Six habits, no app

1. Fill the filter before you do anything else

   Gravity filtration takes about four hours, which means it works on a schedule you set the night before or first thing. Fill it while the kettle boils. The whole point of a countertop filter is that the water is already there when you want it.

2. The first glass is the one that matters

   You have gone seven or eight hours without water. Drink 500 ml before coffee, not after. If you are going to use an electrolyte stick on any day, this is the glass to put it in — the salt is doing the most work here.

3. Ten drops per litre, once

   If you are drinking filtered or RO water, add trace minerals once to the jug rather than glass by glass. Ten drops per litre. You are returning what filtration removed, not dosing yourself.

4. Carry it, or you will not drink it

   The single largest predictor of how much water someone drinks is whether there is any within arm’s reach. A filled flask on the desk beats perfect intentions and an empty one in the cupboard.

5. Salt when you have earned it

   Heat, a long session, a flight, a hangover, a day spent outdoors. Electrolytes are a response to a specific loss, not a daily supplement you take because the box is on the counter. Most days, plain filtered water is the answer.

6. Stop early in the evening

   Front-load the day. Most people drink too little before four and too much after eight, then blame the water for the broken sleep.

The Ritual kit · $239