Drink Water: How? How Much? And Why?

Human beings are made up mostly of water. The body is said to be 70 percent water. For each body to store the amount of water needed to be a functional being, a constant fresh supply of water is required. 

Many health professionals stick with eight to 10 glasses of water across the board as a general suggestion of healthy water consumption for all individuals and populations. Many studies have discovered that drinking half of your weight in ounces of water is the most appropriate description for how much water should be consumed daily per individual. One person weighing 160 pounds will need 80 ounces of water each day. Another weighing 100 pounds will need to consume only 50 ounces per day.

Waiting until you are thirsty to drink water is a sign that dehydration has set in by about 20 percent. Staying ahead of thirst is very important to the overall productivity and function of the human body. 

Drinking 16 ounces of room temperature water within 10 minutes of waking up is said to enhance an individual's resting metabolic rate. Studies show that drinking water over ice can boost your metabolism by as much as 24 percent over two hours.

Measuring water consumption by glass has advantages and disadvantages. Seeing the bottom of each glass is very rewarding to some and encourages filling it back up. Losing track of how many glasses are consumed is a definite downside. Larger water bottles are a great way to measure how much water is truly consumed in a day. For some however, this can make the task of drinking water more daunting, resulting in a lack of consumption.

Try these tips to improve the amount of water consumed each day:

1. Journal to keep track of water consumption. Tally marks work well. Count only water as water. Leave out coffee, tea, soda and flavored drinks.
2. Add lemon, limes, or cucumber to water to add a bit of natural flavor without adding excessive sugar or calories.
3. Carry a reusable water bottle everywhere.
4. Drink one glass of water before every meal or snack.
5. Thinking about a second helping? Grab a glass of water first.