Benefits of Drinking Water: Better Mood

It is well known that water is beneficial for your health. But did you know a benefit of drinking more water is a better mood too?

As we continue into January, the month of resolutions, let's talk about something really important and truly easy to improve: your water intake.

I typically think of water intake as like a “Behavior Change 101” step. When I teach healthy living classes, this is one of the first things I start with: drink more water! We all probably know some of the health benefits of drinking water.

But, have you checked in on this habit in a while? Do you really know that you’re drinking enough? Did you know that your water intake could be directly impacting your mood and brain power?

OK, that was a lot of questions, but hopefully you really thought about them.

Last year I had to ask myself all these questions about my water intake because I just assumed that I drank enough. What I found out though was that I was not drinking as much as I thought and it was negatively affecting my mood, energy level and emotions.

What got me thinking about my water was a very interesting study I came across that looked at the connection between water intake, emotions, energy, and mental performance.

{Bear with me as I geek out on the science here for just a second…}

The study tracked changes in people’s mood when they went from either a restricted intake of water (1 Liter/day) to a high water intake (2.5 Liters/day) or vice versa. For a frame of reference, 1 Liter is about 4 ¼ cups and 2.5 Liters is about 10 ½ cups.

When participants went from a time of restricted intake (1 Liter) to elevated water intake (2.5 Liters), they experienced significantly less fatigue and sleepiness with improved brain power (less confusion). On the flip side, when participants went from a high water intake to a restricted intake, participants experienced a drop in “vigor”, contentedness, ability to stay calm and overall positive feelings.

{Geek out session is now over.}

After doing a quick self assessment, I realized a few things: I was getting headaches more frequently, I was a lot more tired, I’d say my brain was running on about 50% power, some days I felt more overwhelmed by motherhood than I was proud to admit (well, this is still true), and yes, I’m wasn't drinking enough water due to a variety of reasons. Hmmm. Maybe water intake isn’t so “101” level after all.

Immediately after this realization, I put forth a significant effort to drink more water.  After a week of this, I realized I had experienced less headaches, my brain felt a touch sharper and I was in a much better mood-place that week.

You and I both know that water is an important component to good health. But, as I’ve personally found, it’s easy to forget and easy to neglect in our day to day minutiae. In fact, let me take a brief moment to remind us all of something important about healthy living in general: It’s always good to do a check-in on your day to day behaviors, even if you think you’re OK.

When working with clients over the years, I have found that when life changes (in big or small ways) it’s important take a moment to make sure your normal healthy habits are still working for you. It can be frustrating when your typical strategies aren’t producing the same results anymore. But you know what, that’s pretty normal. I suggest pulling out a pen and paper and jotting down a few new strategies for accomplishing your goal. Being deliberate is the only way to make a change.

And sometimes, you just need a fresh plan of attack.

Here are some ideas of ways to increase your water intake:

• Buy the half pint size water bottles and line up 8 for the day. This will help you easily track just how much you have consumed.
• Track your water intake in an app like MyFitnessPal.
• Buy a new, fun water bottle. I am a little picky here and like ones with straws that do not sweat. They are hard to find but I do like this CamelBak Podium Big Chill and this Hydracentials Insulated Bottle .
• Keep a mood and water journal for one week. See if you make any connections between how you feel and how much water you drink.
• Drink herbal tea (hot or cold) to add flavor to your life. Celestial Seasonings has so many fun and delicious flavors.

Take a quick moment to really think about how you’re feeling these days, and how much water you’re really drinking. Maybe you need a little water check up, like I did, and it could make a really big difference in how you feel too. I recently came across a company called Cotopaxi that is all about making healthy choices and giving back to causes all over the world. Giving is a huge portion of who they are, and as a Benefits Corporation, they are able to make the biggest impact through their backpacks. They donate a percentage of every sale to various organizations that support global health initiatives, including supplying clean drinking water in to India.

Wouldn’t it be nice for us all to feel better and have more brain power just by drinking more water? That’s certainly a way to #MakeHealthyEasy.

Do you have any tips or strategies for drinking enough water? Leave a comment and let me know.

To being well hydrated and in a good mood,

Jenna