Are you ACTUALLY hydrated or just drinking a lot of water?

You couldn't convince my high school self that I'd become a stickers on water bottles kinda person 😆

*Short on time? Eyes exhausted from looking at screens all day? Scroll to bottom for the TL;DR.

Today is the HOTTEST and (fortunately) the last day of the heat wave enveloping my current locale.

The heat don’t bother me none, though. (I’m sure I’m part of the fire nation. I was born after Zuko took over things. hehe!) The heat energizes me, which is one of the reasons digital nomading and dodging winters nourishes my wellbeing.

The irony of this is that it wasn’t until I experienced winter again for the first time in 5 years that I became severely dehydrated. So what did I do? I learned a lot about how to ACTUALLY hydrate.

While the seasons change, the fundamentals of proper hydration stay the same. So here are my fave tips, myths, word of mouth advice, and science-based wisdom around ACTUALLY being hydrated. This is for those of you who, like me, love nuance + critical thinking 😉

Intuitive Hydration: Listen to Your Body

Many of us live in a culture that socializes us to live outside of our body or completely in our heads. Our inner nature is constantly sending us signals and information to keep our bodies in a place of homeostasis, but as we become more disconnected from nature it becomes harder to tune into those senses. This is one of the reasons I love practicing yoga. It helps me tune into my inner nature. So when my body is sending me signals to hydrate, I can hear them, and respond accordingly. If you have a hard time sensing the information that your body shares with you, it may be time to rewild your inner nature. As you become more in tune with your inner nature, you’re able to stay properly hydrated by listening to your body.

Proper hydration is a personal experience. We are not machines, so therefore a standard “drink 8 glasses of day” recommendation is not going to meet every human's ACTUAL hydration needs. The amount of water one needs daily is influenced by their physical size, environment, daily physical activity, health conditions, and so much more. Additionally, it’s not about how much water you drink, but how much water actually gets inside your cells.

Get Water Inside Your Cells

Do you know if the water you drink has the trace minerals and electrolytes necessary to help water get into the cells? If water just runs through you and/or you want to understand this hydration concept with greater depth, watch the “Salt and Water” and “Drinking Water Is Not the Best Way to Stay Hydrated” videos from this playlist .

Simply put, here are some tips I’ve learned for getting water inside your cells:

Eat water-full fruits. Think watermelon (the melon family), cucumbers, pineapples, oranges, peaches, + strawberries. Just to name a few.

Drink natural water that contains trace minerals + electrolytes

Drink coconut water

Remineralize your water by letting a flake of celtic salt absorb on the tongue before drinking water, adding fruits/veggies to your water, or using trace mineral drops

Go swimming in the ocean (I just made that one up. Ha! But I think there are some connections to be made. Let me ponder this more.)

Hydration Tips I Learned From Outdoor Educators

On a whitewater canoe expedition on the River of No Return, my canoe mentor introduced me to the concept that sometimes we confuse thirst for hunger. I think this may come from the book “Water - For Health, For Healing, For Life: You’re Not Sick, You’re Thirsty” .

During instructor prep time before a hiking expedition in the Adirondacks, my program manager mentioned that you hydrate for the next day. The science and research don’t really align, and also, from lived experience, it’s a gem!

Like Depth of Knowledge?

Here’s a few links to begin journeying down the “hydration” rabbit hole:

Hydration Youtube Playlist

Did you know NPR is serious about helping us stay informed on all things hydration?

Podcast: In Good Health: The nation’s hydration fixation

Article: Busting 5 Common Myths About Water and Hydration

Article: Still Thirsty? It’s up to your brain, not your body (TW: mentions animal lab testing)

Hydration Guide: The ultimate guide to help you stay hydrated (audiobook)

There’s so much more to share about properly hydrating! And I’m curious, what have you learned and/or unlearned about hydration that you’d add to this?

Be hydrated.

Be dope.

Be well.

💚Woods

Upcoming Radical Rewilding Experiences

Yoga Summer Series | Private Yoga Class/Event | Rewilding Equity

TL;DR

Many people (in the US anyways) are not actually hydrated, even if they are finishing baby sized jugs of water multiple times of day.

Tips for staying properly hydrated: intuitive hydration, hungry or thirsty, hydrate pre-, during, and post physical activity (as necessary)

Get Water Inside Your Cells: drink coconut water and water with trace minerals + electrolytes, eat lots of water based fruits, eat veggies rich in sodium and potassium