5 of The Easiest Ways to Drink More Water

We all know we should be adding more water to our daily diet and constant dehydration is bad for our health. A good amount of daily hydration helps your body flush toxins, moderate temperature, improves the appearance of your skin, gives higher energy levels and is even linked to better sleep.

Exactly How Much Water Should You Drink a Day?

The ‘8-glass-a-day’ doctrine has come under considerable fire from experts. This is because the exact daily water intake should be different from person to person as it depends on their unique circumstances. So there is no hard and fast rule but one useful recommendation comes from the IoM (Institute of Medicine).

The IoM is an independent non-profit scientific organization that propose a total daily water intake of 3.7L (litres) for men and 2.7L (litres) of water for women. This is suggested for generally healthy adults that live a sedentary lifestyle in temperate climates.

If you are not getting anything close to this amount, then chances are you might need to increase your water intake.

Remember 20% of Your Water Consumption Comes From Food!

Before we look at specific ways for you to increase your water intake, it is important to keep in mind that approximately 20% of your daily water consumption typically comes from food. The remaining 80% comes from a combination of the beverages and plain water that you drink. So remember to factor this when determining how much water you should be getting in your diet.

The exact daily water intake you should be drinking will depend on things like your height, weight, any outstanding health issues, and if you’re taking part in physically demanding activities. You should speak to a professional healthcare expert if you want to get a more specific idea about the exact amount of water that is right for your unique body composition and lifestyle.

Once you fully understand how much water you should be drinking every day, the list below will help you achieve your desired target.

5 Super Easy Ways To Drink More Water

1. Add Your Own Flavor

I get it. The reason why most people don’t drink enough water is because it can be pretty boring. But instead of buying flavored water from the supermarket go for something that is more natural like adding mint leaves, orange slices or strawberries to plain water.

If you really want to get the taste infused then let it sit in your fridge for a few hours. You can even freeze lemon slices in ice cubes to give your water an extra kick. If you’re missing the fizz from soda then why not use sparkling water? This way you get all the bubbly without the sugar and other stuff that isn’t so great.

2. Hide it in Your Daily Routine

This is an excellent little hack if you already have a well-established routine because all you need to do is literally add water. For instance, if you have a cup of coffee each morning then why not drink a glass of water while you’re waiting for the coffee maker or kettle to boil?
Make it a habit to drink water when you wake up, get out of the shower or get to your office desk each morning.

3. Make Water More Visible

Simply having water in the line of vision is enough to make most people drink more. Having a full glass of water on your nightstand means you’re so much more likely to drink it when you wake up then if you have to go to the kitchen. Have bottles of water dotted around your home and office desk or even better, invest in a good quality refillable water bottle.

4. Get a Water Bottle and Mark it With Your Goals

Following on from the previous point, getting a decent high quality water bottle is one of the best ways to increase your daily water intake. Especially if it’s one that you find aesthetically pleasing so that you are more inclined to carry it around with you. It is also worth buying a high quality one, even though it might cost a little more. A BPA free heavy-duty plastic bottle or good stainless steel one should do the trick.

Once you’ve got the perfect water bottle take it with you everywhere.
If you really want to get the most value out of this, make markings on the water bottle with a label marker. Use the marker to note down how much water you’d like to drink by a certain time each day. This means you will be able to actually see your daily water goals and know whether you need to play catch up or if you’re already far ahead of your target.

5. Use Alarms to Create Mental Triggers

If you have already tried everything on this list, but still find it difficult to drink more water, why not set a timer on your phone? Set up a couple of alarms to go off throughout the day. Then when they do go off drink a glass of water. This might seem a little over the top but it is highly effective because a screaming phone is not something you can easily ignore.

The other side of this is that it helps you build a habit. If you program your alarm to go off at the same time each day then you will find that your body naturally starts to crave water at those exact times. Over time you will find that you don’t need the alarms as you will start to instinctively drink more water.

The Bottom Line

It is a fact; getting enough water in your diet is essential to your very existence. Your body struggles to function properly when you are dehydrated. Sadly, most people do not get the proper amount of daily hydration their body needs. If this is you, this article has provided you with some quick and easy ways to add more of the life-enhancing liquid into your daily diet.

Author Bio
Luke is a blogger, writer and the owner of MrWaterGeek.com. His passion is to help people take control of their health and well-being by understanding the true importance of water and proper hydration. He does this by providing nutritional information and simplifying the complexities of the water industry so the average person can get the right outcomes for their circumstances.