Drinking enough water has never been a struggle for me. It has always baffled my mind how some people can go all day without having a single sip. If I go too many hours, I feel like I’m turning into a raisin. It’s also strange to me when people say they don’t “like” water. What do you mean you don’t like water? It doesn’t have a taste. It just…is.
A year or two ago, I set a goal for myself to drink a gallon of water every day. While that was a slight challenge for me, I learned some things about staying hydrated as I got better at accomplishing it—all relating to just feeling generally better all day. Based on what I learned from drinking a gallon of water daily, I wanted to revisit this more basic list of tips for staying hydrated.
Even if you don’t care about reaching the gallon mark, I know a lot of people know they need to work on drinking 8 (8-oz) glasses of water throughout the day. So, if you accidentally find yourself dehydrated from time to time, or you just want to up your water intake, try out some of the tricks I’m sharing below!
1. Take it with you everywhere.
The more you have water available to you, the more likely you’ll actually drink it. I take my Nalgene bottle with me everywhere and leave it in the car if we’re going places (which frequently leads to me declaring, “I love myself,” when we get back to the car and I’m dying of thirst). You never know when you’ll be feeling parched!
2. Add some flavor.
Whether it’s fruit, a water enhancer, or some other flavor boost, I highly recommend jazzing up your water a bit. It’s such a nice change of pace and makes it seem like you’re treating yourself, rather than just doing that boring hydration business. Check out my recipe for Cucumber, Lime & Mint Infused Water.
3. Get some reusable straws.
I drink sooo much more water when I have a straw. Not quite sure why. Maybe it’s more enjoyable somehow? Or I can chug water more easily? I will say, though, that I get weird looks sometimes when I drink out of the straw I keep in my water bottle. Jokes on them, though, because I’m hydrated AF over here.
4. Set mini goals.
Water bottles with the measurement on them are super helpful, though not necessary. My goal changes with the bottle I’m using, but using the same one most of the time makes me realize how my water consumption changes from day to day. All I know is when you’re consciously thinking about how much water you’ve had so far in the day, you’re more likely to make the effort to drink extra.
5. Make drinking it interesting.
Yes, really. I’ve played drinking games with water before when I either couldn’t drink alcohol for one reason or another or I was prepping for a race. Playing drinking games with some good ol’ fashioned agua could be a strange yet fun way to hydrate.
How much water do you try to drink everyday?
Do you have any tips for increasing water intake?
The original version of this post published November 15, 2013.
This might come off as counter intuitive but I actually went to a smaller water bottle. I used to carry this monster size water bottle to maximize my ounces, but I found drinking water becoming a chore. Maybe it was the intimidation of filling up the bottle. When I made the change, I found it easier to go get water (even though I was doing it more often).
What I also didn’t realize is that I wouldn’t take the bigger bottle with me everywhere I went…because it was too big. Now I can carry it anywhere and keep hydrated.
Good post!
Oo! Very interesting. The big water bottle doesn’t intimidate me, but I totally see what you mean about not taking it some places.
Water is the only thing I drink (besides hot tea)! I get in at a minimum 100oz everyday. If I don’t get it enough I feel so weak, tired, and get a headache!
100oz…looks so awesome when you put it that way. Go you!
I would say I drink on average 2 Nalgenes full a day, not including any other beverages. Sometimes I do bring La Croix to work with me if I have any or not. I don’t understand how people canNOT drink water! Some of my friends say they don’t “like” water because it’s boring! The only thing I ever want if I’m thirsty is water, I rarely wanted Gatorade or any of that when we were in sports.
I don’t understand that either. Some of my friends don’t drink much water at all either. Matt actually doesn’t, now that I think of it. Hmm..
Thanks for this post. When I was pregnant I drank a ton of water because A. I needed to B. I was so thirsty C. Couldnt drink what I normally would ex coffee alcohol…I carried water everywhere. Now with Finn its just one more thing to carry..and I feel gross because of it.
Sometimes it’s a pain to carry water with me, and that’s WITHOUT a baby. Maybe throw a water bottle in his diaper bag for you?