Hydration is one of those things we all know is important, yet somehow still find ways to neglect it. When you think of it, water is the base to keeping our bodies functioning. So, it plays a huge part in how we feel, function, and perform.

Many times I have had the “water talk” with my clients. The common response is something like, “Yeah, yeah, I know. I need to drink more water.” I have never had a client in 13 years, respond with “Oh, really?! I did not know water was important.” So, why do we typically under-drink the proper amount of water? There can be a few ideas on that. I personally feel its a couple of things.

Why Don’t We Drink Enough Water?

One, a lot of our society from a young age has been given other sugary drinks as the norm. We then become used to that and crave sweetness in our beverages. Water becomes boring, or some kind of chore to drink it. Two, a lot of us don’t truly understand how beneficial water is for us.  A huge percentage of our society expresses times throughout the day of feeling tired and fatigued. They express being irritable. Maybe even feeling a little down or depressed. Even slight dehydration and cause all of those. Once you feel thirsty, you are already at the first steps of dehydration. Here is a tricky double whammy on that scenario. A lot of us when feeling tired or fatigued, reach for our favorite caffeinated drink. Well, caffeine actually dehydrates you even more. This potentially worsens the underlying problem. If you do drink caffeine, your total amount of water needed daily goes up.

Create New Habits

Ok, so, now what? What do we do? Well, I’m a big believer in proper mindset leads to proper practice. Change your mindset on water. Don’t think, “I have to drink more water because my trainer says so.” Think more along the lines of, “I want to drink more water because I want to feel better.”  Start daily habits to drink more water. You can start some of these practices now. Start every day before anything else with a large glass of water. End your day with a glass of water. Have water with your meals when you go out for lunch (it saves a little money, too).

Now, in addition to those, be more conscious of filling in more water in other areas of the day, too. Trust me, I am very confident that you will feel better and handle your daily duties better. For those that need numbers, a guideline for how much water you need can vary. This varies on male/female body size, and activity level. I usually recommend 10 water bottles or equivalent as a base, then add to counter activities.

To sum up: DRINK MORE WATER, FEEL BETTER, HAVE MORE ENERGY, BE HAPPIER.

I think we can all agree that those are great benefits that we all would want. Hope you enjoyed this info. Have a great day.