Getting started with Hydration.

As the weather gets warmer and we begin to bring an awareness to our hydration over the next number of weeks it is important to be armed with good and useful information.

We all know hydration is so important but in a lot of cases so many don’t reach their daily recommended intake.

So lets begin with how you can tell if you are dehydrated:

·      Colour of your urine - the paler the colour the better, although clear can mean a sign of over hydration. Anything dark in colour usually means dehydration.

·      Tune in to your body’s sensations - take a moment, take a breath, pause and see what are the signals that your body is giving you to tell you you are thirsty. Is it a dry mouth? A sensation that feels like hunger but is not quite hunger? A headache? Fatigue, Headaches, Muscle spasms, cramps or twitching.

So here are our simple and delicious beginner basics to staying hydrated;

·      Consider temperature: Start with clean drinking water at a temperature you like. Do you love icy cold water or maybe you prefer to reach for a more room temperature bottle of water? Take a moment to bring some awareness to this and then choose wisely the next time you are in need of hydration.

·      Taste & Flavour: Sometimes getting in those 2 litres of plain water can be tricky so here are some flavour bursting tips to help.  

o  Add bubbles: change to sparkling water or invest in a soda stream.

o  Add flavour: make some delicious fruit infusions - flavours and fruits like watermelon, grapefruit, lemon, ginger, lime and cucumber work brilliantly. Try a herbal tea hot, or brew it allowing it to cool down and serve it over ice with a slice of fruit. Some of my favourite flavour combinations are: Ginger, lemon and cucumber, or mint tea with sliced cucumber. Flavoured ice cubes, blitz up fresh fruit like melons and pour the puree into ice cube tray, freeze and use as flavour bomb ice cubes.

·      Hydration Reminders: install a free app on your phone to remind you to hydrate your body. A great one is “water reminder”, alternatively set reminders on your phone to alert you to drink more water. Perhaps invest in a tech savvy smart water bottle to remind you or invest in a new water bottle with motivational markers on the side.

·      Cues: Finally start with two new simple rules this week. Every morning, the first thing you as you enter the kitchen is drink one big glass of water, and every time throughout the day that your water glass is empty immediately just refill it. Behavioral psychology tells us we are so much more likely to drink the water if we have poured it, rather than pour it down the drain.

·      Hydrating Foods: Did you know about20% of your hydration comes from food so this week let's try to optimise this. Include foods throughout the day that are hydrating. These include:

o  Smoothies made with leafy greens and water and ice or coconut water.

o  Soups and broths made on stock

o  Snacks like watermelon, honeydew and cantaloupe and free oranges and apples.

For lots more great tips on hydration be sure to come along to our lunch and learn in the atrium and check out the educational hub on our enrich website for lots more inspiration.

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