5 ways to drink more water.

Odds are you probably need to drink more water. Over 60% of you body is water and your brain is over 70%. That meme about how humans are just cucumbers with anxiety? Yeah, that’s pretty accurate!

Needless to say, you have drink water to keep your body and your brain functioning at their best. It is incredible how water can benefit so many aspects of our mind and body.

Want glowing skin without using a moisturizer? Drink water. Want good digestion? Drink water. Want to lose weight? Drink water. Want to regulate your mood better? Drink water.

So how much water should you drink?

Surprisingly, there isn’t one accepted answer. Many are conflicted between the old-school 64 ounces a day, all the way up to half your body weight in ounces.

So I have defaulted to the easy gallon or 128 ounces. I try to get there every day, and succeed most days.

Water is also the reason why those silly toxin flush teas or pills are useless. All you have to do is drink water every day. It helps your body break down minerals and your kidneys to flush out the waste.

So how do you drink more water if you’re just not that fond of it? Well here are 4 easy tricks to drinking more water!

1. Use only one cup for water.

I have been doing this for several years and it is the single best tip I can give you to start drinking more water. In fact, this will even get your family members (and spouses) to start drinking more water. Trust me! It’s magic!

Use one reusable cup or bottle only for water. Use the same one every day. Don’t have more than one at a time, just switch to a new one when you are done.

It seems simple but there are a few reasons why this actually works. First off, you always have a clean cup for water, it removes that excuse off the table. And you know its always clean and won’t have a funky taste.

Second, if you keep it full (always) then you will always have water within reach. You are far more likely to consume water if its right in front of you. If you keep it around you enough, I guarantee you’ll start to drink from it more and more without noticing. Even those around you will too (as long as you share). If its always there, and always ready, it’s so much easier to drink.

2. Use a cup with a straw or open mouth.

I really prefer to use a cup with a straw. You are definitely able to drink more water, faster. My go-to lately has been the 20 ounce Starbucks reusable cup (pictured above).

Cups with wide mouth openings are also very helpful if you’re trying to drink more water. I really like the new cold foam lids at Starbucks, they’re like an adult sippy cup! You can get them on any cold beverage if you ask.

3. Use progressive ounce goals.

I think this is really essential to making sure you actually get to your water goal. You can’t just sit there at 9pm and drink a gallon of water. It’s not going to happen. You might be able to chug 24 or even 32 ounces. But that’s it.

To get a gallon in, you have to start early. In fact, I start the second I wake up. I have a glass of room temperature water ready for me to down as soon as I’m done brushing my teeth.

Here is how I break up my 128 ounce daily water goal:

25 ounces by 8am (or when I get to work)

25 ounces by 12:30pm (or when I go to lunch)

25 ounces by 4:30pm (when I head home)

25 ounces by 6:30pm (dinner time)

25 ounces by 10:30pm (or bedtime)

I try to finish my night with a cup of tea to round out the gallon! Some days it’s more challenging than others. And I definitely had to start small and work my way up.

So if you’re just starting, shoot for 8 ounces by the time you get to work, 8 ounces by the time you eat lunch, etc. Don’t be afraid to start small and work your way up, there’s no rush!

4. Drink room temperature water

I love ice water, don’t get me wrong. But when you need to get water down, it’s a lot easier at room temperature. Cold water definitely numbs my throat and can only go down a little bit at a time.

I’ll even mix half cold water and half hot water out of my water cooler at work to get that perfect tepid blend. At home, we just leave the cooler option off of our water dispenser.

Side note: your body actually has to warm the cold water up before it can be absorbed fully. I sweat so much when I workout hard that I really have to drink a lot of water to re-hydrate myself. I always stick to room temperature because my body can put it right to use a little quicker than cold water (even if it’s super refreshing).