What should my goal be for drinking water?

lilco

I know this has probably been asked and answered a million times, but... How much water should I aim to drink each day?

I just started trying to lose weight again 3 weeks ago and I finally bought myself a water bottle today. It holds 800ml (28oz) of water, and I read everywhere that you should drink lots of water, but what is a lot? If I know how many times I should fill up my bottle it would make it a lot easier to make sure I'm drinking enough.

How much should my goal be each day? Does it depend on my weight or other factors? Any advice would be really helpful, thanks so much!

WranglerMichelle

The agreed standard is 64 oz. daily (or 8 glasses a day). That's a good place to start, but there's no "standard" body, so there shouldn't be a standard water goal. The best way to find how much water you should be drinking every day is to take your current weight and divide it in half. The number you get is the number of ounces of water you should drink in a day.

For example, if a person's current weight is 150:

Current weight: 150

150 ÷ 2 = 75

Drink 75 oz. of water daily.



That is A LOT of water and you'll probably have to run to the bathroom frequently at first, but you'll start to notice a difference in your skin first. Mine is really soft, clear, and glows all the time. I also notice I tend to think more clearly and function better overall when I get my water intake goal for the day. If I skip a day or don't drink much water one day, I can really tell a difference. I also find I crave it more than I used to, meaning I choose it over calorie-heavy drinks like coffees, juices, pop, etc. It really makes a world of difference!

lilco

Thanks so much for your response, I really appreciate it.

And wow that's a lot of water! I tend to hardly drink any water, and I know it's bad so I definitely want to change that. So I weight around 180 so I should be drinking 90oz of water a day?

AJ_G

64 ounces a day is the MINIMUM that anybody should be drinking. I drink a gallon a day (128 ounces), and I love it

professorhuggins

Also, don't forget to replace the water you lose when you work out. At 180lb, I drink about 90oz/day plus another 32oz or so per hour of working out.

AmyRhubarb

I feel best if I get at least 8 glasses a day, sometimes more depending on my activity level for the day, how hot the weather is, how much salty stuff I've eaten, etc.

A good way to tell if you're getting enough is by paying attention to the color of your urine. And here's a handy dandy chart. :bigsmile:

Mokey41

You should drink so you aren't thirsty and your urine is pale yellow. Beyond that excessive amounts of water are totally unnecessary, don't improve weight loss beyond making you feel full and providing extra exercise running to the bathroom, plus drinking too much can deplete your body of minerals it needs along with taxing your kidneys.

The whole drink half your weight in ounces is broscience. A myth that keeps being perpetuated into larger and larger amounts of water to drink. You get plenty of fluids from other foods you eat and things you drink. Your body doesn't care if it's water from your fancy new water bottle, a cup of tea or an apple you eat (an apple is 85% water).

_Zardoz_

The 8 glasses of water a day is a Myth. there is no science to back it up. Everything you eat has water in it even a baked potato is 75% water. Drink when you're thirsty. The actual advice that was given was backed by Evian, and Volvic the water producers so they had a vested interest. Kust goog 8 glasses a day myth and you'll come across a myriad of articles (with science backing) pointing out that this is a myth

Laceymp88

I have heard that while your exercising and trying to loose weight that you should drink half your body weight in oz of water. Example you weigh 200lbs you should be drinking 100 oz a day.

kimmymayhall

Your goal for drinking water should be to be hydrated. Your urine should be pale yellow to clear in color. There is no set number, 64 oz is often used as a guide so if you really don't know where to start try 64 and adjust as needed. If you eat foods with a lot of water content you can drink less. If it's very hot, you work out, you eat a lot of salt, you drink alcohol, etc., you're going to need to drink more to stay properly hydrated. Other fluids hydrate you as well, you don't have to drink just water as long as the added calories of other drinks work for your plan.

lilco

Thanks for your great responses everyone! I love the community here at MFP, and how much people are willing to help out eachother and give advice. I really appreciate it!

mayamagallanes

My husband went to the ER yesterday because his head was hurting for a few days straight. The first thing the doc said was how much water do you drink? My husband told him and he told us " I know no one does this, I dont even so this but you really need to drink about 8, 20oz a day min. Seems like a lot

cdn_girl

I've heard that you should times your weight by 0.07 that will tell you how many glasses of water you need to drink daily. so if you are 180lbs for example you should be drinking 12.6 glasses

eazy_

http://www.hydracoach.com/calculation/

Dre8604

Bump.