4 Benefits of Staying Hydrated

Our body is made up of about 60% water, making it essential to our health. Water is involved in many important functions in our body and helps us be at our best each day.

It’s recommended to drink 8 glasses of water each day, which can be difficult to meet. Keep reading to learn just how important it is to drink enough water each day and for more tips to stay hydrated.

Benefits:

1. Staying hydrated increases energy levels and brain function.
Your brain is one of the organs most impacted by hydration. Studies show that even slight dehydration, can affect brain function, and impair your mood and memory.

In a study done by Oxford, researchers found that fluid loss in young women of 1.4% after exercise impaired both mood and concentration. It also increased the frequency of headaches (1).
A similar study was done by members of this same research team on young men. They found that fluid loss of 1.6% was detrimental to working memory and increased feelings of anxiety and fatigue (2).
So, keep tipping that water bottle back, #SNAPNATION!

2. It helps maximize physical performance. If you don’t stay hydrated, your physical performance can suffer. Scientists have suggested that drinking more water might help maximize performance during workouts or other strenuous activities. One study found that dehydration reduces performance in activities lasting longer than 30 minutes. (3) So make sure you’re packing a water next time you hit the gym!

3. Staying hydrated can help treat and prevent headaches. Dehydration can trigger headaches in some people and research shows that a headache is one of the most common symptoms of being dehydrated. Drinking the adequate amount of water each day can help prevent and relieve headaches symptoms (4).

4. It can aid weight loss. Drinking enough water daily may also help with weight loss, if that’s important to your health and wellness journey. This is because water can both increase satiety and boost your metabolic rate. (5)

Tips to Stay Hydrated:

Now that you know how important it is to drink your 8 glasses per day, here’s a few simple tricks and tips to help you achieve your hydration goals:

1. Enhance your water!

Add a little bit of excitement and flavor by enhancing your water adding in your favorite fresh fruit, veggie slices and herbs. Check out a few of these ideas to get some inspiration! The longer you let it steep, the yummier each glass will be. And you can have fun trying new combos, like cucumber mint or melon lime! Is anyone suddenly thirsty?

2. Set Reminders

It’s so easy to get caught up in the business of the day, which is why another tip to getting your daily ounces is using your phone to set reminders and alarms to drink up! You could set an alarm every few hours to get up from your desk and drink some H2O.

3. Get a new water bottle

Remembering to drink more water can be well, boring. But a new water bottle can help you get a little more excited. Here’s a few that can help:
For a gentle reminder: Motivational Water Bottle with Time Marker & Hourly Hydration MeasurementsFor Stylish Hydration: Soma Glass Water Bottle in Mint, 17 ouncesSourcesFor cold water all day: Hydro Flask 21Oz Standard Bottle with Sport Cap