January is the best time to reach for new beginnings since the New Year brings the promise of fresh starts, giving us a chance to pick up healthy habits such as hydrating. Keeping your body optimally hydrated can help you attain those goals that you’ve crafted for 2018: whether it’s exercising more often, eating clean or maybe cleansing your body with a detox.
One of the easiest changes you can make in order to stay healthy is to drink more water, which gives you plenty of health benefits. Water can be responsible for a glowing skin, increased productivity physically and mentally and even weight loss.
DETOXIFICATION
If you’ve crafted some healthy resolutions this year, you should consider a detoxification in order to give your digestive system the chance to reset and drinking plenty of water can help you in this particular matter. Detoxing can flush-out toxins and impurities especially after all the food & drinks that you’ve been having during the past holiday festivities. Drinking natural mineral water or infusing water with fresh fruits and herbs will give the digestive system a chance to reset.
It sometimes becomes difficult to consume an ideal amount of water daily even for the most health-obsessed. In order to help you stay on top of your hydration this month and hopefully all year round, you can start by adding delicious refreshing fruits such as cranberries, oranges or mangos to the water you drink. Cranberries are well-known to help fight inflammation, while the citrus help boost your immune system. Mangos are particularly good for detox because they are naturally alkalizing and they can lower cholesterol levels due to levels of pectin and vitamin C. Foods such as poultry, fish, egg whites or fresh fruits all ease the digestive system. One recommendation is to give up refined sugar, processed foods and stay away from drinking alcohol or caffeine.
Water allows your body to slowly release any toxins at its own speed and stay away from symptoms that could be associated with a full-scale detox such as headaches, tiredness, irritability or blood sugar crash.
KEEP A WATER BOTTLE HANDY
A great strategy to drink more water is to carry a bottle of water in your backpack and in the car while you’re on the go or on your desk during working-hours. When the bottle is in sight or in an-easy to reach spot, it remains top of mind and a constant reminder to drink more often.
KEEPING HYDRATED DURING WORKOUTS
A good exercise can also help move toxins out of the skin and water has the ability of balancing fluids and electrolytes and thus increase performance. It has been shown that a 2% drop in hydration at high temperatures leads to a reduction in the performance. And it’s no surprise that the best choice to replenish electrolytes lost through sweating is the consumption of natural sparkling mineral water, not soda or sports drinks which contain additives, sugar and artificial minerals.
After all the excessiveness during the holidays, it’s time to switch to healthy habits like drinking more water and cleaning up your diet. And keep in mind that detoxing doesn’t have to be taken to the extreme but rather incorporated into your regular routine. A gentle detox is the best during nippy weather and can get your body back on track for this start of the year.
Ready to give it a go? Just try setting up attainable goals and turn healthy habits into a lifestyle.