t’s easy to remember to drink water in the summertime. Warm temperatures, outdoor activities, more sweating. But if you aren’t hot or sweating it can be easy to forget the need to hydrate! 

In the winter we’ve typically got the heat pumping, which dries out your environment and sucks the water out from your breath. The first sign of minor dehydration is just noticing that you’re thirsty. By this time, your body is already beginning to experience the effects of water loss such as poor concentration, grogginess, and irritability. Pay attention to how often you’re using the bathroom. If it’s been more than 3 hours since your last trip, you probably need to hydrate. A big clue is in the color of your urine- dark, cloudy, or more concentrated in color? Drink up!

Not all water intake is created equally. We’re usually told that we should be drinking 8 glasses of water per day, but this doesn’t account for environment or lifestyle! If you’re biking to work and getting sweaty, hitting the gym on your lunch break, or relaxing in the sauna to warm up, you need to replenish more water than someone who is mostly sedentary.