You’ve heard the old adage to drink 8 glasses of water a day, but just how big are those glasses supposed to be and how can you best keep track of them?Is drinking that much water going to cause you to gain water weight?
Are there differences in the types of drinking water, and if so, what type of water is the best type?
Read on for the answers to these questions and more!
How Much Water Should I Be Drinking?
The 8 glasses a day recommendation is only an average. We lose about half our body weight in ounces daily through normal bodily functions like breathing, sweating, and urinating.
This is why it’s important to drink a minimum of half our body weight in ounces daily to replace the water lost and prevent chronic dehydration. (There are 16 ounces in a pound…or if you’re lazy, fancy ol’ google can help you convert from pounds to ounces)
Those who live in a hot or elevated climate, are pregnant or nursing, and/or exercise vigorously will need even more water to stay properly hydrated.
So once you have calculated how much water you need (example: A 120 pound woman with no special circumstances needs to drink 60 oz a day), one way to keep track of it is to find a reusable water bottle you like and determine how many of those particular bottles you need to drink daily based on how many ounces they contain.
Then split it up throughout the day by drinking 1-2 right when you wake up (which is when we are most dehydrated). Keep refilling when the bottle gets empty and keep your bottle with you wherever you go.
What About Water Weight?
If you’re worried that all this extra water is going to keep you bloated and cause the numbers on the scale to rise, don’t.
The funny thing about water weight is that it is a result of dehydration. When our bodies are threatened by a lack of water, they tend to hold on to every last drop. Kinda like starvation mode.
But when we continuously provide our bodies with enough water (unlike the 75% of Americans who are chronically dehydrated), the body has no need to store extra water. So the water weight will naturally decrease!
What Type of Water Should I Drink?
There are actually several types of water and unfortunately, the most common types aren’t that great for us.
Bottled Water
There are several cons to bottled water beyond the high price tag and detriment to the environment.
Any bottled water which is labeled “distilled,” “purified” or “reverse osmosis” has been stripped of its alkaline minerals, which help decrease your body’s acidity (alkaline…base…is this ringing a bell from chem?). Instead of nourishing your body, this dead, lifeless, mineral-lacking manmade water will create an internal acidic environment. And as the pH of our bodies increase, the more prone to diseases we are.
If you must drink bottled water, double-check the label and opt for a brand which comes from a natural mountain spring.
You can even check out this rank of bottled waters to see where your favorite brands lie!
Tap Water
Tap water is pretty contaminated. Ironically, pollutants are used in tap water for purifying. And because of this, drinking unfiltered tap water is pretty hazardous.
Although, with the right filtration system, it can pose as a better option.
But then we deal with another problem: filtration. In most cases, we are either over-filtering or under-filtering our water.
An example of over-filtering would be reverse osmosis systems. And these are no good because they strip away all the alkaline minerals.
You’ve probably been under-filtering if you bought one of those cheap faucet and pitcher filters. They only address about 5 contaminants… out of over 10,000!
Your best bet when choosing to drink tap water is a nano filtration system. They can be pricy, but they actually address the contamination issue while leaving the alkaline minerals in.
Well Water
Well water can be great, but it can also be dangerous since there are many groundwater contaminants that can make their way into the water. So just make sure that the water is being regularly tested and properly filtered (using the same system mentioned above) before drinking.
Spring/Glacier Water
If you have the privilege to get access to a fresh natural spring or glacier water then by all means, drink it!
That is water as nature intended it and has been found to be most beneficial to health as it is alkaline and has a negative ORP (Oxidation Reduction Potential, which means it has antioxidant like effects).
In fact, the Hunza people in the Himalayas drink glacier water and frequently live to be over 100 years old with little to no signs of degenerative disease!
Can I Make My Own Alkaline Water?
There are many ways to make your own alkaline water using non-electric methods. You can add baking soda, lemon juice, or pH drops to your filtered water. You can also run it through a non-electric alkalizer.
While these methods may raise the alkalinity of the water by 1-2 points, don’t lean on this as a final solution. The benefit of water with a low pH is to get those antioxidant like effects.
What if i don’t live near a spring? 🙁
For those of us who do not have the luxury of living near a fresh mountain spring or glacier, the next best type of drinking water is from an electric ionizer. What in the world is that?
Relax, it’s a machine that separates the hydrogen and oxygen atoms in water . It may sound pretty unnatural but it’s benefits are the closest to natural water benefits.
You can transform your ordinary tap water and make your own ionized alkaline water for pennies on the gallon with a machine that will likely pay for itself in 2-3 years.
So there you have it. There are many types of water you can drink and it’s important to choose the type that is best for you and to make sure you are drinking enough of it each day for best health.
Christina Chambers is a writer and natural health and wellness researcher who specializes in ionized water and the alkaline diet and lifestyle for all living things from humans to pets to plantlife. She is also studying to become a certified aromatherapist and does social media and marketing for Chanson Water USA. You can find her on the web at www.chansonwater.com and www.oilsandink.com.
This was very interesting! I drink lots of water and it is good to know if I am actually reaping benefits.
Thanks for reading, Taria!
Fascinating…don’t know if I wanted to know all that :} Just kidding feeling much more educated about my drinking water…thank you!
I know,I know, health can be kinda overwhelming sometimes, but I love it!
Guess I am drinking enough water and at the right times. We have well water and have never had a problem.
You guys are livin’ large! Lucky. Thanks for reading, Candy 🙂
I’m a HUGE advocate of drinking loads of water so I loved this! I didn’t know the difference in the types of waters so I found that really fascinating. We usually go for bottled water or filtered water. Have you ever bought trace minerals? I have a bottle of trace minerals to put in the water….but I haven’t because they taste weird…..but maybe after reading this I should just suck it up and get used to the mineral taste! We were using them awhile for their benefits on our teeth but I think it would help with the whole pH thing too!
I haven’t tried race elements myself, unfortunately. I suggest maybe doing some extra research? Let us know how it goes! Although I’m an advocate of not eating things that taste gross like poo lol. Thanks for reading 😉
Yup! I’m a big fan of drinking as much water as possible throughout the day, but I do also find it very hard to fit it in if my day is a super busy. I tend to forget.
Kerry-Ann | kerryanningram.com
Reminders are everything. Try apps tailored to remind you about things, or even water apps that track how much water you drink in a day, Kerry-Ann!
I’m so terrible at drinking enough water. I’m starting to feel motivated though!
That’s the plan! There are too many benefits of drinking water so drink uuuuupp!
I used to drink 2 litres every day, but slackened off lately. Think its time to jump back on the wagon!
Funnily enough i was just thinking about this and i really need to get back on track with my water intake!