5 Ways to Drink More Water (plus, a @drinkcocogo #Giveaway)

I must confess: When it comes to drinking the right amount of water from morning to night, I am horrible. I never drink enough. The stuff bores me to bits. Terrible for a pregnant personal trainer to admit, right? I'm good for a glass at dinner and lunch, but inevitably turn to lemonade or something else to finish quenching my thirst. I obviously guzzle down the stuff while I'm teaching or working out. But, while I'm going about my day folding laundry or playing with the kid...this is where I fail me. Even if I have a full water bottle at my disposal.

I just...don't drink it, or again, I drink something else that's maybe not so healthy.

So I'm writing this post today for two reasons:
1) To remind myself of the things I like to do that help me consume more water.
2) To help YOU consume more water, if perhaps you might need to.

You might want to pin this:

Let's discuss:

1) Freeze fresh berries. It's funny, while I realize how great it is for me, there's nothing more boring to me than a glass of water. I mean, it's clear. We all know it lacks flavor. So perhaps making it pretty with little pops of color that eventually melt into bursts of flavor makes it all better, right? Yes.

2) Use a pitcher with a diffuser. Here's another confession: I have one, but I don't use it nearly enough! Why? I honestly forget that I have it. But I love it, nonetheless. And it really, truly does a great job of instilling some flavor into my water. Favorite combinations include lemons, limes and oranges. Strawberries and basil. And, of course, raspberries and lemons.

3) Label an empty milk jug or bottle. Nothing is more motivating then having a goal to achieve. So turn your daily intake into a contest between you, yourself and your water needs.

4) Splurge on a fancy water bottle. First off, if you spend your hard-earned money on something nice, then you'll have a hard time letting it go to waste. The bottle above was actually a gift, but I love it and hate letting it sit. I find that I drink more when I'm using it, versus a boring plastic cup or a store-bought bottle full of water.

5) Seek out healthy alternatives. Now, one would argue that fountain pop requires the use of water, but let's be honest—while it's thirst-quenching ability is evident to many—it's not necessarily what you might consider to be "healthy." I'm talking things like tea. Or drink mixes with a minimal list of ingredients, all of which should be recognizable and good for you.  Currently, I'm obsessed with Cocogo coconut water drink packets.

Note: The following portion of this post will discuss product that I received for free. At the end, you'll have the opportunity to get some for yourself. Feel free to stop reading if product reviews aren't your thing.

A long time ago, I got to sample some of this stuff. I liked it then and was curious to see if I'd still like it as much now, so I reached out to Cocogo to see if they'd be interested in sending me a few samples. I'm so grateful they were, and was quite surprised to receive a few packets of each flavor: Lemon-Lime, Grape and Raspberry Passion Fruit.

More reasons why I like Cocogo:

Needless to say, I've definitely been relying on it to help me get some water down. In fact, I'm thinking about ordering more to take with me to the hospital when #2 is born. Last time, when I couldn't eat, they offered me grape juice to help ward off the hunger. Ugh. I got it down but it was not the ideal. I'm thinking (hoping) this coconut water will work out much better for me.

But it's not a labor/delivery juice, let's be honest. It's a sports drink, you know the kind. And I love that it can be mixed to any strength almost without fail. And honestly, as far as sports drinks goes, I'm totally able to get it down without any issues. Sometimes mixes like this hurt my belly.

If you want to order some, you can find it on the Cocogo website listed at less than $10 for a 12-pack box. Use 40COCOGO to save 40%, or FRSH4COCOGO to get free shipping. If you're local to Utah or Colorado, you might be able to find it in a store near you. OR...you could use the Rafflecopter widget below to win a box filled with all three flavors. (This giveaway will remain open until Midnight EST on Friday, February 14, 2014. Please note that I do not receive any compensation if you use the above discount codes.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway