#89 Water Water Water – How To Drink Enough

OK so we all know that you need to drink 2L of water every day. But why? Why is this so important? What will it do to my body? It’s hard to drink 2L every single day – how do I do it?

Why You Need Water

If you don’t drink enough water, you will become dehydrated. Simple. But disrupting this water balance in your body can actually have some pretty serious consequences. It starts with feeling thirsty and then goes downhill from there. Your blood pressure will drop and you may start to feel faint. This is because there is less water / fluid in your blood and not enough blood getting to your brain. Your heart will be pounding, you’ll get a severe headache, you will stop urinating as your body tries to hold on to all the water it can, and in severe cases, it can lead to coma and death.

So yes there is a lot going on in your body when you are dehydrated. You really do need adequate water so that your body can function as efficiently as it can. Can you drink too much water? Yes. But it is highly unlikely that you will do this, unless you are water loading for a long distance event such as a marathon.

Drinking enough water before, during and after exercise is also very important. If you exercise when you are dehydrated, your body will reduce it’s sweating response, your body temperature and heart rate will increase, and as a result, you won’t be able to exercise as well.

Finally, if this doesn’t make you want to drink more water, I don’t know what will! Sweat is made up of vitamins and minerals, but also urea. So when you are dehydrated and you sweat, a higher concentration of urea will leave your body. Which means you will smell a lot worse. Yuck. Anyone with bad BO take not – drink more water!

Tips To Help You Drink More Water

1. My number is one tip is to carry a water bottle with you wherever you. I seriously never leave the house without it. When I’m out for breakfast, doing the groceries, at work, sitting on the couch watching TV, it’s always by my side. It’s just a 750mL re-usable water bottle. I make sure I drink at least 3 of these every day. In reality, I actually drink more like 4-5 of these.
2. My partner doesn’t carry a water bottle around with him, he does something a little different. He fills up 8 cups of water and leaves them sitting on the kitchen bench. And he make sure he drinks all 8 of them.
3. Try to drink 2L of water before 5pm or before you leave work that day. If you leave it too late in the day, you will be playing catch up before bed. And that means you may be up all night going to the toilet.
4. I know you’ve heard this one before… Don’t wait until you are thirsty to drink water, as this means you are already dehydrated. Keep drinking regularly throughout the day, even if it is just small sips.
5. If you simply forget to drink water, set a reminder on your phone every hour while you are at work as a reminder for you to get up and have a big drink of water.
6. If you find it difficult to drink water because you don’t like it, you can drink it in the form of tea (try green tea!) or try adding lemon or mint leaves to your water. Mix it up!