My water intake is pretty high, but it does vary seasonally - in summer, I’ll go through 5L easily. I think that most people could stand to increase their water intake, and reports of hyperhydration are overstated - it’s mostly a paediatric problem.

• Learn to just drink a whole cup at once. Then do that on a schedule. Every hour through the working day gets you to the 2L per day generic recommendation. Then add a couple glasses at and after dinner.
• I don’t want to recommend bottled water because it’s environmentally reprehensible, but find a way to make water taste neutral. Part of that, though, is just getting used to it.
• building on that taste thing - it’s probably better for the long term to get used to it than to always add flavor.
• Find out if you like it better warm or cold. A lot of people insist on cold water, but I don’t like cold water. It takes too long to drink without a brain freeze effect, unless I want something specifically to cool me down, which is infrequent.

A different approach to the not liking water, get a good filter. I used breta filters for years but a few years back installed an under sink reverse osmosis filter because the water here is so hard that it just tastes bad whether left hard or softened. I knew water could be better because I grew up with decent water and liked it even back when I preferred pop or juice.

I wonder if anyone who claims to dislike water has only ever had subpar water. Note that I include a bunch of bottled waters in that, as I vastly prefer my RO tap water to any store bought bottled water, though some were on par with breta filtered water, though I’ve always hated the waste involved in buying bottled water (other than those big ones you can refill and stick in a water cooler, which can also be RO water if you have a good water place to get it from).

If you do go for RO, make sure the system you get has an extra stage that adds some minerals back into the water. The RO on its own actually leaves the water too pure to be safe to drink regularly, as it causes osmosis to pull nutrients out of your cells (or something like that). I’d also only suggest it in an area where water is plentiful, as it does use more water than what you get from the filter, though adding a passive pump can improve efficiency.

force yourself, after a while you get to the point where you can taste the difference between different brands of water or from which tap it came from

The advice about keeping water nearby is good. I do that. Although I still sometimes forget anyway lol.

Besides that: Is flavor the problem or do you just not like having to drink period?

If it’s flavor: Add a tiny bit of a drink you do like. I add maybe like 5-10% apple juice to my water at meals. Just enough to get some of the flavor without adding too much sugar.

If it’s the 2nd: There are others sources of water. Most fruits work and they also come with fiber, which is also important for hydration.

Also, unlikely to apply here, but worth mentioning: When I was having problems being dehydrated, I talked to my doctor about it and we figured out that one issue was that I was mostly drinking filtered water, which will lack a lot of the electrolytes you normally get in water. I fixed this by getting a powder to add to my water. (Filtering bc of town water supply issues.)

Are you drinking water with meals? I find washing something down, even a single chip, causes you to drink more than you could by itself.

Also, keep it at hand. A refillable bottle is worth investing in. If you like it ice cold, get a vacuum insulated vessel.

You go: “Wow, I’m an adult now and sometimes I have to do things I don’t want to do”. And then you drink the water.

The fact of the matter is that almost nobody’s favorite beverage is water, but in a display of forbearance (combined with not being too fond of the whole dehydration thing) we drink it anyway.

Additives and things can help you in the near term, but developing good habits takes time and effort (and is very often the cornerstone of good health).

does sparkling help? cucumber, slice of lemon, orangeslice?

I know a lot of people get those huge bottles and it helps them - just having it with them all the time 🤔

Big Water Bottle has everyone convinced that we need to be chugging water 24/7.

Unless you live in a really hot place and work outside, or have some other risk factor (like dementia or diarrhea), thirst should be enough to keep you hydrated enough.

If you dont have additional risk factors, and you dont just exist in a constant state of thirst, I wouldn’t worry about it.

Just drink it.

Im in your boat being a soda holic but I have found that having water with you always cold and plenty even if you have something else. You will find you drink it and the more you drink it the more you do. Its the habit of keeping it on hand at that point which is the limiting factor.

Start by adding some flavour, like slices of lemon or orange. In time you’ll start to like how hydrated you are. Just don’t put sugar into it.

What I do (assuming I am at home all day) is a cycle of this:

• before going to bed, put a fresh full glass of water beside my bed
• after waking up, first thing I do is drink from it
• most likely I will now need to pee, so do that, and after washing hands, immediately refill my glass
• drink from that glass of water throughout the day when I am even slightly thirsty
• usually when I have finished a glass of water, I need to pee again; if that happens, again refill my glass after doing so
• if I’ve finished a glass of water but do not need to pee, I usually refill it with another drink (e.g. fruit juice) instead
• keep that cycle of refilling after using the toilet going

If I’m spending my day at the office, the first thing I do after arriving is grab a glass of water, but otherwise, same cycle.

Keeping water at arms reach is probably what helps the most. But I read a few things when I was pregnant that really helped me with upping my water intake.

1. Have water at bedside table. When you wake in the middle of the night have a few big gulps before going back to sleep.

2. Have a drinking vessel with a straw. Something about moving head down or up making drinking difficult, a straw might help.

And of course, not everyone needs two litres of water a day. Hope it helps!

learn to enjoy drinking it.

good habits don’t magically happen, you have to use your willpower.

You can also try seltzer or flavored waters if that helps or filtering it. plenty of tap water can taste bad.

I don’t get the whackadole ‘hacks’ people are going on about here. I drink 2-3L of water per day, and 4-5L if I’m active. I drink it because I’m thirsty and it’s delicious.

I’ve started making my espresso drinks with more water for that reason. Yes, it tastes more ‘watery’ but I get more water so - win?