Benefits and Tips on Drinking Water

A few months ago I decided to up my water levels to see if I could feel the benefits of drinking 1.5 – 2 litres of water a day.

What are the benefits?

• You feel more awake – not drinking enough means dehydration, leading to fatigue. Drink more water and you could feel more awake during the day!
• It speeds up your metabolism – your body is made up of 60% water; when you drink enough you get rid of toxins and studies show it speeds up your metabolism. This means drinking enough water and having a healthy lifestyle could help you lose a few pounds.
• It gives you a better complexion – this is the same reason as above: your body is 60% water and when you drink water studies claim it will “plump” up your skin. Water also flushes out toxins and therefore can give you clearer skin.
• Headaches and migraines disappear – sometimes the cause of a headache/migraine is simply because you don’t drink enough water! If you have this problem try drinking 1.5 – 2 litres every day and see if it helps.
• Stops dehydration and pointless eating – it is very common that when we get dehydrated our body tells us we need food. If you’ve eaten enough during the day but start to feel hungry, try drinking a glass or two of water. If you still feel hungry afterwards then you know it’s real hunger!

Tips on how to fit 1.5 – 2 litres of water in your day:

If you aren’t used to drinking water then it can be tiring to try and force yourself to drink it. Here are some tips to help you:

• Carry a one litre bottle of water with you

This is a good way to measure how much you’re drinking. If you always use a glass you might lose count of how many glasses you’ve had and this way you will always have a bottle with you on the go! I found a clever 1 litre bottle that’s short but wide and small enough to fit into my bag.

• Herbal tea counts as your water intake

So long as you don’t add anything to it (sugar, honey, sweetener) then it counts as your water intake! There are also great benefits from drinking herbal tea such as green tea to boost your metabolism, peppermint to refresh/detox your system and ginger or chamomile tea to reduce headaches. My favourite brand is pukka tea, they have lots of different teas that taste amazing! If you have English breakfast tea with milk and sugar, replace it with herbal tea – you will have drunken your 1.5 litres in no time!

• Always keep water with you

I know this problem – you’re thirsty but you just can’t be bothered to move! I keep a bottle of water with me all the time wherever I go. My boyfriend once asked where my bottle was as he was surprised he couldn’t see it (it was hiding behind a pillow). He then announced that the bottle was like my child, as it never leaves my side!

• Swap your water for fizzy drinks

I’ve never been such a fan of fizzy drinks, but there are some people who drink them on a regular basis. If you’re one of those people try swapping them purely for water for a week and see what happens. I suggest you also add some fruit to your day to avoid getting low blood sugar (as your body misses the sugar from the fizzy drinks).

The Results:

After a week of drinking a minimum of 1.5 litres a day I was surprised to find that when I woke up in the morning I was very awake. I’m usually someone who has to be dragged out of bed in the morning! I most certainly felt a difference with my energy levels and on weekends I rarely carry on sleeping after 9:30am. Drinking more water has turned me into a morning person!

The disadvantage was I had to go on the toilet a lot. This is however competely logical and temporary. You are drinking a lot more water than your bladder is used to! After a week or two my bladder got used to the change and I no longer have to go on the toilet every hour.

Other than the energy levels I didn’t notice anything else. I rarely get headaches anyway and my complexion didn’t improve as far as I could see. I started drinking more water in May (2015) and I’m happy to say I’m still drinking a minimum of 1.5 litres a day. Although I only noticed a change in my energy it was definitely worth it as it was such a significant difference. If any of you try upping your water levels let me know if you felt a difference!

Larissaingermany x