Tag: water

Nutritionists Share 7 Simple Tricks To Effortlessly Boost Your Hydration

Published on by Lee2 Comments

Staying hydrated is essential for our skin, digestion, hormone balance, sleep quality, and mood–you name it. “The body needs to be hydrated to function at its best,” explained Bridgitte Mallinson, MS, RDN, a registered dietitian and Founder and CEO of GutPersonal. “This means that our essential systems, such as our circulation, rely on hydration to perform well. When we are not hydrated, we can have symptoms like poor sleep, low energy, brain fog, difficulty concentrating, constipation, headaches, and dizziness.” It’s no wonder #WaterTok is a thing and TikTokers are creating and sharing water “recipes” with syrups and powders to make drinking water more appealing while making hydration look cool AF. Call it extra, but the 360 million views speak for themselves.

Whether we blame our busy lives, forgetfulness, or lack of motivation, we often fall short of our hydration goals. It’s no joke—according to a recent CivicScience poll, almost half (47%) of U.S. adults consume far below the recommended amount. Just how much water should we be drinking, and how can we ensure we’re drinking plenty of water on the reg? Ahead, dietitians spill their best tips for how to stay hydrated. Step 1: Grab your reusable water bottle, and let’s dive into Hydration 101. 

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How much water should we be drinking daily? 

It’s a tale as old as time that most of us have ingrained: Drink eight glasses of water per day. It turns out the eight-glasses-a-day age-old myth stems from a 1945 recommendation from the Food and Nutrition Board of the National Research Council that suggested adults consume about 64 ounces of water daily, including from all their foods and beverages, which was misinterpreted as eight cups of water. Translation: That old-school rule is not rooted in science.

Based on new research, our water needs are individualized and depend on factors like age, sex, size, physical activity levels, and the climate that we live in. If you’re looking for a baseline, Mallinson stated that the general rule of thumb is to drink half of your body weight (in pounds) in ounces of water. “For example, if you weigh 140 pounds, you should drink at least 70 ounces of water every day. Most people tend to need more, especially if you struggle with constipation, eat a diet high in processed foods, live in warmer climates, or are physically active.”

Primp tip: Listen to your thirst cues to prevent dehydration and pay attention to your urine color as an indicator of hydration. “Pale yellow urine generally indicates proper hydration, while dark yellow or amber-colored urine may suggest dehydration,” conveyed Taylor Osbaldeston, a registered holistic nutritionist for Durand Health Group. “Aim for lighter-colored urine as a guide for maintaining adequate hydration.” While urine isn’t the sexiest topic, pretty cool how your body is always telling you what it needs, huh?

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Expert-Backed Hacks for Optimal Hydration:

Always have a reusable water bottle on hand

While this may seem like an obvious hack, Bianca Tamburello, RDN, a registered dietitian for FRESH Communications and Azuluna Foods, expressed that investing in a water bottle that will get you excited and motivate you can make or break your hydration goals. “Should it be insulated, include a straw, or fit in your car’s cup holder? Think about what your perfect water bottle should look like and choose your favorite.” Having water readily available at all times—whether you’re at your desk or out and about—will serve as a gentle nudge to consistently drink up.

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Plan out your water intake 

Start your morning with a glass of water (yes, before your cup of joe). And if you’re in the mood to up the ante, add some lemon to rev up your digestion (think: get things moving). It doesn’t hurt that the citrus-spiked beverage adds some pizazz to plain ol’ water, not to mention supports glowing skin.

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Once you’ve given your body a hydration boost first thing in the morning, set small goals to drink a defined amount of water and schedule regular hydration breaks throughout the day. “Utilize reminders or smartphone apps to establish regular intervals for water consumption, aiming for a goal every hour,” Osbaldeston suggested. “Divide your total water intake target evenly across your waking hours to ensure consistent hydration throughout the day. This approach helps you stay on track and maintain a steady intake of water.” Consider apps like Waterlogged or WaterMinder your accountability partner that can help you set goals, send you friendly reminders, and track your daily intake.

Incorporate water-rich foods into your diet

While H2O is the go-to choice for meeting your daily hydration needs, there are foods high in water content that you can also reach for to give you a leg up. Your body typically gets about 20% of the water it needs from the foods you eat throughout the day while the remaining 80% usually comes from drinking. In other words, don’t skimp on that 20%. “The foods highest in water content include cucumber, lettuce, celery, radishes, tomatoes, zucchini, and strawberries,” Mallinson indicated. Throw together a veggie stir-fry or blend up a fruit and veggie smoothie to get in extra hydration. Foods packed with water can’t replace drinking water altogether, but adding them to the mix is a surefire way to give your body vitamins, minerals, and fiber while boosting your daily water intake.

Add electrolytes and flavor to your water 

Water alone can’t lead to optimal hydration. The body requires electrolytes to absorb the water. “Amplify your hydration with electrolytes,” Mallinson prescribed. “Minerals like sodium, potassium, and magnesium help get hydration into your cells.” Osbaldeston is also a fan of the supplement: “Add electrolytes to your water to replenish essential minerals lost through sweating and aid in maintaining proper hydration levels during physical activity or hot weather.” Instead of guzzling water with sugary additives (looking at you, #WaterTok), add flavor to your water while optimizing hydration with electrolyte packets (just beware of sugary options with a ton of additives), or for a (basically) free version, add a pinch of sea salt to your water.

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Habit stack your water consumption

ICYMI, habit stacking is the way to go to create a new, healthy habit. If you want to introduce a new behavior to your routine, “stack” it onto a current task you already do to help you remember to do it, making it a more automatic habit. For example, bundle drinking water with your other to-dos, like drinking a glass while you prep your morning latte or taking a water bottle on your afternoon walk.

Another way to habit stack hydration is to pair a tall glass of water with your meals. “Always be sure to drink a glass of water with your meal,” Tamburello advised. “Drinking water helps slow the pace of eating at a meal and helps with digestion.” Side note: If consuming liquids with your food leaves you feeling bloated or with other unwanted side effects, stick to drinking them before or between meals.

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Romanticize the hydration experience

Let’s be real: Plain water isn’t exactly thrilling, but who says knocking back water has to be boring? Sip flat or sparkling water from a wine glass and add fruit ice cubes to make the experience indulgent, à la Tamburello. Freezing fruit and veggies, like strawberries, citrus slices, and cucumbers, or refreshments, like juice, tea, or coffee, into ice cubes can take your mundane cup of water from womp womp to huzzah! And, if you’re feeling extra, use ice cube trays that come in various shapes, like roses, hearts, or fruits. Since we’re prioritizing drinking more water, we might as well make it fancy.

BTW, you don’t have to be attached to just water—rotate in other hydrating beverages like decaf herbal tea, coconut water, or bone broth. Tamburello recommended bone broth since it hydrates and offers up important electrolytes to replenish calcium, potassium, sodium, and magnesium stores. The point is to make hydration something that you look forward to so you’re able to keep up with the habit.

Compensate for your caffeine and alcohol intake

Remember how hydration needs vary from person to person? They can also vary day to day, depending on what else you consume. Some foods and drinks are hydrating (veggies and fruit, decaffeinated tea, etc.) but some are dehydrating. “Both caffeine and alcohol have diuretic properties, which can increase urine production and contribute to fluid loss,” Osbaldeston stated. “If you consume these beverages, consider compensating by increasing your water intake to counteract their potential dehydrating effects.” On days you partake in enjoying alcohol or caffeine, don’t sweat it–just be mindful about getting in some extra hydration. You know the drill: After savoring your Starbucks afternoon pick-me-up, follow it up with a full glass of water to balance it out. 

I Doubled My Water Intake For 7 Days And You Won’t Believe What It Did To My Pores

Published on by Lee5 Comments

We all know models drink a lot of water and that’s their trick for flawless skin. I’ve heard it from every supermodel or beauty icon I’ve ever chatted with, but you know, you always think, how realistic is that?! As if I’m going to carry around a gallon of water and actually drink it all. But honestly, I see a lot of similarities in people who drink a lot of water; literally no pores, their skin heals better, and it looks more youthful. It’s everything I want my skin to be.

I could see the reverse on people I knew didn’t drink a lot of water; the lack of hydration showed in their skin. Their skin was like mine, a little porous, thicker, a little wrinklier, and it didn’t have that same healthy-looking, even complexion water guzzlers had. I did a little research, and there’s a reason drinking a ton of water can work wonders for your skin, not to mention it’s crucial for replenishing new skin cells, so I was convinced to at least try drinking more water.

The Challenge:

I’ll be honest, I’ve never been a huge water drinker, so I set out to double what I usually would, and drink anywhere between 2.5 liters and 3 liters of water a day. Truly, I didn’t expect miracles, but I really couldn’t believe what happened to my skin.

Day 1: At the end of the day I tried to examine everything about my face to see a result, but I didn’t notice anything, my skin was the same. My pores didn’t look smaller, and makeup application was the same, I just peed more!

Day 2: Again, I didn’t notice a difference. I wanted my pores to look smaller, but I couldn’t tell if they did. I was determined to persist!

Day 3: This is when I really started to see a difference in my skin. My pores were the first thing I noticed, they just looked smooth, not gone, but smoother, and that even showed in my makeup as well.

Day 4: Okay, so this is the day I realized water is my thing, water is going to become my habit – this is the new me! My skin looked SO much smoother. My pores were definitely tighter, and my makeup looked better.

Day 5/6: As the days went on, my skin continued to look smoother and more youthful. My skin was looking less dull and less tired.

Day 7: By day 7, my skin looked flawless with foundation. Obviously, I wear the right moisturizers, primers, and foundation specifically for my skin but the pore problem had definitely diminished by 60-70%, which for me was pretty shocking.

Now, it’s been more than two weeks, and although I still don’t have that glass-like skin I would love, I’m officially hooked on drinking water. I actually believe models now when they tell me the secret is lots of water and it’s no surprise their skin looks ahhhhmazing! I mean, think about it, our bodies are made up of 60% water (I know, pretty crazy), so when you’re dehydrated or don’t drink as much as you should (less than 1.5 liters a day) your body doesn’t function the same way. I now realize that I never drank anywhere near the amount that we all should, and just by increasing my water intake to 2.5 liters has made a huge difference to my skin, so imagine if I drank more!

The Bonus:

It’s not just your skin that will thank you for the extra moisture, drinking lots of water is a natural detox for your body. Not only does extra water help the kidneys to flush out toxins in your body, but it’s massively beneficial for weight loss – not just because it’s a natural appetite suppressor. Water helps your body to metabolize fat (turn it into energy) but when you don’t get enough, it can’t. That’s because your liver turns fat into energy for your body (yaaaas liver!), but when the kidney doesn’t get enough water, it can’t function properly, so the liver helps the kidney flush out toxins instead of doing its usual job. The lesson? Lots of water = happy kidney = working liver = fat burning.

The Result:

I really couldn’t believe what a difference drinking so much more water would have. Not only does my skin look better, but I’ve started to sweat more too, which is a good thing! Sweating helps your body remove dirt and pollutants from your skin and unclog your pores; it’s your skin’s natural way of detoxing – hence the reason for steam rooms and saunas at the spa! I also started to drink warm lemon water in the morning, which is also a brilliant way to cleanse your body and flush through your digestive system. Even having mint leaves with my water helped encourage me to drink more water, to the extent I’m now completely obsessed with drinking water. It’s what everyone talks about, but nobody ever does – a bit like sunscreen – but it’s made a huge impact, and I promise if you try it, you’ll see a big difference, both before and after your makeup.

WHAT DO YOU GUYS THINK?

Sipping Pretty: Infused Water Recipes

Published on by LeeLeave a comment

Aside from coming across as beautiful, drinkable works of art, infused waters have a subtly sweet taste and a cleansing effect on your body that is equal parts refreshing and healthy. From time to time, I find myself making a large pitcher of lemon cucumber mint water and drinking it for a week. And after embarking on a recent “pinge” on Pinterest, I discovered a few other infused water recipes that I was eager to try. I gave them a go and were pleased to find that they tasted as lovely as they looked. Here are the four infused water recipes I created (and couldn’t get enough of)…

  • orange + lemon + lime
  • lemon + raspberry + mint
  • lemon + cucumber + mint
  • blackberry + cherry + lime

To make any of these recipes, all you have to do is slice the fruit you want to use and drop them into your water. You can start drinking it right away, but you might not notice the flavors until it infuses for a few hours (four hours achieves the most potent flavor). I like to let my waters sit overnight in the fridge, and if I’m using a recipe that calls for lemon I will squeeze half a lemon straight into the water for a little detox boost. As long as you keep your water refrigerated, the fruit should stay fresh. If you are filling your pitcher with water throughout the week, keep in mind that it will dilute the flavor each time you refill. I would recommend drinking your water within 3-5 days and making a new batch once you notice that fruit has started to soften or turn your water cloudy. Which infused water recipe will you try first? Leave your questions and comments below! And if you liked this post, be sure to take a peek at my detox diary for all the details about my first juice cleanse. xx

Tone It Up: How Much Water Should I Drink?

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Hey everyone, today I have a little challenge for you. I want you to try to drink half your body weight in ounces of water (at least) throughout the day for the next 8 weeks! Here’s why this is so important…

Water increases your metabolism.

Your body is made up almost entirely of water. It’s hard to believe, but everything in your body is floating in a water-based suspension. Also, many of our bodily functions require water in some part of their equation to function properly. In this case, we are going to talk about the liver…

Water cleans out your system.

The liver is an amazing organ. Of its many functions, one is to take released body fat and break it down for use as energy (a process called lipolysis). However, when hydration levels get as low as 80 percent, the liver and kidneys have a difficult time functioning and filtering all that thickened blood. Since kidney function trumps liver function on the task-list of sustaining life, the amazing liver does what it can to take over for the kidneys. Wow, we are sure glad that is the case, otherwise we would all be in some serious trouble! If the liver isn’t able to do its job, our bodies cannot break down fat and use it for energy at the rate in which we need it to. Let’s just say that is not good for your body fat percentage.

In order for proper diet and exercise to be truly effective, you’ll need to maintain a proper hydration level so that the body fat released into the bloodstream can be broken up into proteins. You want these fat cells to be broken up into proteins because those are the building blocks of muscle! It’s a simple equation…more water equals less fat and more muscle.

How much water is enough?

Water increases your metabolism so much that if you’re chronically dehydrated, it can mean up to an 8-pound weight gain or more per year. No wonder weight creeps on! Your challenge is to drink at least half your body weight in ounces of water per day. For example, someone who weights 150 pounds should be drinking 75 ounces of water a day. This doesn’t mean all at once, it means throughout the whole day.

We can all mistake thirst for hunger too, which leads to eating more unnecessary calories, so it’s important to always have water handy. Get that calendar out and mark it down to remind yourself!

Can you do the water challenge?

Let me know if you have any tricks for staying hydrated in the comments below!

XO BLB