Did you know that a lot of the extra weight you carry around may be nothing more than water? Water retention is a huge problem for some people. They may feel as though their clothing is too tight as the water retention can actually add inches onto the body. They may even weigh heavier than what they really are. In addition, many people complain about feeling bloated and overall not well when they are dealing with retaining water. So, how can you reduce water retention?
Tips for How to Reduce Water Retention
There are several tips that you can use in order to reduce water retention. These include:
- Believe it or not, drink more water. Many people who retain water are doing so because their bodies are not sure when they will get water again, so they retain it. If you stick to drinking the recommended amount of water, the amount the body retains will lower.
- Eat less sodium as this can make water retention ten times worse.
- Eat more potassium as this can help battle the water retention that you have, while helping your body to not retain more later.
- Get enough exercise and do this regularly.
- Get a good night’s sleep so that your body has time to rest and heal.
- Try to reduce your stress as stress has been shown to make it harder to avoid water weight gain and the body retaining more water.
- Try to cut down on the amount of carbs that you are eating. Eating carbs can make water retention worse since carbs are often stored in the liver and muscles, resulting in more water getting pulled in.
- Caffeinated beverages like coffee or tea, can help to shed some retained water since caffeine is a diuretic. However, you need to be careful and not overdo this as caffeine can cause some issues in the body.
- Eat less processed foods. These types of foods are full of extras that can lead to water retention and other issues like weight gain.
- Water pills are sometimes recommended to those who are retaining water in a drastic amount and need to get this out of their system. Talk to your doctor about whether these are an option for you or not.
For those who are retaining water, making simple changes to your diet and overall life can actually help you to get control of this on your own.