5 Creative Ways to Drink More Water

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There are SO many benefits to drinking water, but many of us are not drinking nearly enough. Anytime you’re struggling to grab your fourth or fifth glass, try one of these creative ways to drink more water. Before you know it, you’ll be well on your way to meet those daily goals with ease!

I don’t think I have to convince anyone that water is vital to our very existence. That’s just common sense, right? We need water to function….to live. Yet so many of us don’t drink nearly enough of it.

Drinking water might seem like a pretty easy task at first, but it’s a serious struggle! Even though I don’t mind the taste of plain water, I literally have to force myself grab that fourth and fifth glass each day. Don’t even get me started on the recommended six to eight.

That’s when I know it’s time to take a cue from the title of this blog and get a little creative with my drinking habit……..well……you know what I mean. And if you want to make this healthy change in your life too, you may want to try one of these five ideas!

1. Set a Goal

You need to set goals if you want to be successful. Yes, even with something as simple as drinking water! Goals might seem boring or even hard at first, but they are the absolute best way to keep you on track.

Decide how much water you want to drink in a day {it’s going to depend on your activity level and weight}, then set daily or hourly goals based on that. Don’t be afraid to start with less and see how you feel — you don’t want to be drowning in fluids the first day you begin!

Creative Ways to Drink More Water | Creative Savings

Some ideas to help meet your water goals:

  • Draw various lines on a large bottle that correspond with certain times throughout the day, then make it a point to drink those portions by the time specified.
  • Print out a water tracking printable and “fill in” each glass as you drink it.
  • Buy a water tracking stamp to use each day in your planner. here’s a cute stamp, and it’s SO cute!
  • Download an app so you can track water intake on-the-go. Waterlogged {iPhone} or Water Your Body {Android} will also send you reminders throughout the day.

[bctt tweet=”Visual goals keep you accountable. #12minihabits”]

2. Find a Flavor

If you don’t prefer the taste of plain water, all you have to do is add in fresh or frozen produce straight to your cup {or by using a special fruit infusing water bottle}, to give it a different flavor. Not only do you get all the health benefits of drinking more water, you also get a double whammy of good-for-you fruits and veggies!

A handful of berries with a few slices of lemon or lime is probably the easiest to start with, but usually I just do a quick search on Pinterest whenever I want to try a new recipe or combination. If you don’t have fruits readily available, you can buy prepackaged powder flavorings that are super convenient for travel.

Note: I have seen recommendations that you should put a drop or two of lemon essential oil in your water every day to flavor it, give you energy, and keep you well. To be honest, I’m not sure how I feel about this!

Common sense says that lemon oil doesn’t mix or dissolve in water, but as to it having adverse affects on the body, I can’t find any studies to support either side. And honestly, you’ll find just as many experts promoting internal use of oils as there are against it.

Suffice it to say, take this information and decide for yourself. I currently am not doing this until I am 100% sure I’m okay with ingesting oils, especially in water. 🙂

3. Invest in a Fun Bottle or Cup

It might seem silly to place such importance on using the right cup, but if you really love your cup, then you will want to use it!

When I worked at a doctor’s office, one of my co-workers brought a different Tervis Tumbler each day to work. (Honestly, I think she had over 30 designs!) And I know it sounds weird, but it made the dreary days go by so much faster because we always wondered what cup she would bring in next.

Creative Ways to Drink More Water | Creative Savings

Well, you can probably guess what happened — I got hooked when Joseph bought my first Tervis Tumbler, and now I’m a proud owner of 6. These pretty cups have become just another one of my must-have accessories, and help me drink much more water than I used to.

If you haven’t tried using Tervis, I highly recommend their quality and lifetime guarantee. They keep water extra cold (without condensation), and travel wonderfully. And no, the company did not pay me to say that. I’m just a huge fan girl!

4. Hydrate with Water Rich Foods

Thankfully, straight-up water isn’t the only way you have to meet your daily quota. Foods like cucumbers, grapefruit, watermelon, strawberries, and salad {to name a few!} are pretty high in water content, contain very few calories, and will keep you fuller, longer.

Instead of reaching for chips to complement your sandwich, or making a carb-laden side dish for dinner, see how many of these water rich foods you can add in their place. Six to eight glasses of water won’t seem like such an unattainable goal when you can get that extra H2O from a different source.

Plus, since these foods are just plain good for you, I wouldn’t be surprised if you saw additional health benefits as well!

Creative Ways to Drink More Water | Creative Savings

5. Reach for Some Ice

Were you ever one of those kids that loved to crunch on ice? What am I saying….I still do this! Just like you can get water from other foods, you can also “drink” your water in different forms.

Change things up by adding flavored ice cubes to your drink instead of flavored water. All you have to do is freeze your favorite flavors of fruit in an ice cube tray, then add water as needed.

You can also add crushed ice to a cup and suck on it throughout the day like candy, which will in turn, help you avoid hitting the kitchen for another snack. {Psst…double duty!!} Just be careful not to chew too hard — a trip to the dentist is definitely something you want to avoid.

Anytime you’re struggling to grab your fourth or fifth glass, try some of these creative ways to drink more water. And if you’d really like to make this change a life-long habit, commit to working on it for just the next 30 days and then it will become a habit.

Before you know it, you’ll be well on your way to meet those daily goals with ease!

What are some creative ways you try to drink more water?

There are SO many benefits to drinking water, but many of us are not drinking nearly enough. Anytime you’re struggling to grab your fourth or fifth glass, try one of these creative ways to drink more water. Before you know it, you’ll be well on your way to meet those daily goals with ease!


Disclosure: Some of the links in the post above are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. Read my full disclosure policy here.

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12 Comments

  1. I like to keep a super large glass of water in the frig so it is always cold for me through out the day and meals.I keep it refilled and it is ready for me. I live in south central Texas and our days average 95-100 degrees plus all summer. We can dehydrate rapidly.
    I am unsure about what I have read about the water in the plastic bottles. I have read that their has been chemicals that leach into the water that may be harmful. Besides I am frugal about buying bottled water. Any comments?

    1. Hi Paula,

      We buy bottled water from time to time, but we get the majority of our drinking water from a filtered tap. I’ve read things about bottled water as well, but I don’t know how much is truth and how much is hype. I don’t typically drink bottled water if it has had a chance to get really hot in the bottles, for instance, if it sat in my car for a day.

  2. We started making homemade gatorade, but I’m going to try the infusion glasses as we brought some back from FL

    1. Let me know if you come across any recipes that you like! And….How do you make homemade Gatorade?

  3. What a great post! I am notorious for not getting enough water a day and I really do think it makes a huge difference on my energy levels! I hate feeling tired, so I will most defiantly take some of your tips into consideration.

  4. I tend to drink more when there is a straw in the glass so I always keep a supply handy.

  5. I don’t drink enough water. I don’t have the ability to constantly refill at my job and if the water is not ice cold I can’t drink it. For some reason it makes me queasy when it’s not super cold! Also, I began really chewing on ice when I became pregnant with my second child. When I mentioned it to my gyn she had my iron tested. If you CRAVE chewing on ice, you could have low iron. I take a hefty supplement but I still feel like I must chew on ice and it’s really the only way I stay properly hydrated!

    1. I agree with you — lukewarm water is just not my favorite. I may be imagining it, but I think temperature really does affect taste!

      And wow, that’s very interesting that chewing on ice relates to an iron deficiency. I also take a supplement, but love ice — now I know why!

  6. I use a regular water bottle that is 16.9 ounces and make sure to fill it 4 times. I use a checkmark list to help me remember if I’m on bottle 3 or 4.

  7. Love this post! Great ideas. And I absolutely love your stamp! Thanks for sharing xx I love putting lemon and orange and other fruits and herbs in my water. Living in Ireland, I’ve had to stick to bottled water as the tap water actually kept getting me sick. As I drank out of bottles for a year, I found I would unconsciously ration it so I wouldn’t have to keep going to the store to buy another bottle. And I definitely wasn’t drinking as much. I started infusing the water with fruits and better yet, pouring it into glasses, and I’ve gotten so, so much better! haha

    1. Considering my VERY frugal nature, I think I would have done the same thing and rationed water if I had to buy it all the time…which of course, wouldn’t have been good! Is this something that happens in all of Ireland or just your area?

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