It can be hard to keep up with your recommended daily water intake, it can be hard to choose water over the flavor of soda. (Interesting fact, if you find yourself craving sugar or soda you are likely dehydrated. Drink a glass of water and wait 20 minutes to see if you are still craving a sweet treat). Seriously though, hydration is tough.
Getting in those 8 glasses per day feels like a lot, but when they aren’t all plain water, that half gallon of fluid can be easier to reach that goal.
Water Infusions
An easy way to make your water more exciting is to add a little bit of flavor — something as simple as simple as a lemon wedge to something as complicated as a custom unsweetened tea blend make great calorie-free additions to water.
A few combinations to try
When it is time to graduate from lemon wedges, the possibilities are endless. I have a few that I always find myself turning back to.
Clockwise from top left: Pineapple, Lemon & Mint | Grapefruit & Rosemary | Blackberry & Mint | Orange & Cilantro
When it comes to actually making the waters, the process couldn’t be much easier. Simply dice and cop the fruits or herbs you are looking to combine and add them to a pitcher of water. The amount that you use can totally be determined by your own preferences, and how strong you want the flavors to be. Here’s an example of how to make a few of them!
Bottles & Pitchers for Infusing
Water infusions are best when they can sit for a few hours to get the best flavor out of the fruit and herbs. You can infuse in any pitcher, cup or wide-mouthed bottle, but there are now special ones on the market to make you an expert infuser.
Other mix-ins
There are a few other things I will add to my water to help with recovery and nutrition. You can use these with your infusions or on their own.
- Chia seeds are a great way to add fiber and nutrients to your water. ½ teaspoon is plenty for a glass of water. Make sure that you keep your water moving to keep the seeds from forming a gel in the bottom of your glass. Or even better, combine them with my next favorite add-in : bubbles.
- Bubbles – My SodaStream is never out of reach. By just adding some carbonation to plain water it becomes a little more exciting. When combined with chia seeds, it’s almost like there is confetti in your water.
- Coconut water – I don’t care for the taste or calories in coconut water, but adding a bit of coconut water in a 3:1 water to coconut water ratio gets you some hydration boosting electrolytes without adding all the calories (or the flavor).
Drinking it all in
I have to bribe myself to drink all of my glasses of water with the rewards from my fitness and food tracking apps, but sprucing up my water makes it less of a chore to get all that water in.
What are your favorite flavors to infuse in water? Do you have strategies for consuming all 64 ounces of water each day?
Mary Fran Wiley is a well known gluten-free and positive living blogger from Chicago where she writes Curiouser and Curiouser, maintains the Chronic Positivity Project, and has been featured in Allergic Living Magazine, Care2.com and Today.com.