Water, water everywhere...?

nrhochman

This may be an obvious question but I really am not sure of the answer. I try and get my 8 cups of water in but I was wondering, I drink about 32 oz of crystal light iced tea a day, does that count in anyway towards my water intake or do I just add it as crystal light iced tea during that meal? For that matter how does any drink, even coffee count towards water? Thanks!

iheartdinosaurs

Anything that contains water can count as water intake. You'll want to log your crystal light if it has calories, but it can count towards your water intake. In terms of how much water you need - that varies in the person. Drink enough to make your pee look closer to clear than a dark yellow color. If you eat salty foods or sweat a lot, you'll likely want to increase your water intake. Again, listen to your body! If you find you need or want to increase your intake significantly, know that your body will adapt and you won't have to pee every 20 minutes forever!

Oldbitcollector

This might interest you... http://nutrition.about.com/library/blwatercalculator.htm

chumbasmumba

There is a lot of debate on the water topic. I have heard that coffee can count as half so if you have a 16 oz coffee count it as 8 oz of water. Others will argue that coffee dehydrates you so you can't count it.
Crystal light is made with water so it does count but it is less healthy for you with all the chemicals of course.
To further complicate the debate not all people NEED 8 cups of water. There is actually a formula for that too. Heavier people, more active people and those who live in warmer climates require more water. Too much water can actually be bad for a person as it flushes out the sodium and electrolytes you need.
That said, most North Americans are chronically dehydrated, so drink as much as you can

ihad

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/ihad/view/mfp-101-water-water-everywhere-609347

nrhochman

You guys are great! Thanks for all the helpful info. I just started logging everything to keep myself truly accountable.

segacs

The 8 cups of water thing is mainly a myth.

As long as you keep yourself hydrated, it's fine. We get most of our water from food anyway.

macgurlnet

There's a urine chart out there somewhere that you can use for reference - from what I've read, pale yellow is what you're going for. If it's clear, you're too hydrated and can back off on intake. Darker and you should go for more.

If I drink nothing but soda and sugary things, that causes other issues, so I try to limit those to 1 per day, with the rest being coffee or water. I've heard you can shoot for taking your body weight in pounds, dividing that in half and then drinking that amount in ounces. So for me (120 lbs) that's 60 oz of water a day. I log my water but if I've had 30 oz of water, 16 oz of coffee and an 8 oz v8, that's just as good.

~Lyssa

maidentl

segacs wrote: »

The 8 cups of water thing is mainly a myth.

As long as you keep yourself hydrated, it's fine. We get most of our water from food anyway.

Yup, this. Here's another article explaining the myth and where it came from: fivethirtyeight.com/features/you-dont-need-8-glasses-of-water-a-day/

Losingthedamnweight

As long as your pee is either lightly colored or clear, your good man. Don't worry so much about it. Just drink when you're thirsty!

47Jacqueline

Water is water. As long as your pee is light or clear you're hydrated.

nrhochman

according to the chart, I'm good! thanks!