We get it: Drinking eight glasses of water a day can seem like a chore. But throw in cold weather, an intense workout, or a hectic day, and before you know it, you’re dehydrated.
This can cause exhaustion, muscle fatigue, and loss of concentration, which may have you reaching for sugary snacks faster than you can say H2O. Tastes better, right?
But it doesn’t have to be that way.
At Big Tree Farms, we love coconut water as an easy way to stay hydrated. But we also love these five sneaky strategies to spice up your liquid intake. Your body will thank you profusely.
1. Lemon (or any citrus fruit)
Lemon’s benefits extend beyond it’s deliciously bittersweet taste. Lemon oozes vitamin C, an important nutrient for the body’s connective tissue, from collagen to bones to skin. It also helps to reduce stress and potentially guards against cancer. This goes for oranges, grapefruits, and limes, too. Try a different citrus fruit each day of the week!
2. Coconut water (in a more convenient form)
Coconut water is touted for its potassium, electrolytes and trace ionic minerals, but we can’t always carry around a big bottle of the stuff. Good news: Big Tree Farms’ Coco Hydro comes in a dehydrated powder pouch, meaning you can turn any filtered water into coconut water within seconds.
3. Fruits and vegetables
Don’t let “solid” food fool you: many fruits and vegetables consist of mostly water. For example, an apple is 85% water by volume. Your body absorbs this liquid like any other, along with the vitamins and nutrients packed into these delicious snacks. If a single fruit does not call to you, try blending your favorites into a smoothie with flax seed for added omega-3 healthy fats.
No interest in blending? The same hydration rules apply to leafy greens, making salad a top choice for lunch, or that amazing beverage called green juice an ideal afternoon pick-me-up.
4. Tea
Tea may get a bad rep for being a diuretic, but its hydration benefits outweigh its mild diuretic properties. The average teacup is packed with antioxidants and phytochemicals, which boost endurance, fight free radicals, guard against cancers, and may even whittle down the waistline. Avoid the bitterness with a dash of Big Tree Farms’ unrefined, organic coconut sugar, the only high-nutrient, low glycemic sweetener of its kind. It’s also harvested on a Fair Trade farm in Bali, making it as economically valuable as it is satisfyingly nutritious.
5. Brothy soup
Chicken soup really is good for the soul, especially when it comes to hydration. Broth, whether meat or vegetable-based, sends a whole lot of liquid your way, and this delivery makes it easier for our bodies to digest minerals. Chicken soup in particular shows anti-inflammatory properties that help prevent common cold symptoms and reduce joint pain. It’s even shown to heal the lining of the intestines, supporting proper digestion. And it just tastes so good.
Photo Credit: Shutterstock
Big Tree Farms is truly Rooted in GoodnessTM. From the beginning, Big Tree Farms set out to undo the damage from commercial farming in Indonesia by helping farmers get back to their roots, promoting sustainable, organic farming and then providing a fair trade outlet for their crops. The result is an extended community of over 14,000 family farmers working together to produce the highest quality, nutritionally pure coconut and cacao products.
The same focus on quality, sustainability and innovation is applied to the finished products. Big Tree Farms is the global pioneer of unrefined, high-nutrient Organic Coconut Sugar and the only one sourced directly with both fair trade and low glycemic certifications. This innovation continued in their launch of Coco Hydro®, the first real coconut water powder. Recognizing the negative environmental impact of shipping heavy beverages around the world, Big Tree Farms dehydrates fresh coconut water and captures the 3% of nutrients and electrolytes. Coco Hydro is refreshing coconut water in a portable, sustainable powder – just add the water. And finally Big Tree Farms’ TRU RATM cacao & chocolate products are uniquely cold-processed to protect the incredible phytonutrients and antioxidants found in cacao.
All made in the world’s largest bamboo structure on Bali.
