A nutritionist’s top three tips for drinking more water

Before clients come to see me, I ask them to keep a food and drink diary for me for three days so that I can assess their nutritional intake. After years of looking through people’s food diaries, I can say without a doubt that the biggest struggle people have is drinking enough water. Less than 20% of my clients report drinking their optimal daily water intake. Why? There are a variety of reasons, but what I hear most is: “it’s just boring, it doesn’t taste good, or I just forget.”

How do you remove the top obstacles to drinking more water? 

1: Drink tastier water

Sorso drinking system (Sorso)

Tap water contains chlorine and other contaminants that negatively affect its taste. As for plastic bottled water, this is not my favourite option. Apart from the damage to the environment, you’re also increasing your exposure to plastic toxins that seep into your water.

Quality water filtration systems remove all the nasties from your water, including chlorine. I have been using a Sorso wellness water filter for the last three years. It purifies the water, but it also adds some essential natural minerals, making it more delicious to drink. Moreover, it ionises the water, meaning that it breaks the water down into smaller particles and thereby optimising your hydration. The result: you drink more water, and you feel more hydrated!  

Since installing a water filtration system in my house, my whole family doubled their water consumption overnight because we absolutely love the taste and enjoy drinking it. It is the best investment made in my family’s health and the top recommendation I make to my clients who struggle to reach their daily water intake. 

2: Download a free water tracking app

There are plenty of water reminders and tracking apps that you can download to help you stay hydrated throughout the day. In order to determine how much water you should be drinking daily, take your weight in pounds and divide that by two. That’s how many ounces you should be drinking daily. Then your tracking app sets reminders throughout the day.

3: Keep a big glass of water by your bed and a glass jug on your desk

Sorso

Staying hydrated is also much easier when you make a solid effort to drink water first thing in the morning. I recommend drinking at least 500 ml before breakfast. We actually lose one litre of water in our sleep and so taking an intentional pause to rehydrate is important to support your energy levels and stay productive throughout the day. The easiest way to get started is to keep a big glass of water by your bed and reach for it (before you reach for your smartphone) as soon as you wake up. After that — make sure you keep a large glass jug of water on your desk to keep you on track.

Staying hydrated is key for supporting cognitive function, mood, digestive health, immunity — and of course, it’s key for weight loss and healthy weight maintenance. Start using these tips today and improve your health and well-being from the inside out.

Written by Cristina Tahoces, a holistic nutritionist, TEDx speaker, and the owner of Thrive Nutrition Practice, a global online wellness business focused on building physical and mental health resilience to stress.