H2O NO-NOs and the top five hydration mistakes I see people make every day!

Starting with the basics when it comes to achieving optimal health is crucial! That’s why we wanted to write this definitive guide to stay hydrated all year long. In this three-part post, you’ll learn:

The top five mistakes you are most likely making when it comes to drinking water and staying hydrated
Our top five tricks for maximizing hydration (soo important for these sweaty, summer months!)
How much water you should actually drink every day
A cool hack for getting rid of unwanted chlorine in tap water (no filter required)
My favourite hangover cure
My go-to super energizing and thirst-quenching breakfast smoothie recipe

So buckle up, this is a long one (bathroom breaks are encouraged). Here we go!

Ok real talk, guys: I am *that person* who is known amongst family and friends for always needing the bathroom (and going on a road trip with me definitely always takes much longer than planned.) It is so bad that during a girl’s trip to Iceland last May, we all jokingly gave each other new Icelandic names... Mine, you ask? “Pissa Fullt” - roughly translating to “pees a lot”.

Yes, I’ll admit that we made one or two or five stops daily on our ten-day trip spent driving the circumference of the island, but I would like to think that it’s because of me that we got to stop and appreciate some of the gorgeous sites we would’ve otherwise missed! Extra-long road trips aside, the truth is that if I don’t drink my 2L (at least) of water every day, I feel foggy-brained and low energy. I even feel the effects on my digestion! And I know I’m not the only one (Pissa Fullts around the world unite), so it’s hard for me to believe that most North Americans are actually dehydrated.

Despite the trendiness of certain water bottle brands at the moment, we are simply not consuming enough water. Water makes up 60% to 70% of our bodies and is integral for many bodily functions like keeping our skin soft and supple, lubricating our joints, maintaining healthy liver function (hello, metabolism!), and allowing for optimal digestion and elimination.

When we aren’t properly hydrated we feel tired, headache-y, and bloated. Our skin looks dull and dry. We may even experience anxiety! So yeah, being dehydrated is a major bummer.

The truth is that optimal hydration extends so much farther than just getting your eight tall glasses every day. Timing, quality of the source, and many other seemingly unrelated factors play an integral part. There is a proper way of hydrating your body and a not so Swell way (pun intended). Believe it or not, most people are making a lot of these hydration mistakes every day, and it’s actually wreaking more havoc on your body than benefitting you.

So here are the top five common mistakes most people make when it comes to quenching their thirst:

Choosing other beverages when feeling thirsty

Not all liquids are made equal. Your thirst can only be truly quenched by good quality water. Although you may reach for a coffee, tea, pop, or juice when feeling parched (especially with breakfast) these are actually diuretics which mean they make you pee. Drinking diuretics without getting the proper amount of water from a good quality source can dehydrate you even more. If you are going to drink these beverages, make sure to have at least one glass of filtered water to maintain healthy water levels in the body. There is a reason you get served a small glass of water when you order an espresso in France… those guys know what’s up.

Drinking water during meals

This one may confuse you, especially since basically every restaurant in North America will serve you water as soon as you sit down for a meal. Drinking water - and other beverages for that matter- during meals is a big digestion no-no. It dilutes your stomach acid, which can lead to indigestion, bloating, and gas. If you don’t remember to drink water until you do sit down for a meal, try setting hydration alarms on your phone to remind you instead. Water should be sipped throughout the day, with most of it consumed between meals and really cut back at least 30 minutes before eating. If you have any digestion issues, this may be the change you need to make to see improvements. Don’t get me wrong- you don’t have to skip the still or sparkling next time you’re eating dinner, but just sip only what you really need to and chew your food properly so you don’t feel the need to “wash it down”. Believe me, your digestive system will thank you for it.

Drinking tap water

Although you may be fortunate enough to live in a city that has relatively clean tap water (I’m lucky to live in Calgary, where we have some of the best tap water on the continent), it probably still contains some chemicals that we know are not good for us to be consuming and, even more worrisome, it may even contain some compounds that we just don’t know how harmful they are for us yet. Most tap water contains chlorine and fluoride which can be detrimental to our health, especially for those of us that have thyroid issues. Chlorine and fluoride both block iodine receptors in the thyroid gland, which results in reduced iodine-containing hormone production and hypothyroidism. Another scary thought is trace elements from pharmaceuticals in our water supply. Luckily, chlorine evaporates after sitting at room temperature for 30 minutes. So if you are concerned about chlorine intake but you’re on a budget and cannot afford a water filter, no worries- simply leave a jug of tap water uncovered on the counter for half an hour before drinking!

Binge hydrating

Yes, you read that right. Binge drinking a liter of water at the end of the day because you just realized you haven’t had any all day and your mouth is suddenly feeling extremely dry doesn’t truly hydrate your body. Chances are, if you are drinking a giant water bottle all in one go, your body is not able to actually hydrate itself and ends up just letting most of the water be eliminated. Your kidneys cannot handle that much water in one go. To optimize your kidneys’ filtering function and get the best bang for your hydration buck, sip lots of water throughout the day and away from meals.

Not starting your day with at least one or two tall glasses of water

You lose up to a pound of water simply by breathing while you sleep! This means that when you wake up, your body is extremely parched. The best way to start your morning- aside from a little gratitude practice and meditation- is drinking a couple of tall glasses of water.

You can get fancy with it- warm water with lemon or fresh peppermint, a splash of apple cider vinegar, or you can even add trace minerals (more on those later). Just get it in you! This will gently wake up your digestive system and promote healthy elimination. This should be number one on your morning routine!

Do you make these hydration mistakes? Is there anything that you find confusing when it comes to getting the daily recommended servings of water per day? Add your questions and comments below, and be sure to check out Part 2 of this post here!

Girl, Don’t be Thirsty - Pt 1: My Go-To Guide to Stay Hydrated