Does water help with weight loss?

Posted on August 17, 2022 by Sally-Anne Turner

We hear it all the time; it's an age-old piece of advice. If you want clear skin, beautiful hair, and a trim frame, the not-so-secret secret to good health is to drink more water. This simple recommendation has been passed down through generations, and whilst it might sound too straightforward to be effective, the science behind it is remarkably compelling.

But it's not just something we say, nor is it an old wife's tale. Water is one of the most important things we consume every day. Water makes up around 55% of a woman's composition, and for men it's as much as 60%! Water is vital for survival and is the reason we are living and breathing on this planet. It is the elixir of life. Every cell, tissue, and organ in your body requires water to function properly. From regulating body temperature to cushioning joints, transporting nutrients, and removing waste products, water is involved in virtually every physiological process that keeps you alive and healthy.

So, it shouldn't come as a surprise that if you want to achieve your ideal weight, water is a crucial ingredient to success. Whether you're just beginning to think about losing a few pounds or you're already on a structured weight management programme, understanding the role water plays in weight loss can transform your results. We've compiled all the reasons you should be drinking more water, how it can help in your weight loss journey, and the ways you can motivate yourself to reach your daily water intake. This comprehensive guide draws on scientific research and the clinical experience of our expert team at Bodyline Clinic, who have supported more than 100,000 patients across the UK to achieve their weight loss goals.

While water is marvellous to help with weight loss, it must be incorporated into a complete change in lifestyle. A combination of more exercise, a calorie deficit and plenty of water will provide you with the results you need. Think of water as a powerful tool in your weight loss toolkit rather than a standalone solution. When combined with a balanced, nutritious diet and regular physical activity, proper hydration can significantly enhance your weight loss results and make the entire process feel more manageable and sustainable.

However, if you find yourself struggling to see a change in the scales even though you've tried everything to lose weight, you may benefit from beginning a medical weight loss journey with Bodyline Clinic. Many people find that despite their best efforts with diet, exercise, and hydration, their weight simply won't budge. This can be incredibly frustrating and demoralising. The truth is that weight loss isn't always as simple as calories in versus calories out. Hormonal imbalances, metabolic factors, medications, stress, sleep quality, and underlying health conditions can all make losing weight significantly more challenging. That's where medically supervised weight loss programmes can make all the difference.

We've helped more than 100,000 people across the country reach their goal weight, and with over 18 years of experience we are experts in providing personalised and supportive weight loss programmes that are guaranteed to work. Our approach combines the latest medical weight loss treatments, including Wegovy, Mounjaro, and Phentermine, with comprehensive lifestyle guidance, nutritional counselling, and ongoing clinical support. Our experienced team of doctors and nurse prescribers work with you to create a tailored programme that addresses your unique circumstances, health history, and weight loss goals.

If you're fed up with looking for the secret to successful weight loss, get in touch with us today by calling 0800 995 6036 or filling in our online contact form. You could lose up to a stone in your first month! Our clinics are located throughout the Northwest of England, including Birkenhead, Liverpool, Manchester, St Helens, Stockport, Stoke-on-Trent, and Warrington, and we also offer convenient online consultations for patients across the UK. Book a consultation at Bodyline Clinic to discuss how our medically supervised programmes can help you achieve lasting weight loss results.

Why should we drink more water?

There are an abundance of reasons we should already be drinking plenty of water every day, and not just for health purposes. We can improve our complexion and our hair just from increasing daily water intake. Proper hydration helps flush toxins from your skin, giving you that coveted healthy glow that expensive skincare products promise but often fail to deliver. Your hair benefits too, as adequate water intake helps maintain the moisture balance in your scalp and hair follicles, reducing dryness, brittleness, and breakage. But if you're wondering just what sort of health benefits come from drinking water, look no further. The advantages extend far beyond cosmetic improvements to encompass nearly every system in your body.

1. Live longer – Drinking more water has benefits all around. Promoting overall health within our bodies, water can improve our brainpower and our blood pressure. In fact, studies show drinking more water will reduce our risk of some cancers by up to 50% and help us to live longer. Research has specifically linked adequate hydration with reduced risk of bladder, colon, and breast cancers. The mechanism behind this protective effect is thought to involve more frequent urination, which helps flush potential carcinogens from the body before they can cause cellular damage. Additionally, proper hydration supports your immune system, helping your body fight off infections and diseases more effectively. When you're well-hydrated, your blood can carry oxygen and nutrients to your cells more efficiently, whilst simultaneously removing waste products and toxins. This cellular-level health translates to better overall wellbeing and potentially a longer, healthier life.
2. Blood Pressure - Drinking 2-3 litres of water a day can help to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and improve our blood pressure, as it keeps blood flowing throughout the body at a regulated pace. If we are dehydrated, the heart finds it harder to pump the blood, thus putting strain on the body. When you're dehydrated, your blood becomes thicker and more viscous, making it more difficult for your heart to pump it through your arteries and veins. This increased resistance forces your heart to work harder, which can elevate blood pressure and increase cardiovascular strain over time. Chronic dehydration has been linked to increased risk of heart disease, stroke, and other cardiovascular complications. By maintaining proper hydration, you're essentially giving your heart an easier job, allowing it to pump blood more efficiently with less effort. This is particularly important for people who are overweight or obese, as they already face increased cardiovascular risk. At Bodyline Clinic, our medical weight loss programmes include guidance on proper hydration as part of our comprehensive approach to improving overall health markers, including blood pressure.
3. Improves concentration – Issues with brain fog, tiredness, and concentration can all be linked to dehydration. Even drinking just one small glass of water can boost our attention by around 25%, thus improving our cognitive thinking and brain power. This could in turn improve our ability to focus on goals, goals such as getting to our healthy, ideal weight! Your brain is approximately 75% water, so it's particularly sensitive to dehydration. When you're even mildly dehydrated, you may experience difficulty concentrating, increased perception of task difficulty, headaches, fatigue, and mood changes. These cognitive impairments can sabotage your weight loss efforts in subtle but significant ways. When you're tired and foggy-headed, you're more likely to reach for sugary snacks for a quick energy boost, make poor food choices, skip your planned exercise session, or simply lack the mental clarity to stay committed to your weight loss goals. By staying properly hydrated, you're supporting your brain function, which in turn supports your ability to make healthy decisions throughout the day. Many patients at our Bodyline clinics report that increasing their water intake has helped them feel more alert, focused, and motivated to stick with their weight loss programme.

Beyond these major benefits, proper hydration supports kidney function, helping your body filter waste products and toxins more effectively. It lubricates your joints, reducing pain and stiffness, particularly important for people carrying excess weight who may already be experiencing joint discomfort. Water also aids digestion, preventing constipation and helping your body absorb nutrients from food more efficiently. It regulates body temperature through perspiration, crucial during exercise or hot weather. For people on weight loss medications like those prescribed at Bodyline Clinic, staying well-hydrated is particularly important as it can help minimise certain side effects and support the medication's effectiveness.

How does it help with weight loss?

You've heard about why water is the best, now read all about how water can help you lose weight and reach your weight loss goals! The relationship between water consumption and weight loss is supported by substantial scientific evidence, and understanding these mechanisms can help you harness water's power more effectively in your own weight loss journey.

1. Suppresses your appetite - Thirst can quite easily be mistakenly interpreted as hunger by the brain, which is why many nutritionists and dieticians advise us to drink water whenever we first feel that pang of hunger. Drinking plenty of water can be a great appetite suppressant, as it promotes that 'full' feeling of being satisfied. Next time you're craving a snack, drink a large glass of cold water to fill you up and help with weight loss. The signals for thirst and hunger are generated in the same part of your brain, the hypothalamus, which can sometimes lead to confusion between the two sensations. When you feel hungry, particularly between meals, it's worth asking yourself whether you might actually be thirsty instead. This simple practice can prevent unnecessary snacking and help you maintain a calorie deficit, which is essential for weight loss. Additionally, drinking water before meals can help you eat less during the meal itself. When your stomach is partially filled with water, you'll feel satisfied with smaller portions of food. This is a strategy our nutritional advisors at Bodyline Clinic often recommend to patients on our weight loss programmes, as it complements the appetite-suppressing effects of medications like Phentermine or Mounjaro. Many patients find that combining proper hydration with their prescribed medication creates a powerful synergy, making it much easier to stick to their calorie targets without feeling constantly hungry or deprived.
2. Improves your metabolism - Did you know that one study shows simply drinking two cups of water before meals could increase your metabolism, and cause weight loss results without any other major changes to the diet? That's right, just drinking more water before you eat can help you with weight loss, and if this is done alongside other lifestyle changes your results could be amazing! This phenomenon is known as water-induced thermogenesis. When you drink water, particularly cold water, your body has to expend energy to warm it up to body temperature. This process burns calories, albeit a modest amount. However, research suggests that drinking water can increase your metabolic rate by up to 30% for about an hour after consumption. Over the course of a day, if you're drinking the recommended amount of water, these small metabolic boosts can add up to a meaningful increase in calorie expenditure. Some researchers estimate that drinking two litres of water per day could result in an additional 100 calories burned, which might not sound like much, but over a year that could translate to several pounds of weight loss without any other changes. When combined with the comprehensive approach taken in Bodyline's medical weight loss programmes, which include medication, nutritional guidance, and lifestyle coaching, this metabolic benefit of water consumption becomes part of a multi-faceted strategy for achieving significant, sustainable weight loss.
3. Fat burning - Research shows that the body's process for fat-burning – also known as lipolysis – improves as your water intake increases. That means that as you drink more water, your body is better able to burn the fat in your body for energy, thus helping you lose weight! Just another reason that water can help with weight loss! Lipolysis is the metabolic process by which your body breaks down stored fat into fatty acids and glycerol, which can then be used for energy. This process requires water to function efficiently. When you're dehydrated, lipolysis is impaired, meaning your body struggles to access and burn its fat stores even when you're in a calorie deficit. This can lead to the frustrating situation where you're doing everything "right" – eating less, exercising more – but the scale isn't moving. By staying properly hydrated, you're ensuring that your body can efficiently mobilise and burn fat stores. This is particularly important for people on weight loss medications, as these medications work to create the conditions for fat loss (reduced appetite, increased satiety, better blood sugar control), but your body still needs adequate water to actually carry out the fat-burning process. At Bodyline Clinic, we emphasise the importance of hydration to all our patients, whether they're taking Saxenda, Wegovy, or oral medications, because we know that proper hydration can significantly enhance treatment outcomes.

Water also plays a crucial role in exercise performance and recovery, both of which are important for weight loss. When you're well-hydrated, you can exercise at a higher intensity for longer periods, burning more calories and building more lean muscle mass. Muscle tissue is metabolically active, meaning it burns calories even at rest, so building muscle through exercise helps boost your overall metabolic rate. Dehydration, on the other hand, can make exercise feel much harder than it needs to be, reducing your performance and making you more likely to cut your workout short or skip it altogether. After exercise, water helps transport nutrients to your muscles for recovery and repair, and helps flush out metabolic waste products that can cause soreness and fatigue. This means you'll recover faster and be ready for your next workout sooner.

Another often-overlooked benefit of water for weight loss is its role in reducing water retention. It might seem counterintuitive, but drinking more water actually helps your body release excess water it's been holding onto. When you're chronically dehydrated, your body goes into conservation mode, holding onto water in case of future scarcity. This can make you feel bloated and puffy, and can add several pounds of water weight to the scale. When you start drinking adequate water consistently, your body recognises that water is plentiful and releases the stored water, leading to a noticeable reduction in bloating and a drop on the scale. This can provide a motivating early win when starting a weight loss programme, and whilst it's not fat loss per se, it's a sign that your body is responding positively to better hydration.

For patients at Bodyline Clinic who are taking GLP-1 medications like Wegovy or Mounjaro, staying well-hydrated is particularly important. These medications can sometimes cause gastrointestinal side effects like nausea or constipation, and adequate water intake can help minimise these effects. Additionally, as these medications help you lose weight, proper hydration supports your body's ability to flush out toxins that may be released from fat stores, and helps maintain healthy kidney function as your body processes the medication. Our clinical team provides personalised hydration recommendations based on each patient's weight, activity level, and the specific medication they're taking, ensuring optimal results and minimal side effects.

Ways to stay motivated

You may be thinking, "it's all well and good telling me to drink more water, but how do I do it?". It's not the easiest forcing a new healthy routine upon yourself, but if you can do something for 21 days straight, a habit can be formed. So how can we motivate ourselves to form the habit of regularly drinking water to help with weight loss? Building sustainable habits is at the heart of successful weight loss, and at Bodyline Clinic, we don't just prescribe medication – we help you develop the lifestyle habits that will support long-term weight management.

1. Treat yourself to a beautiful new water bottle - Get excited to drink water by treating yourself to a reusable bottle that is perfect for you. Many water bottles can now keep water cold, tell you how much you should be drinking at what time of the day, and can even match your outfit! Choose a bottle that will make you want to pick it up and take a swig all day long. This might seem like a small thing, but the psychology of having a water bottle you genuinely like can make a surprising difference to your hydration habits. Look for bottles with features that appeal to you personally. If you're motivated by tracking progress, consider a bottle with time markers or volume measurements so you can see at a glance how much you've drunk and how much you have left to reach your daily goal. If you're often on the go, an insulated bottle that keeps water cold for hours might be perfect. If you tend to forget to drink, a bottle with a built-in reminder system (some even connect to smartphone apps) could be helpful. Some people find that having multiple bottles in different locations – one at your desk, one in your car, one by your bed – makes it easier to stay hydrated throughout the day. Investing in a quality water bottle isn't just about the bottle itself; it's about making a commitment to your health and your weight loss goals. Many Bodyline Clinic patients report that this simple step was surprisingly effective in helping them increase their water intake, which in turn supported their weight loss success.
2. Use a handy water tracking app - With some smartphone apps, you can now keep track of how much water you're drinking and set goals for your day to see how much more you should be having! Set reminders, track your goals, and build healthy habits that will change your life for the better. Check out a list of them here for the app best suited to you. These apps work by sending you regular reminders throughout the day to drink water, and they allow you to log each glass or bottle you consume. Many apps also allow you to customise your daily water goal based on your weight, activity level, and climate, ensuring you're aiming for an appropriate target. Some apps gamify the process, offering rewards or achievements when you meet your goals consistently, which can provide extra motivation. The visual representation of your progress can be particularly motivating – seeing that you're 75% of the way to your daily goal might inspire you to drink that extra glass of water. For patients on Bodyline's weight loss programmes, these apps can be a useful complement to the food diary and activity tracking that many of our patients already do. Some patients even share their hydration tracking with their Bodyline nurse at appointments, allowing for personalised advice and encouragement. The data from these apps can also help identify patterns – perhaps you notice you drink less water on certain days of the week, or at certain times of day, which can help you develop strategies to improve your consistency.
3. Infuse it with other flavours - If you've never been a fan of drinking water, there are now ways for you to infuse it with tasty flavours without making it unhealthy. Ditch the sugary cordials and squashes and go for cold water tea bags or fresh fruit. You can even get water bottles made specifically for this! Infusing water with natural flavours can make hydration much more enjoyable if you find plain water boring or unpalatable. The key is to add flavour without adding calories, sugar, or artificial ingredients that could undermine your weight loss efforts. Fresh fruits like lemon, lime, orange, berries, or cucumber are excellent choices. Herbs like mint, basil, or rosemary can add interesting flavours. You can even experiment with combinations – cucumber and mint, strawberry and basil, or lemon and ginger are popular pairings. Simply add your chosen ingredients to a jug or bottle of water and let it infuse for a few hours in the fridge. The longer it sits, the stronger the flavour will be. Some people like to prepare a large jug in the evening for the next day. Another option is herbal tea, which can be enjoyed hot or cold. Peppermint, chamomile, hibiscus, and fruit teas are all naturally calorie-free and can provide variety in your hydration routine. Just be sure to check that any tea you choose doesn't contain caffeine if you're drinking it in the evening, as caffeine can interfere with sleep, which is important for weight loss. At Bodyline Clinic, our nutritional advisors can provide suggestions for healthy ways to flavour your water that align with your specific weight loss programme and dietary requirements.

Beyond these practical strategies, there are several other approaches that can help you build a consistent hydration habit. One effective technique is to link drinking water to existing habits in your daily routine. For example, you might decide to drink a full glass of water immediately after waking up, before each meal, after using the bathroom, or whenever you check your phone. By anchoring the new habit of drinking water to an existing routine, you're more likely to remember and stick with it. This is a principle of habit formation known as "habit stacking," and it's remarkably effective.

Another strategy is to set up environmental cues that remind you to drink water. Keep a glass of water on your bedside table so it's the first thing you see when you wake up. Place a water bottle on your desk at work where you'll see it frequently. Keep water easily accessible wherever you spend time. The easier and more convenient you make it to drink water, the more likely you are to do it consistently.

Some people find it helpful to set specific, measurable goals rather than vague intentions. Instead of "drink more water," try "drink eight glasses of water every day" or "finish one litre of water by lunchtime." Specific goals are easier to track and achieve, and meeting them provides a sense of accomplishment that can reinforce the habit.

It can also be motivating to understand your personal "why" for increasing your water intake. Is it to support your weight loss goals? To have clearer skin? To have more energy? To reduce headaches? To support your kidney health? When you're clear on your personal reasons for wanting to drink more water, you're more likely to stay motivated when the novelty wears off. Write down your reasons and refer back to them when you need a reminder of why this habit matters to you.

At Bodyline Clinic, we incorporate hydration guidance into all our weight loss programmes because we've seen firsthand how proper hydration enhances weight loss results. Our nurses provide personalised recommendations based on your weight, activity level, and the specific medication you're taking. They can help you troubleshoot if you're struggling to meet your hydration goals, and celebrate with you when you successfully build this healthy habit. Many patients report that the accountability of discussing their hydration at appointments helps them stay on track.

For more weight loss facts and advice, check out our wellness hub to read all about nutrition, exercise, and fully supported medical weight loss journeys. Our blog covers a wide range of topics relevant to weight loss and overall health, from understanding how different medications work to practical tips for meal planning, exercise routines suitable for people at various fitness levels, and strategies for overcoming common weight loss challenges. You'll find evidence-based information written by our clinical team, as well as inspiring success stories from real Bodyline patients who have achieved remarkable weight loss results.

If you're ready to take the next step in your weight loss journey, we encourage you to book a consultation at Bodyline Clinic to discuss how our medically supervised programmes can help you achieve your goals. During your consultation, we'll take a comprehensive health history, discuss your weight loss objectives, explain the various treatment options available, and answer any questions you have. Our team will work with you to develop a personalised programme that includes not just medication, but also nutritional guidance, exercise recommendations, and ongoing support to help you build healthy habits – including proper hydration – that will serve you for life.

Remember, water is a powerful tool in your weight loss arsenal, but it works best as part of a comprehensive approach. At Bodyline Clinic, we combine the latest medical treatments with practical lifestyle guidance to give you the best possible chance of success. With clinics throughout the Northwest including Warrington, Manchester, Liverpool, Birkenhead, St Helens, Stockport, and Stoke-on-Trent, and online consultations available throughout the UK, we're here to support you wherever you are in your weight loss journey. Contact us today on 0800 995 6036 or visit our contact page to get started. You could lose up to a stone in your first month with our proven, medically supervised programmes.

Staying properly hydrated is one of the simplest yet most effective things you can do to support your weight loss efforts. Whether you're just beginning to think about losing weight or you're already working with a medical weight loss provider like Bodyline Clinic, making hydration a priority can enhance your results and improve your overall health. Start today by drinking a large glass of water right now, and then commit to building this healthy habit over the coming weeks. Your body – and your waistline – will thank you for it.