HEALTH

According to the Mayo Clinic, women should drink *at least* 8 glasses of water a day. If you don’t drink nearly this much, don’t freak out. Many factors such as body weight, height, age, gender, diet and exercise all contribute to how much water we should be consuming daily. So depending on y-o-u, you may need to drink more or less water to stay hydrated.

Why care about your sipping status? Water is important for so many reasons (seriously!) and can affect your skin, your body and your overall health because it carries nutrients through the body, assists in digestion, regulates your waste, controls body temperature and much, much more.

Even though plain water is key, other drinks such as tea, coffee, milk and fruit juice give you water as well. Don’t depend on juice and tea to keep you hydrated throughout the day, though, because they simply can’t do it like water can! Instead, once you finish a glass of water or two, you can reward yourself with herbal green tea, which also reaps in great health benefits. 

The food that we eat contains water too. Many fruits and veggies such as cucumbers, bell peppers and watermelon (it’s in the name, after all) are mostly made up of water. In fact, the body can get an estimated 20 percent of water requirements only from food—that’s pretty cool. 

Not sure how much water you should be drinking every day? Check out this calculator. Then check out these 3 ways to help you drink more water every day:

1.  Flavor your water.
If you don't particularly love the taste of plain water, there's no harm in adding yummy fruits to give it some flavor. It will taste 10x better but remain just as healthy, so add away. Check out these 5 flavor combos. Also, fruit infusion water bottles are an awesome way to drink on-the-go. This one is BPA free, and costs less than $15.

2.  Let your water bottle motivate you
Adding "deadlines" to your drinking sched can remind you to keep drinking throughout the day. You can find a DIY version of this bottle here.

3. Try it as a popsicle
While the heat is still blazing, throw your infused water into the freezer and you've got yourself a delicious and refreshing popsicle. This recipe swaps out water for coconut water, which is just as refreshing and hydrating, and not to mention it adds nutrients such as potassium.  

How do you drink enough water each day? Share your tips in the comments below! 

by Ellie Pesetsky | 8/15/2017