Chances are, when it comes to water intake, you've heard a lot of different suggestions. Some experts say you need eight to ten 8-ounce glasses daily. Others say to divide your weight in half and drink that much in ounces.
The truth is, there is no magic number for how much water you should be drinking; it is in fact dependent on many lifestyle factors and varies from person to person. So how do you know when you need to up your water intake, and how do you ensure you're getting as much as you need?
Lifestyle factors that contribute to ideal water intake include:
Activity level: Someone who is relatively inactive may not need as much water as someone who hits the gym regularly. When you exercise, you need to increase your intake to replace the water that has been lost through sweating.
Surrounding environment: Hot, humid temperatures or higher altitudes indicate a need for a higher water intake.
Diet: If your diet consists largely of water-dense fruits and vegetables, you might not need to drink as much water.
Illness: If you're feeling a bit under the weather, be sure to up your consumption of fluids to help you feel better, faster!
Alcohol intake: If you're drinking alcohol, make sure to alternate water. Alcohol can be very dehydrating, causing headaches and other illnesses.
If you're not used to drinking water regularly throughout the day, here are a few tips to try out:
Carry a small water bottle with you everywhere. Having water on you all the time will make it very hard not to drink.
Keep a larger water bottle at your workspace. When you don't have to get up to refill it constantly, you're much more likely to keep drinking. Chris Garner, Marketing Director at Waterlogic found precisely this: "In the years before I joined Waterlogic, I would suffer that post-lunch lull where you feel sleepy. No matter what I tried; coffee, walking around, etc., I could not shake it. A colleague gave me a cool sports bottle, and I would fill this; first thing in the morning, then fill again at lunch, then in the afternoon, then again for the drive home. After about six months in to this new routine I found myself feeling so much healthier, more awake and alert. I still enjoy a coffee, but I have grown to really appreciate good water."
Keep a Post-it or a small piece of paper at your computer or anywhere you will see it all day. Make 10 boxes on it at the beginning of the day, and check off one for each glass of water you drink. (Again, it doesn't mean you need exactly 10 glasses, it's just a way of tracking your intake.) No one has to know what it means except you!
Water is essential for all of your body's processes, and if one isn't working properly, it will cause the others to become out of balance as well. Do whatever works for you to ensure that you have a steady intake of water, and eventually it will become a habit!
Mix it up with some fun flavors! Check out Waterlogic's Fruit Infused Water Recipes for ideas.
Written by Kimberly Petrosino in collaboration with Chris Garner. With nearly 10 years in the water industry and over 20 years of experience in international business-to-business sales and marketing, Chris Garner is the Global Marketing Director of Waterlogic, a designer, manufacturer and distributor of bottleless water dispenser and purification systems. He is actively involved in the development of new water dispensers and in promoting the awareness of the need for better drinking water.