Most of us know that we should drink plenty of water—if not the 8 glasses assigned a day by many people, at least enough to keep us hydrated and healthy. Water is pretty much free; a good filtration system can eliminate the cost of bottled water. And yet we continue to spend billions of dollars on soda, bottled teas and energy drinks, and a variety of other thirst-quenchers that come in a can.

Why? My guess is for taste. Sure, I’ll imbibe on soda or an iced coffee just to help keep me awake—drinking Mountain Dew and sweet tea both by the case made me sick when I tried to stay up all of the time when I had my daughter, was working full time, and attending college. But I must admit that it got the job done. These days, when I limit myself to one or two sodas in times of “cram emergency,” I definitely don’t stay up as late. (Then again, I’ve gotten older, too…)

To increase my own water drinking quota, I just make myself a glass of ice water first thing when I wake up. Then every time I’m hungry or thirsty, I make another. If I haven’t finished the one I started, I add ice. I’ve discovered that if it’s arctic cold, I’ll drink the heck out of it. My husband does the same thing, using a giant jug to tote his water in at work.

But some people just say that they hate the taste of water. This is funny, since water really doesn’t have much of a taste, right? Of course, I’ve done yo-yo diets like a lot of people and I can attest that any food or drink can become part of your routine—even part of you “likes”—after you give it enough time and make it into a habit. So I think every person on Earth could learn to love water.

That said, there are also plenty of ways to jazz it up:

• Add some lemon, orange, or lime wedges, or other pieces of fruit like pineapple or mango; when I was pregnant I would freeze them and use them as ice cubes. Some veggies will do the trick as well, like cucumbers.
• Stir in a low-calorie flavor powder. If you’re staying away from artificial sweeteners, however, you may want to be careful here.
• Try using a filter with flavor. You can get fruity flavors, or a mineral water taste if you prefer that.
• Flavor it with a small amount of coffee or tea syrup, or toss in some herbal leaves, like mint.
• Add a splash of juice.
• Buy sparkling water. You can get it plain and bubbly, or flavored with orange, lemon and a variety of other flavors.
• Add green tea powder for an extra health benefit and the taste of green tea.