How to Drink More Water

Many of my clients have a hard time drinking enough water. Secret is: I do too! The key to fixing this problem, is to find a way to work around it. Here are some tips and things that have worked for me and my clients:

• Add a splash of juice. I’m not suggesting that you have watered-down juice, but adding a couple tablespoons of juice can do the trick. I like to add a splash of 100% pomegranate juice to my water. Some people prefer lemon or lime juice. Just make sure it’s 100% juice and nothing with added sugar. And again, make sure it’s only a splash.
• There’s an app for that… There’s always an app! For everything! Choose one of the water tracker apps out there, and start tracking every time you drink. You can even set reminders for yourself.
• If you’re on your computer a lot, it’s a good idea to take an eye break every 20 minutes for about 20 seconds. Every time I take a break, I take a sip of water.

But how much water should you have? There are a couple ways to find out. The least amount that anyone should have is 8 cups per day (64 ounces). If you want to get more specific, drink water until your pee is fairly clear. Then you know you are hydrated. If you want to get even more specific, you can do this fancy equation:

• Divide your body weight in half.
• Multiply that by 29.5 (this is how much you should have in milliliters).
• If you’re an athlete add 500 mL per hour of training.

If you haven’t been hydrating correctly, make that one of your goals this week. I guarantee you will feel better, and if you are an athlete, you will perform better as well!