Most of us know that we should drink at least 8 eight-ounce glasses of water per day as part of our good health strategy. Based on the weather, physical activity and if pregnant or not, you should drink even more than the recommended amount. Women can drink as much as 91 ounces per day; men 125 ounces. Sadly though, the majority of us do not drink nearly as much as our body needs to function at peak efficiency.
However, there are few quick tricks you can use to help get your daily water quota:
1) Eat water-enriched foods
About 80% of our daily water intake comes from drinking; the other 20% comes from the food we eat. Vegetables, such as lettuce, cucumbers and tomatoes are 95% water. Fresh fruits like blueberries, apples and oranges are 85% water and are loaded with good nutrients and minerals; watermelon is 95% water. Supplementing your daily water intake with the recommend daily amount of fresh fruits and vegetables is a good way to ensure you are getting enough water.
2) Drink water cold
Water just tastes better if you drink it cold. And the body has to work harder to warm it up to body core temperature, meaning you’ll burn more calories drinking cold water than tepid or water that is closer to your body core temperature.
3) Add flavor to your water
Adding flavor to your water does a couple of things – 1) it makes it taste better and 2) it can help provide the recommended amount of vitamin C and replace the electrolytes potassium, magnesium, sodium and calcium lost through sweating. Add lemon, lime or cucumber to a pitcher of water and see if you don’t enjoy the flavor more than drinking just plain water.
4) Put a day’s worth of water in a pitcher
Keeping track of how much water you drink in a day is not easy; however if you don’t track what you drink, most likely you’ll not get enough. If you are at home all day or have access to a refrigerator at work, put a pitcher filled with 64 ounces of water in the refrigerator. Keep drinking and refilling your glass or water bottle throughout the day until it is gone. Add some natural water-enriched flavoring mentioned above to it to enhance its taste and consume even more water.
You have to drink an adequate amount of water each day to keep from getting dehydrated and to stay healthy. However, stay away from sugar-laden drinks that also add a significant amount of calories and don’t quench your thirst.
