In a previous article, I wrote about how much water you need to drink every day. Water is great for flushing toxins out, treating constipation, having clearer skin, and just feeling great overall!
That’s all fine and dandy, but what do you do if you don’t like drinking plain water or if you just forget?
Keep reading and you’ll find out exactly how to drink more water every day!
How to Drink Water First Thing in The Morning
One of the most important things you need to do when you wake up in the morning is to drink water. And preferably about 16 oz of it!
That much?! Yes, and here’s why: your body gets dehydrated throughout the night as you exhale little droplets of water. Not to mention that you’re likely not drinking any water during the night.
That makes for an easily dehydrated body in the morning.
Plus drinking water first thing in the morning is a great way to kick start your body awake and flush out any toxins.
So how do you do it? Gradually! Just like Havi explains that waking up earlier is all about waking up a few minutes earlier each week, so it is with drinking more water every morning.
Start with just a sip of water if you’re not used to drinking anything in the morning. Then gradually work up to half a glass, and then a full glass.
You might need to put the water somewhere obvious if you’re a little groggy in the morning. Think about putting the glass on the toilet seat. Or beside your alarm clock.
Taking Water Breaks Throughout The Day
Another really important thing is to drink water throughout the day. Preferably earlier on in the day, as opposed to late at night. Otherwise you might need to wake up to go to the bathroom!
If you have a hard time remembering to take water breaks throughout the day you just need to put a few friendly reminders.
If you work at a computer, get yourself a little “take a break” software reminder. Every hour it should tell you to go get a glass of water.
Another tip that a friend of mine employs is having a carafe of water to refill her glass, so she doesn’t need to get up all the time. Then she refills the carafe and takes a longer break during that time.
Making Water Taste Good and More Fun to Drink
If you’re used to drinking soda, juice, milk, coffee, and the bazillion other types of drinks out there – settling for water can seem like a step down.
It doesn’t have to be! Water can be just as much fun, and taste just as good as all those commercial drinks. Here’s how:
- Use a Fancy Glass: If you’re bored of drinking water in a boring glass, get a funky one to make it fun again! Use a wine glass, a funny cartoon glass, or even your favorite mug.
- Change the Temperature: Some days drinking cold water is refreshing, while drinking warm or hot water can be just what you need on a cold day. Experiment and enjoy different temperatures of water.
- Add Goji Berries: This is essentially like making a tea using goji berries and water. It adds a little boost to your water, and it tastes great too.
- Margarita Water Recipe: Add some sea salt and squeeze half a lime into your water. It’s reminiscent of a margarita and it’s got tons of great minerals in it!
- Slice Some Ginger: Add a few slices of ginger and some raw honey if you want something sweet and hot. This is a great remedy for a sore throat too! Or if you’re experiencing some cold-related pain during that time of the month.
- Add a cucumber or lemon slice: Similar to the margarita water, adding a slice of cucumber or lemon is a great way to add some zest to your water.
- Get a New Water Filter: If you can’t stand the taste of your water, maybe it’s time to consider getting a new water filter.
- Crush Mint Leaves: Mint is such a refreshing herb, try adding some fresh leaves to your water and enjoy the yumminess!
- Add a little raw cacao: Okay, we’re venturing further from true water here but adding a little bit of raw cacao powder
or raw maca powder
is a great way to have some really rich satisfying water.
What Are Your Tips?
Leave a comment and let me know what your favorite “drink more water” tricks are.
Have a happy, hydrated day!
{ 21 comments }
I make it a habit to drink water first thing in the morning. While waiting for coffee to brew, I fill my coffee mug with water and chug! I love ice water during the warmer months, but I struggle to get enough water during the winter. I keep my favorite mug right by the tap in the kitchen and try to remember to get a drink every time I walk through the kitchen. Which, if you're a mom, is a lot!
Also, if I feel hungry between meals, I try drinking a mug full of water to see if I'm actually thirsty. I love honey and ginger in hot water, but I'm really eager to try your cacao powder suggestion!
Great post!
One tip I have is to get a reusable water bottle and carry it around with you all the time. I fill it up to the brim whenever I go out. Plus, it takes 3x as much water to just produce a plastic water bottle :)
And refillable big containers of water are great too!
I love your tip of grabbing a cup whenever you go to the kitchen. And yes – drinking water before your coffee is super awesome! Big high five on that one. :)
I do the water between meals thing too, water is so important! :D
Hey Nathalie. Guess what my suggestions is?! Drink genuine Kangen water. It's alkalizing, refreshing, and filled with anti-oxidants. Because of its micro-clusters and hexagonal-shape, the water more easily penetrates cells thus transporting nutrients in and waste products out. It doesn't fill you up, yet its clean, light, smooth taste is delicious. Although I went 100% raw in July, it wasn't until the end of October when I began drinking Kangen water that I lost weight. When you think of it, because we are 75% water, the quickest and easiest way to alkalize the body is by drinking water. Now that I'm doing so, the alkaline food I eat is being put to good use
Thanks Sui! I agree with the tip of carrying water with you where ever you go. It's so much easier knowing you have drinkable water on hand, and that you're not buying plastic bottles every time! :)
Hey Nancy! I knew you'd have something great to add to the discussion!
It's really interesting to hear about your weight loss after starting to drink Kangen water, quite awesome! And yes I agree, we are 70% water and water is such a crucial part of our health!
Hey Nancy! I knew you'd have something great to add to the discussion!
It's really interesting to hear about your weight loss after starting to drink Kangen water, quite awesome! And yes I agree, we are 70% water and water is such a crucial part of our health!
Love drinking water with Lemons or water infused strawberries/orange slices… It's so funny, I was just thinking that it was starting to show on my face that I haven't been drinking enough water. Water Break time!
Those both sound delicious and fun too! Yay I'm glad this could be a little reminder for you. I'm off to get myself a fresh glass of water too. :)
I got a reusable 16 oz acrylic tumbler with straw. For me I drink more with a straw. I was stuck not doing it for a while and now I love drinking my water again.
My friend Willie is really into the Kangen water too. Interesting.
Ooh a straw! I like that, it's not something I use but I know that when drinking other things a straw makes it that much more fun. :) Thanks for sharing Linda!
Oooh, I forgot about the reusable water bottle. Er, maybe because I don't leave the house often enough… :)
Our 3 Tips to Drinking More Water: http://bit.ly/cjamq0. Oh, and also tracking it in our iPhone app (http://bit.ly/97iwgc) — takes less than 60 seconds a day. It's helped me out.
I have a chart taped to one of the cabinet doors in my kitchen. There's a square for every day of the week, and every time I drink a glass of water, I make a ticky mark in today's square. I use the same glass every time, and I know how many ounces the glass holds. That way, I can count how many glasses I'm getting, and know how many ounces.
I have chronic kidney stones, though, so I have to drink mad amounts of water to keep them at bay. I drink about a gallon and a half a day! (:
That's an awesome system Kyeli! I can definitely see how it works to keep you accountable, woohoo! And wow way to go on the gallon and a half! :D
Something that has helped me is I bought two one-quart bottles of mineral water just to have the glass bottles. I am wary of drinking out of plastic all day but a regular drinking glass has to be refilled too often. These bottles are perfecto! I've been drinking my “margarita water” out of these, and it's super easy because I just leave the lime in the bottle and keep refilling with water, when I put the cap on and shake it up its just as limey as when I started!
The cap actually makes a big difference because it makes it easy to store the bottle – I can refill the night before then grab it from the fridge in the morning.
That is such a great idea Laura! I keep reminding my boyfriend not to drink from a plastic bottle all day, so this is a really big deal. It's true, a regular glass is still too small.
Using a cap to get your water set up the night before is brilliant too! I do that with my green smoothies, but having water ready in the morning is great too! :)
I have a “special” designated water glass that I use at home. I usually drink about a gallon of water a day (not including teas) and I feel terrible on the days that I drink less. I try to drink filtered water as much as possible since I drink so much of it!
That's so awesome Carla! I know my dad sometimes gets headaches if he doesn't drink enough water… so definitely good to stay hydrated!
That's so awesome Carla! I know my dad sometimes gets headaches if he doesn't drink enough water… so definitely good to stay hydrated!
Comments on this entry are closed.