In January, my wife bought this trendy gallon water bottle and has finished it nearly everyday since. Not to be outdone, I decided to join her in the daily gallon water challenge.

Before this, I was already drinking a lot more water than most—around 11 cups a day (or 2/3 a gallon) over the last several years. At 6’1″ and 200 pounds, this amount felt great. But I wondered what five more cups per day might do for me.

Turns out a lot. I’ve lost a little weight, satiated my appetite more than usual, am never thirsty, and my skin feels even better in the cold desert of Utah where I live. I’ve also peed a lot more than usual, but that’s a minor annoyance that’s well worth the trade-off.

Pro tip: To avoid waking at night to urinate, I finish my gallon by 2pm in the afternoon and don’t drink anything after that. The more you know!