to stay healthy and hydrated in college, out of college, and year-round - plus, learn how OMI Bottle can help you live a healthier lifestyle in 2017 and beyond! 

1. Move that bod!

This is perhaps the most obvious health “secret” out there: you + movement = one happier and healthier body. In fact, research has found that exercise can improve people's self esteem, sleep patterns, range of motion and metabolism, and it can decrease the risk of cancers and heart disease. Talk about a major two-for-one deal!

In my experience, moving your body is even more important when you have a chronic illness like fibromyalgia. After hours of sitting in class or working on my computer, nine out of ten times, my neck and joints are not happy campers. Doing a workout - whether it’s a hard cardio session on the gym stair stepper or a relaxing yoga practice in my apartment - helps loosen me up and get everything to relax.

As a bonus, exercise also reduces the body's stress hormones and increases endorphins, or the "happy" hormone. For me, stress is one of the biggest triggers for fibromyalgia flares and stomach problems (related to my celiac disease). So the more regularly I make time for exercise, the less stressed I am, the better I feel, and the more exercise I want to do. Hello healthy living cycle! 

2. Keep a water bottle close at hand.

One aspect of health that a lot of people overlook, though, is staying hydrated. In fact, as of 2013, 75 percent of Americans can be classifed as chronically dehydrated. If you’re following tip number one and enjoying a sweaty workout sesh on the regular, getting enough liquids is even more important.

Like this post? Then tweet me some love by clicking here: "#ad Learn this #glutenfree #college #celiac's top secrets for staying #healthy and #hydrated all year long, with some help from @omibottle! http://bit.ly/2A3bAon"

The easiest hydration trick I’ve found is making a reusable water bottle your favorite accessory. Even during the fall and winter, I take my reusable water bottle with me everywhere and make sure to take advantage of the filtered water stations around my college campus. 

As I’ve shared in previous posts, hydration may be especially vital if you have fibromyalgia and/or celiac disease like me. Some of the medications I take for my chronic illnesses give me dry mouth, which calls for lots of water. Plus, drinking at least 64 ounces of water a day keeps my finicky digestion groovin’ along, if ya know what I mean. 

If you don’t already have a reusable water bottle or are looking for an even better option than the ones sitting in your cupboard, keep scrolling to learn about the new water bottle I’m majorly crushing on! 

3. Find medications and/or supplements that work for you - and remember to take them.

Some people can get all the nutrients they need from food and don’t need to take any supplements or pills on a regular basis. (As crazy as that may sound to spoonies like me.) For others, though, supplements can be key to staying healthy in college or other hectic times in life, like the holiday season. Discuss possible supplement needs with your doctor, and if you have chronic illnesses, I definitely suggest asking for blood work to test your vitamin levels. 

Personally, my doctor recently discovered that I was iron deficient. I started taking iron supplements six months ago, and I’ve definitely noticed a big improvement in my energy levels. Earlier this year, I also shared my experience with a joint health supplement. Supplements and medications can't totally "fix" my chronic illnesses, but finding the right ones has made a (sometimes amazing) difference...and the same could be said for you.

Even once you find the supplements and medicines that work for you, though, remembering to take them can often be a challenge. As someone who is medically required to take several pills twice a day, I also can relate 1000% to the awkwardness of having to tote your pillbox or plastic bags with pills to various social events.

This is where OMI Bottle comes in!

4. Discover products that help you live a healthier lifestyle...like OMI Bottle!

The OMI Bottle is an inventive new 24-ounce water bottle that just launched its Kickstarter campaign earlier this week. What makes me so excited about OMI Bottle compared to all the other water bottles on the market? It has a built-in pill dispenser! 

OMI Bottle’s seven-day pill organizer slides right into the water bottle itself, so, as long as you have your water bottle nearby, you have your pills nearby too. Having daily compartments in the organizer also means you can easily separate your pills by times you need to take them or even store a whole week's worth of medications or supplements inside your water bottle. No more frantically searching through your purse for the right pills (been there, still sometimes do that...) 

OMI Bottle is also great for anyone who wants a practical reusable water bottle that looks a lil’ more stylish than the average bottle. OMI Bottle is small enough to fit in your purse or backpack, and it’s made of BPA-free Tritan plastic that can be bought in various colors, like Stone Silver, Pearl White and Rose Gold. 

Like this post? Then tweet me some love by clicking here: "#ad Learn this #glutenfree #college #celiac's top secrets for staying #healthy and #hydrated all year long, with some help from @omibottle! http://bit.ly/2A3bAon"

Like with any healthy living product, I don’t think that buying an OMI Bottle will automatically make you ten times healthier. However, if you want to be better about staying hydrated and are hoping to adopt a healthier lifestyle, OMI Bottle is a great place to start. And if you’re a fellow member of the chronic illness community who needs to take pills multiple times a day? Well, it sounds like OMI Bottle will make it easier than ever for people transport and remember to take their pills.  

To learn more about OMI Bottle, check out their Kickstarer campaign here or their Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages.

The truth is, fall and winter can be a hard season to stay hydrated and adhere to healthy habits. Not only can the weather make "Netflix and chill" sound more appealing than "gym and chilled water," but it can also be easy to let the holiday rush push self-care to the bottom of your to-do list.

However, whether you're trying to learn how to stay healthy in college or just how to stay hydrated every month of the year, don't forget to take care of yourself during these next few months. Who knows? With some help from the tips I’ve shared above and healthy living products like OMI Bottle, you might be able to make this winter your healthiest and most hydrated season yet! 

*I received monetary compensation in exchange for spreading the word about OMI Bottle. However, I only partner with brands and products that I personally belive in, and all opinions and thoughts are my own. Thank you for supporting what supports Casey the College Celiac!*

Have you heard of OMI Bottle before? How do you stay hydrated and healthy all year long? Tell me in the comments!