Adding Flavor to Water after Weight Loss Surgery

Posted: Jul 17 in Post-Bariatric Diet by

Adding Flavor to Water after Weight Loss SurgeryStaying hydrated will be one of your most important goals after bariatric surgery, and drinking more water is the best way to achieve it. With zero calories and countless important roles in our bodies, water is always the best beverage choice, especially for those trying to lose weight. Unfortunately, many people forego water for soda and other sugary drinks because water lacks an appealing characteristic: flavor.

You’ll need to avoid sweetened drinks after weight loss surgery, and will be working to take more sips of water throughout the day to stay hydrated despite your limited stomach capacity. But as you work to reach your hydration goals, there’s a simple way to make water more interesting without making it less healthy: flavor infusion.

An Introduction to Infusion

Numerous different fruits and herbs can be used to lend flavor to plain water. The taste of infused water isn’t quite as sweet as something like fruit juice, but it has a subtle and enjoyable flavor with all the hydrating benefits of regular H2O.

Though berries and citrus fruits tend to work best for flavor infusion, you can choose whatever fruit you like and experiment with a variety of combinations to find the ones you like best. Ideas for good combinations include:

  • One cup of cubed watermelon, one sprig of rosemary
  • One-half cup of blackberries, one-quarter cup of sage leaves
  • Half of a sliced cucumber, half of a sliced lime, one-quarter cup of fresh mint leaves
  • One-half cup of cubed pineapple, half of a sliced orange, one tablespoon of freshly grated ginger

Before you can start infusing, you’ll need to gather a few things like:

  • A wooden spoon
  • A pitcher or glass jar (try for a size of at least 2 quarts)
  • Fruit and/or herbs
  • Water

When you’re ready to start, the steps are pretty simple:

  1. Put your fruit and herbs in the bottom of the pitcher or jar. Release their flavor and juices by mashing them a bit with the wooden spoon.
  2. Fill the container with water and stir. You can also add ice to the container, which will serve as a filter to prevent pieces of fruit and herb from getting into your water glass.
  3. Put a lid on your infusion. You can enjoy your infusion immediately, but because the flavor will intensify with time, some people prefer to refrigerate infused water overnight.

Follow these steps to create one of the tasty infusions listed above, or use your favorite ingredients to come up with something on your own. If you keep experimenting with different infusions after weight loss surgery, reaching your hydration goals can be much more flavorful and fun.

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