Easy ways to stay properly hydrated throughout your day

Almost everyone knows just how important hydration is - and almost everyone knows how easy it is to neglect it. Here’s the how and why of staying on top of you water intake

(Getty Images/Cavan Images RF)

In 2023, Buxton is proud to partner with Mind to support the sweat and tears of 15 Rise Up Runners. 15 real people, each facing their own physical and mental struggles, who are bravely taking on the ultimate test of resilience; The London Marathon. Their road to the race will be part of Buxton and Mind’s wider mission to promote better physical and mental wellbeing across the nation, through exercise and hydration.

Hydration contributes to the maintenance of the normal functioning of the brain and body. Staying hydrated will ensure that our moods, memory and more keep going as they should.

Luckily there are many easy ways to ensure you are staying properly hydrated, and doing so can be fun as well as good for you. Start with these easy tips to make sure you are getting all the water you need.

Use an app to monitor your hydration

Probably the first useful thing to do if you want to make it easier to stay hydrated is to work out how much you need to drink – and how much you are drinking now. There’s a whole host of apps that make this very simple to do.

Most of them will advise you what you should be aiming for, based on your weight, activity level and other factors. And then they’ll let you track how much you are drinking – which you might find is less than you realised.

You might not want to do this all the time, of course, since it can be a little bothersome remembering to log every bottle of water you drink. But you don’t need to, either: you will probably find that a week or so of logging gives you a much better sense of how much you are drinking, and whether you should be drinking any more.

Eat water-rich food

It’s not only drinks that can help you maintain proper hydration levels. In actual fact around a fifth of your daily fluid intake comes from the food you eat.

Certain fruits and vegetables contain plenty of water in addition to healthy nutrients. Have some fresh or tinned watermelon, strawberries or peaches after lunch, or cucumbers, leafy greens, radishes or tomatoes with dinner to maintain good hydration – combined of course with regular sips of good old H20.

(Getty Images)

Keep things interesting

Yes, water is crisp, refreshing and goes with anything. But there will be times when you want to mix it up a little. At these times it might be tempting to turn to juices or fizzy drinks. But don’t do that. Instead, jazz things up by adding flavourings to your water. A good place to start is natural flavourings such as fresh mint, berries, citrus fruits or ginger. Or if you’d prefer, there are plenty of cordials and flavourings on the market that allow you to keep that hydration level in check.

Drain while you train

During physical activity, the body can lose vast amounts of water. While it will vary from person to person – larger people tend to sweat more than smaller people, and men sweat more than women – it is always significant.

If you’re working out in hot or humid conditions, the amount of water lost is even greater – and can be outright dangerous if you become severely dehydrated.  Be sure to replace all that lost fluid by drinking even more water than usual during your training.

Little and often

When you hear about the targets for hydration and how important they are, it can be tempting just to glug down as much water as possible as quickly as possible. But it is unhelpful for a number of reasons.

The first is that it’s just plain unpleasant: chugging down water leaves you gasping for air, as well as feeling full. The second is that it’s not the best way to drink anyway, as your body can better handle the hydration when it comes in little sips rather than one big blast.

So slow and constant sips a little bit at a time is a much better way all round, ensuring that you make the most of your water and your hydration.

Make these recommendations habitual – whether you’re in training for a big event or simply keen to drink more water on a daily basis – and prepare to start enjoying the benefits of properly maintained hydration.

Register for the chance to WIN a 2024 TCS London Marathon place

Find out more about the Sweat and Tears campaign and how it aims to promote better physical and mental well-being across the nation, through exercise and hydration.