Direct Answer: If you drink water on an empty stomach as soon as you get up, it serves as a “system reboot and reset” for your body. By the time you wake up 7 to 9 hours later, your body is physiologically dehydrated. Fat cells are shriveled, your kidneys are calling out for liquid to carry waste out of your body and replenishing that lost water now before any glass of caffeine or food can start the flow sets up a chain reaction: it boosts your resting energy expenditure (metabolism), begins washing metabolic waste via its refuse flumes (the kidney) and triggers the “gastrocolic reflex” to help digestion. It’s not a miracle cure, but it is the zero-cost, most effective way to maximize cognitive function and physical preparedness for the day.
FOR THE MORE FORWARD-THINKING BEGINNER: THE “GENTLE WAKE-UP” PROGRAM
If you are new to the habit of wellness, it’s consistently that matters, not intensity. Chugging freezing cold water is a mistake many people make, and it can be shocking on the system.
The Logic:
You wake up at the lowest body temperature. Room-temperature is simply more “biocompatible,” to use a medical term, meaning the human body absorbs and processes it more efficiently.
The Method:
- Leave a cup of 16 ounces (about 500ml) of water on the nightstand before going to sleep.
- When you wake, sit up and drink it within the first 10 minutes before you get on your phone.
Pro Tip:
Hold off for 15 – 20 minutes before getting your first cup of joe. Caffeine is a diuretic; hydrating first makes it so your cells are already “plump” when the coffee does start to draw water out.
Weight Loss & Fitness Junkies: The Metabolic Pre-Load
There is a longstanding, though completely false belief that water “melts” fat. It doesn’t. But it does affect how your body processes energy.
The Logic:
When you drink there a couple of factors at play as to why drinking water could potentially increase your metabolic rate: by drinking up to 500ml of water, for example, it may be possible to stimulate an energy expenditure through something called water-induced thermogenesis. Your body uses energy to get that water up to core temperature.
The Strategy:
- Temperature Notes: You’ll want cold water, about 40°F / 5°C. It takes calories for the body to heat this water to 98.6°F.
- When to drink: Drink the entire litre 30 minutes before breakfast.
The Result:
Studies have found that “pre-loading” like this is effective at curbing calorie consumption during the meal by enhancing feelings of fullness (satiety) and stopping people making the common error of mistaking thirst for hunger.
Critical Thinking:
Forget about the “detox” additives like cayenne or expensive salts. The weight loss benefit is from the volume and temperature of the water, not the flavorings.
For Those Looking for Digestive Health: The “Internal Flush” Technique
If you wrestle with morning sluggishness or constipation, the way in which you drink water is more important than how much water you consume.
The Logic:
When you drink water on an empty stomach, it activates the gastrocolic reflex. This is a message that the stomach sends to the lower intestine to “make room.”
The Method:
- The “Warm Start”: Warm water (approximately 100°F / 38°C). The warmth helps to relax the smooth muscles of your GI tract, so waste can move easier as you go.
The Move:
Do 2 minutes of light stretching or walk around after sipping. This physical action, also with the weight of water on the stomach, physically stimulates peristalsis (bowel activity).
Anti-Intuition:
Most anti-intuitively, many feel like lemon water is crucial for “alkalizing” the body. The truth is, your body manages its own pH balance just fine. The benefit in the lemon itself is really nothing other than vitamin C and making the water taste better so that you drink more of it.
Beauty and Skincare Aficionados: The Circulation Boost
Water “doesn’t literally wash away fine lines, but it plays a role in keeping skin’s barrier healthy,” she said, making skin look and feel hydrated and preventing it from showing signs of aging also slower.
The Logic:
You go without a drink for 10 hours and blood volume drops. With little blood volume, the body favors sending it to internal organs and your skin is left looking flat and grey.
The Method:
- Drink your first glass with a pinch of quality sea salt (no more than one tiny grain). This provides trace minerals that aid in water actually entering the cells, rather than just racing through to your bladder.
The Workflow:
Apply your topical moisturizer after you drink your water. You’ve got to drink it in and then lock it in for a “glow.”
For the Productive: The Brain Fog Solution
And if that morning fog so many of us experience isn’t caused simply by a lack of sleep, it’s often brought about by a thirsty brain. The brain is somewhere around 75-80% water. I’m talking 1% dehydration and your capacity to concentrate will decrease from the baseline.
Where You’ve Heard It:
Everywhere
The Logic:
Dehydration makes the tissue of your brain actually shrink a little from the skull, which can lead to “dehydration headaches” and slower neural firing.
The Method:
- The 20-Ounce Rule: Drink 20 ounces (600 ML) before you check your email, open a laptop or begin any work task.
The Sequence:
First water, second sunlight, third work. This entails syncing your body’s natural rhythm (circadian clock) and rehydrating your neurons at the same time.
Critical Thinking:
When sharpness of brain starts to decline, many of us are quick to reach for caffeine. But caffeine prevents adenosine receptors (the “sleepy” signal) from getting through, without addressing that underlying dehydration. When you first drink water, it might surprise you to find that you need 50 percent less caffeine to be just as alert.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the benefits of drinking water when we wake up?
Cold water on an empty stomach hydrates the body after a night’s sleep, helps your kidneys flush out metabolic waste, and raises your resting energy expenditure in order to ‘reset’ your system.
How is the water temperature best for weight loss different than that of digestion?
Cold water is the best for weight loss as it encourages thermogenesis in your body, burning calories to warm you back up and that’s good enough! While on the other hand an ideal glass of warm water would be great for digestion simply because it relaxes stomach muscles and stimulates the gastrocolic reflex.
Why do you need to drink water before your morning coffee?
Caffeine is a diuretic that pulls water away from your cells; hydrating with water first primes your body for hydration and can decrease the amount of caffeine needed to feel alert.
What impact does drinking fluids in the morning have on your brain?
As the brain is composed of 75-80% water, even mild dehydration can make your brain tissue lose some of its “moisture”, thus resulting in that annoying foggy feeling with a headache and an inability to concentrate.
Could putting salt or lemon in your morning water boost health?
Sea salt delivers minerals which support better absorption of water into cells for hydrated skin, lemon gives you vitamin C and makes the taste a bit easier to swallow (but don’t expect it to do much about your body’s PH).
References
- Metabolic effects: Boschmann, M., et al. (2003). “Water-induced thermogenesis.” The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. In to a study of 14 healthy, normal-weight men (7) and women (7), researchers found that drinking 500 ml of water raised metabolic rate by 30% within about ten minutes, peaking half-an-hour later.
- Weight Loss: Dennis, E. A., et al. (2010). “Water consumption increases weight loss during a hypocaloric diet intervention in middle-aged and older adults.” Obesity. This trial involved 48 adults aged 55-75 over 12 weeks and found that those consuming around 500ml of water before meals lost an extra 2kg compared to the control group.
- Performance: Adan, A. (2012). “Cognitive Performance and Dehydration.” ACN is a publication of JAFC & M. This review included several studies that demonstrated even mild dehydration (1-2% body weight loss) negatively affects vigilance, working memory and attention.
- GI response: Sun, R., *et al. (2014). “Effect of temperature of water on gastric emptying”. Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology. The effects of various temperatures on gastromotion and the gastrocolic reflex were studied.
- Skin Physiology: Akdeniz, M., et al. (2018). “Is there a relationship between fluid intake and skin hydration?” Skin Research and Technology. Thank you Date Log: Received April 1, Reviewed May 21, The increased water consumption and skin thickness/density in group II after drinking mg/day of water is known by the fact that cutaneous late response to histamine injection was faster when daily intake was raised to —2 RJL Technique Age Fit A full-text plus abstract search of all languages up until June for randomized controlled trials, clinical trials or interventions with a duration greater than four weeks between increased water consumption and effects on the skin.
