I Finally Learned How to Drink More Water!

For the past few years I had it in the back of my mind that I should be drinking more water, but I just could not seem to change my habits. Last spring I tried joining a healthy habits support group on-line. Even though I failed at the exercise part of the challenge that I started, I did a fantastic job of getting back into the habit of drinking enough water! What a difference it makes in how I feel! Now that I am drinking plenty of water, I don’t feel as tired mid-afternoon and my lips are not dry and flaky anymore. If you need to get your water intake up, here are some ideas that can really help you remember to drink more water.

Choose a fun water glass. My favorite right now is a tall plastic lidded cup with a straw. I also like to use an aluminum water bottle and sometimes I will take out my fancy water goblets.
Find your perfect recipe. I like to half-fill the container with ice and then top it off with cold filtered water.
Mix-it-up with different flavors. The best additive I have found is Crystal Light Pure Lemonade powdered drink mix. I love that stuff. I also use the liquid flavors by Crystal Light and I like the Tropical Coconut flavor the best. A squirt of lemon or lime is another way to change up your glass of water.
Remember to bring your water bottle everywhere. I carry mine around the house from room to room with me and also take it along when I go to town.
Know your target. To figure out how much water to drink take the amount that you weigh in pounds and divide it by 2. That will be the number of fluid ounces of liquid that you need every day. For example, if you weigh 160 lbs, take 160/2 which equals 80. If you weigh 160 lbs, you would need to consume 80 oz of fluid. Keep in mind that you get some of that necessary water from foods you eat as well as coffee and other liquid beverages.
Find your motivation to keep drinking enough water. As part of the healthy habits challenge that I mentioned earlier, I wrote down all the food and drinks that I consumed in a day. When I looked at my results I saw that the total amount of liquid that I had that day consisted of 3 cups of coffee and 2 glasses of wine. That was a little embarrassing to discover… so I decided to try really hard to change.

Good luck! These small little changes really have made a great impact on how I feel. I hope that you give this a try, too.