By If you are like me, drinking water can sometimes feel more like a chore or extremely daunting task to drink the recommended 2 liters of water each day. Yet I know that I feel better and look better when I regularly have at least 1.5 liters of water. So how on earth can I will myself to drink more water when its often the last thing I want to drink. Well, it is actually pretty easy to do if you use the following tips.
- Carry a water bottle around with you.
Yes, carrying around a re-useable water bottle can be annoying at times, but it can change the way you think about it. Find a water bottle that you really like and fits your lifestyle. I have four that I really like, two that I take out and about as I can trust that they won’t spill and then I have a couple that I like to have while at home while doing chores, studying or the rare occasions that I find myself relaxing. The key point is if you always have water in hand you are more likely to drink it without really thinking about it.
2. Flavor your water… Naturally
So, no I am not talking about the flavor packs of chemicals and fake sugars, I’m talking about naturally flavor bombs. If you are transitioning from sweet drinks like pop, try adding juice to your water. Key note to make here you are not watering down your juice, you are adding juice to your water. So try keeping the juice to under 1/3 of your water bottle to juice. The next option is to add fruit or fresh herbs to your water. Play with the mixture! I really like adding pineapple, orange, lime, lemon, cucumber, mint and lemon verbena. But my current favorite way to flavor my water is with tea. By adding a tea bag to your cold water, you get a gentle flavor. I really like peppermint tea right now, but I encourage you to play around with it.
3. Set a SMART Goal.
So, you say you want to drink more water but what is your goal, and by goal I don’t mean “my goal is to drink more water”. This is because you can meet that goal without actually meeting your goal. Let’s say you drink one more glass of water tomorrow than you did today, and then CONGRATS you have met your “goal”, but was that really what you were going for? This is where SMART goals come into play. SMART stands for Specific, Measurable and Achievable, Realistic and Time-limited. So., a better goal would be “for the next two weeks I will drink two liters of water every day”.
4. Track Your Water.
So now you have a goal that is Specific, Measurable and Achievable, Realistic and Time-limited but how can you prevent chugging two liters of water before bed just to meet your goal. Your bladder is going to be a lot happier if you space out your water consumption throughout the day. So, let’s say you have a little 500ml water bottle that you love to use. That means you have to drink four of them throughout the day. Develop a plan where you drink one before breakfast, one before lunch, one more before dinner and then finally one before bed. Trust me your bladder will thank you.
To wrap this up here is a short video that describes the important of water and the risk that come with dehydration.
