I've made a lot of changes to my water drinking habits in 2019. If you've been following for a while, you know I gave up soda for Lent. While I occasionally still drink soda from time to time, I try to include a ton more water and juice into my day to day life. A big part of this has been thanks to ZeroWater. I partnered with ZeroWater back in the spring, and since then, I've been obsessed with ZeroWater and their products. I knew I wanted to share my water journey with you all a bit. Today's blog post is going to share my water journey, how to drink more water without the stress, and how ZeroWater and their charity initiatives fit into the water drinking equation.
Note: This post is sponsored by ZeroWater, but all opinions are my own. Thanks for supporting the brands who make The Happy Arkansan possible.
1. Purchase Some Great Water Bottles And Tumblers
Believe it or not, the cups you drink of play a huge role in how much water you drink. I love the Best Blogger Ever mug you'll see in today's photoshoot, but it's not my go-to water cup.
I usually go for a fun water bottle or my ZeroWater tumbler I purchased a while ago. You could even use a marked water bottle to help you drink more throughout the day.
Go for a cup that will motivate you to drink more water. What cup will you reach for time and time again? Make that cup your dedicated water cup.
2. Stop Keeping Soda Around The House
As you know, I gave up soda for Lent, but soda was still a temptation. At the time, I was the only one giving up soda in my family. It's possible to give up soda with it around the house, but it's much easier to give it up when there is none to drink. This fall my parents gave up soda too, which has been so helpful for me. You may still want to grab a soda when out in public or at a restaurant, but don't bring it home.
Understand That This Won't Necessarily Make You Drink More Water
Drinking water is a conscious thing that you have to be aware of further than I am not going to keep soda around. You can just as easily skimp out on your water even if you don't have soda around your house. You'll find every excuse to drink juice or milk (and basically anything except for water.) You still need to challenge yourself every day to make sure that you are adequately meeting your water goals.
I found this out the hard way when I was giving up soda for Lent. It didn't necessarily make me a water drinking pro; it just made me give up soda. Sometimes I still wasn't hydrating myself properly even though I couldn't rely on soft drinks. Hopefully, today's article will give you some ideas on ways to make drinking water a priority.
3. Use An Amazing Water Pitcher
There are so many water pitchers out there, and I've tried my fair share, but my absolute favorite pitchers are any of my ZeroWater pitchers.
When I wanted to start drinking more water, I realized quickly that I hated the taste of my tap water. I wasn't sure exactly what it was about the water, but it just wasn't my cup of tea. Since my tap water was unpleasant, I was so dependent on bottled water for drinking, which is horrible for the environment. This Spring, I got to try a ZeroWater pitcher, and I fell in love with it.
ZeroWater has a five-stage filter that gets rid of so much of the icky dissolved solids that get in your tap water. You can turn your own tap water into amazing quality water within a few minutes. My water regularly read at 300+ PPM for total dissolved solids using ZeroWater's TDS meter. Living in the Natural State, I didn't think my water would read that high, but unfortunately, it does. Luckily for me, I can turn 300+ PPM water into 000 water with my ZeroWater filter.
If you don't know what your water is reading, ZeroWater pitchers come with an easy to use TDS meter. It's advised that you change your ZeroWater filter once water coming from the filter starts reading at 006. This meter helps you read the water from the pitcher, but you can also use it to run experiments on your current tap water or any water you come across. Sometimes, I run the experiment on bottled water, and it can still have some dissolved solids.
If you are struggling with your tap water, depending way too much on bottled water, and over it, I encourage you to give ZeroWater a try. Your tap water will never taste any better than when you put it through a ZeroWater filter.
4. Utilize Some Fun Water Intake Apps
If you are a fan of making a game of your water intake, use a water intake app. Some of them can be a bit overwhelming, so you'll have to experiment until you find an app that works for you. We are always on our smartphones, so having an app that reminds you to drink water throughout the day is an excellent way to drink more water. Often issues arise when we are trying to hurriedly drink water at the end of the day to reach our goals. Water intake apps remind us to drink small amounts of water throughout the day, so drinking water never feels rushed.
5. Infuse Your Water With Something Fun
If you get tired of the same old water taste, infuse your water with fruit. Go to the supermarket to find all the in-season fruit or even use frozen fruit for a double whammy of flavor and cooling your water. You can find water bottles with infusers all over the place. Use your ZeroWater water in your infuser bottle for some fantastic tasting water to mix with your fruit. Since you are using different fruit for different seasons, you'll always be coming up with new tasty infused water combinations. You can keep it simple with one type of fruit or mix it up for even better water.
6. Give Yourself A Water Challenge
I don't know about you, but I love a good challenge. Water challenges can be extremely beneficial, especially if you have been pretty off-centered with your water drinking habits and drinking lots of soda. You can use holidays like Lent to spark your challenge or create a challenge of your own. For example, use rewards to make challenges stick. At the end of a month of drinking water, buy yourself something special. You are investing in your health by drinking more water, and you deserve to be rewarded for that.
7. Forget The Water Minimums
While challenges can be incredible, you may want to skip the water minimums. I know you've probably heard that saying that you should drink 8, 8-ounce glasses of water per day. In theory, this is an excellent practice. In reality, this can be incredibly suffocating. No one wants to be forced to drink that much water per day, especially if you are used to drinking a small amount per day right now. Instead, take it slow. Start with an amount of water that feels good to you and drink that consistently. The consistent act of drinking water daily will get you excited about experimenting with drinking more water. By forgoing the minimums at the beginning, you can create a truly sustainable practice of drinking water.
8. Leave Reminders Around The House To Drink Water
Are you forgetful when it comes to drinking water? Try leaving reminders around the house that encourage you to drink more water. Add reminders in your planner, add a note to the fridge, leave a reminder on your computer, and anywhere you might see your reminders often. Writing things down will make it more likely to stick in your brain. We cannot remember as much as we think we can. Instead of hoping you'll remember, add some reminders to your life that make you jump into action.
9. Keep Water Where You Can Access It Easily
One thing I love about the 8-Cup pitcher I received from ZeroWater this time is how little room it takes up. I can easily place it on my desk for water throughout the day. The suggested water intake for most people is 64 ounces, which my 8-cup pitcher meets exactly. While I am not a fan of minimums, I love that I easily have the suggested amount at my desk at all times.
If you are looking for a way to get more water, make it super easy to fill up your cup with more water. We often avoid drinking water because getting up might take us out of the zone at work. Before you get to work, take some time to fill up your water pitcher and grab some ice. Fill up your cup throughout the day and grab some more ice during your work breaks.
10. Support Water With A Cause
Last, but not least, support water with a cause. Drinking water that makes you feel good because you are doing good will make you excited to drink more water. ZeroWater has an amazing initiative that is helping countless communities across the country have access to better drinking water. You can donate pitchers and filters through the ZeroWater Community Outreach & Assistance Program. Donations start at as little as $15, and ZeroWater matches your donations 1 to 1. These donations go to communities like Newark, NJ; Flint, MI; and Chicago, IL. All of these communities have been affected by the water crisis.
Do you want to help ZeroWater's mission of getting more clean drinking water to people who need it? Getting started is as simple as going to their Community Outreach page and picking the ZeroWater products you'd like to donate. Here's a screenshot of what you will see when you start the donation process:
Conclusion: You Can Drink More Water
Drinking more water doesn't have to be a stressful hassle. Instead of thinking of drinking water as a chore, think of it as something you get to do. There are so many people out there struggling to find great water sources. You get to drink fantastic water on demand. Sit with the beauty of the world you live in where great water is only a short walk to the sink. I am so proud of the healthy changes you are choosing to make by checking out this article. I know we can choose to drink more water together.
