Why Drinking Water Saves You Money

We all know that 80% of our body is made up of water so it stands to reason that we should keep ourselves ‘topped-up’ at all times.  Strange then that many people drink very little water at all each day and still think that tea and coffee are suitable alternatives.  They aren’t, tea and coffee as well as alcohol are diuretics, meaning that they dry us out. 

The perceived wisdom is that 2 litres of water a day is sufficient to keep an average adult ‘topped-up’.  Of course no one is average and you will need more in hot weather and when doing exercise but 2 litres is what we all should be aiming at.  Filling up a 2 litre bottle with water each morning might be a little daunting so the best way is to full a small (500ml) bottle and take it with you.  Just 3 refills in the day and you’re done.  And remember that tap water is free, just check it’s drinkable first.

So why does drinking water save you money?  There are 3 reasons for this:

1.   If you are drinking 2 litres or more of water each day you won’t want to drink as much tea, coffee or other drinks and these will cost you considerably more than even bottled water.

2.   You won’t feel as hungry as you previously did as your stomach will feel full more often.  Again saving money on food that can be really expensive when eating out.

3.   As you start to make sure you are drinking sufficient water each day you will after a few days start to feel healthier.  There is a knock on effect here as you will then start to want to eat healthier food, i.e. more fresh food.  Replacing processed food with fresh ingredients is far healthier and cheaper in the long run.  Maybe not an obvious saving but probably the most significant one.

The health benefits of drinking enough water each day are obvious but the savings in your pocket will add up too.  Try it for a month and see how much you save and how much better you feel yourself.

Drinking Too Much Coffee?

For anyone who enjoys coffee there are lots of opportunities to drink it in specialist coffee shops, on-the-go, at work and at home.  Too much caffeine isn’t good for us but how often do we stop and think about how much we’re spending on coffee each week?

If you totaled up what you spent on coffees and anything else you might buy with them you could come in for a big shock.  A little discipline when ordering and just getting what you went in for in the first place will save some but there are other ways of reducing your spend too:

Cut Down By One A Day

Depending on how much coffee you drink each day this may not reduce your intake much but if you multiply this by 5, 6 or 7 you could be saving quite a lot.  More so if you go for the real fancy coffees - which is where coffee shops make the real money!

Stick To Regular Coffee

Even the price of a straight black coffee, an Americano, is expensive when you think about it but you are paying for the atmosphere and people’s wages in the price.  Switching to a regular coffee from lattes, cappuccinos and the like will greatly reduce your spending and you’ll get to taste the coffee too!

Drink Something Else

Drinking coffee can become a habit for many people.  Caffeine is addictive after all so it’s no surprise.  There are alternatives that we all know about but tend to forget about.  Water, teas and fruit juices provide variety and water especially is far healthier and often free.  Substitute one of your daily coffees for one of these and you’ll start to see the difference in no time at all.

Take Your Own Coffee With You

While you might not really want to make fresh coffee in the morning and fill a vacuum flask to take into work there are real benefits.  It’s far cheaper than anything you will buy and you will get exactly the right tasting coffee for you.

Use Smaller Cups

I know the price difference between small, medium and large cups of coffee (or whatever name your favourite store likes to use) isn’t that much.  But ask yourself “do you really want to drink a pint of coffee two or three times a day?”  Having smaller drinks won’t save that much in itself but when combined with the other ideas here it’ll help reduce your spending and hopefully improve your health too.

So, the next time you go into your local coffee shop just stop and think about what you are spending and what you really want.