If you’re new to the concept of consuming bone broth, it can seem overwhelming. “You want me to just drink it…plain?” people often ask.
Making bone broth a part of your lifestyle is much more than just guzzling mugs of the liquid gold. You can easily weave it into your normal food routine and actively support wellness without even thinking twice.
As with any new habit, getting started is the hard part. Plus, people drink bone broth for different reasons so how do you know if you’re doing it right?
To get to the bottom of this, we reviewed common conditions where bone broth is frequently used. Not only did we look into how to drink bone broth for each, but we also examined frequency and amount. We’ve detailed our findings below so keep reading to learn how to drink bone broth with confidence!
Metabolism, Detox, and Weight Loss
The glycine found in bone broth supports the liver in removing toxins from the body. As a result, many have turned to bone broth for detoxification and weight loss purposes. We even did our own bone broth detox and saw some pretty interesting results.
How often should you drink bone broth for detox and weight loss?
It depends!
Depending on the rigor of your plan, you may end up drinking a lot of bone broth for a while. This is especially true if you’re following a bone broth diet plan. You might be drinking it for every meal initially either as a replacement or alongside. Further down the road it still might be a twice-a-day thing.
How much should you drink?
You might end up consuming 40 or 50 ounces a day at times while only having about 12-24 on other days. It depends on the specific plan you’re following and how much weight you have to lose.
How should you consume it?
In this case, heat in a mug and drink plain.
You can definitely add it to soups or stews but bone broth diet plans often call for a few days where your only food intake is bone broth.
While that sounds extreme, a bone broth fast isn’t a starvation diet. Not only does bone broth contain protein, but it’s also gentle on the digestive system while providing nutrients at a cellular level. It’s like throwing your body into a repair cycle. By eliminating the excess work of digestion, you’re allowing it to focus on the business of dealing with other things that need help.
Note: Bone broth fasts or diets should not be done unless you’ve gotten an all clear from a qualified practitioner. Pregnant women or those in especially vulnerable conditions should not do bone broth fasts.
Skin Conditions
One of the best ways to restore your skin is to consume collagen. It just so happens that bone broth naturally contains this nutrient.
How often should you drink bone broth for skin?
Daily!
Bone broth contains naturally-occurring collagen, which helps to add elasticity and strength to your skin, hair, and nails. A daily bone broth routine could be beneficial in nourishing your gut which is often where skin conditions start from.
How much should you drink?
6-12 ounces daily.
It’s nice to add this as part of your morning or evening routine, so that (a) you remember to drink it every day and (b) you’re training your body to get its daily dose of skin-boosting nutrients at the same time. Drinking bone broth before bed along with taking a probiotic supplement can be a powerful skin supportive program.
How should you consume it?
Plain or in a soup or stew.
For time-crunched people, planning dinner recipes that utilize a slow cooker and bone broth can be the perfect way to get your bone broth in without having to think extra hard about it. Just drink some extra broth left over from slow cooking your roast, or have an extra cup of soup broth after dinner.
To Support Digestion
The glutamine found in bone broth supports gut health. It’s why so many gut health experts recommend bone broth to their patients.
How often should you drink bone broth for digestive health?
Daily.
When you’re suffering from problems with digestion, your whole body is suffering. The digestive tract is considered the seat of health. We can’t be healthier than what we are putting into our bodies and if we aren’t absorbing or digesting what we’re eating, we are still not well.
Bone broth contains glycine, which helps improve stomach acid. This results in improved digestion.
Bone broth can also help nourish the large intestine to better perform its task of eliminating waste. Fat is an essential nutrient for proper elimination and protein is vital for cellular energy and repair.
How can you remember to drink bone broth every day?
1.Take Making It Out of the Equation
It may seem obvious, but if you don’t have bone broth, you can’t drink it! So keeping a stock of it is essential to making it part of your routine.
One of the main reasons that only 5% of Americans are drinking bone broth is because they are hung up on figuring out how to make it. If you are one of the fantastic folks out there who has perfected your homemade bone broth recipe, well done! But for the rest of us, finding the hours to invest in sourcing bones, simmering them, and storing that high quality bone broth is downright daunting.
That’s why we made bone broth accessible for everyone – even the busiest people who are rarely at home. Our broth is shelf stable and will keep in your pantry (or desk drawer) for up to two years at peak freshness.
Whether you have some on hand as back up for when your homemade broth runs out, or choose to enroll in one of our subscription plans to have bone broth delivered to your door on your schedule, the first step to making bone broth a habit is having it around.
2. Make Bone Broth Part of Your Routine
We’ve all got those little things in our lives that we do without thinking. Making that morning cup of coffee, feeding Fido, or brushing our teeth. And if you’ve got kids you know that a bedtime routine is a must.
So take a look at your current routine and find a spot in your day to fit in a mug of bone broth.
Maybe it’s at breakfast?
Those extra grams of protein are a perfect way to keep you satisfied until lunch.
Or perhaps you have a few minutes post-workout?
That mug of broth will re-hydrate you, replenish lost electrolytes, and speed muscle recovery.
Or could it be that adding it to your evening unwind works best for you? A warm mug of bone broth is a calming nightcap before a good night’s sleep!
Where does bone broth best fit into your schedule?
Now make a note of this new spot and write it down like this:
- “Instead of having a second cup of coffee, I’m going to drink a mug of bone broth.”
- Or “When I get hungry at 11am (because I always do), I’m going to drink bone broth.”
- Or even, “Before I sit down to watch TV every night, I’m going to grab a mug of bone broth.”
Be sure to include the activity or action that you are already doing daily in your sentence. So now, when you do this already formed behavior, it will trigger your new bone broth routine.
3. Add Reminders Around You
Even with the best intentions, it’s hard to remember to drink your bone broth. So adding little hints to your surroundings can be key to keeping you in the habit.
Slightly, well, annoying reminders – like setting an alarm on your phone – work well for many people, because they simply can’t ignore them!
But gentle reminders or reinforcing behaviors are also a big help. Selecting a special mug to be your bone broth mug is a great idea, and is doubly effective if you resist putting it back in the cabinet.
Instead, leave your bone broth mug (or travel mug) out where you will see it. This could be in the middle of the kitchen table, by the coffee maker, even on top of your computer or phone.
And be sure to store a carton of bone broth front and center in your fridge, because when we are hungry, we often grab the first thing we see!
So, go ahead and put a post-it note on your favorite snack food that reads, “WAIT! BONE BROTH INSTEAD!”
How much should you drink?
Anywhere from 8 ounces to many cups a day.
This is dependent on your current state of wellness and digestive health. If you’re experiencing a number of unpleasant symptoms associated with digestion, then several cups a day may be a good starting point.
How should you consume it?
Begin the day by drinking 8-12 ounces of warm bone broth. Consume a lunch meal that contains bone broth (like beef vegetable soup), and then sip a post-dinner cup of bone broth to end your day.
Final Thoughts
As you can see bone broth is extremely versatile.
While everyone is genetically unique, this guide can definitely serve as a starting point for your bone broth journey. Pay attention to the signals your body sends and make sure that you’re looking for those positive changes which, for some, can happen in the space of a few days or a week, and continue to grow as bone broth becomes a regular lifestyle habit.
