Summer is a great time to enjoy the outdoors with opportunities like swimming, gardening, and hiking. However, due to higher temperatures and increased sun exposure, promoting your health by staying hydrated is essential. When we spend time in the sun, our body sweats to regulate our climate, which can cause our bodies to lose water and eventually leads to dehydration. Dehydration can make you lightheaded, thirsty, tired and can cause muscle cramps. These symptoms are your body’s way of telling you to drink more water, and it is important to honor those cues.
Importance of Water:
Water is an essential part of maintaining your health; it helps flush out waste from your body, regulates your temperature, and aids in proper brain function. Water can also help you lose weight, increase nutrient absorption, and aid digestion. These functions all contribute to supporting your health and keeping you energetic all day long. Not getting enough water will cause you to have less energy, cause poor cognitive function, and even impair your immune system. Drinking enough water is crucial to nurturing your well-being and your physical and mental health.
Tips for Staying Hydrated:
Drinking enough water can be difficult, especially if this is a new habit you are trying to incorporate into your routine. But there are many tips and tricks you can use to help increase your water intake.
Eat foods with high water content.
Picking foods high in water content can help supplement your water intake without too much effort on your part. Whole fruits and veggies have high water content, but some have more than others. Your best options include:
- Celery
- Cucumber
- Tomatoes
- Watermelon
- Grapefruit
- Strawberries
- Spinach
- Peppers
These delicious options will keep you hydrated and provide you with great nutrients to maintain your health.
Infuse your water with flavor.
Sodas and coffee are dehydrating but drinking only water quickly becomes tedious, especially if you aren’t used to it. Infusing your water can make it more enjoyable and gives some needed variety. Try cucumber, berries, oranges, lime, lemon, or mint to bring some new flavors to your water. Another option to explore is drinking coconut water high in potassium, magnesium, sodium, and calcium, which all aid in replenishing your electrolytes.
Choose sparkling water over soda.
If you love soda, it can be hard to give it up completely. To help curb those cravings and still get enough hydration, aim to drink sparkling water or seltzer instead of soda. Again, consider infusing your water with fruit, cucumber, or mint to add more flavor.
Try herbal tea.
Tea is a wonderful option as it is great warm or cold, and with so many variations of tea out there, you’re to find one you love.
Use a straw.
Reusable straws are easy to find and fantastic for everyday use. They’re particularly helpful in making you drink faster, which helps you drink more water overall. Check out this variety pack of metal straws or these silicone straws to see just a few of the options available.
Get a water bottle.
Getting a water bottle that marks or lists the amount of liquid it holds can help you keep track of how much water you drink throughout the day. Set a goal for water intake and figure out how many water bottles per day that is. Achievable goals for water is an easy way to stay on top of your hydration.
These tips and tricks will help incorporate more water into your daily habits and keep you hydrated. If this is a new habit for you, finding a consistent routine makes drinking water more enjoyable. Keep these recommendations in mind this summer to prevent dehydration while having fun in the sun.
For more information regarding hydration and drinking water, check out these resources:
22 Easy Ways to Drink More Water Every Day
10 Tips for Staying Hydrated During the Summer Heat
