How do you, personally, determine how much water to drink?

BrunetteRunner87
BrunetteRunner87 Posts: 591 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I always hear so many different things about water needs. Some people say drink half your weight in ounces per day. Some people go by the 8 cups rule, but I don't think either of those are really based in science, just suggestions. I have no clue how much water to drink in a day. I think I sweat more than most people, so that's a factor. Also I don't want to drink too much water, as it'll deplete the electrolytes from my body so that's bad too. And what if you drink a lot of water in the morning but taper off in the afternoon? I can't really use the pee test because I take multivitamins that make my pee yellow (which I know is excess vitamins my body doesn't need, but I don't want to stop taking supplements completely, just probably should take ones with less vitamins). I just want to hear how you personally determine how much water to drink.
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Replies

  • AlabasterVerve
    AlabasterVerve Posts: 3,171 Member
    By thirst.
  • JenHuedy
    JenHuedy Posts: 611 Member
    I just drink when I'm thirsty.

    There's no set amount that anyone "needs". It varies from person to person, day to day depending on activity, weather, how much water is in what you eat and tons of other factors. Just keep in simple and drink when you're thirsty. That's how we're designed.

    (And i never did figure out those color charts. Did they mean the color in the toilet, because then it's diluted by water, and some toilets have more water than others... and if not the color in the toilet, do they expect you to pee in a cup or something? Probably overthinking...)
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    8 cups isn't a "rule"...it's a general guideline...I take a multi vitamin too and have no issue using the pee test.
  • healthygreek
    healthygreek Posts: 2,137 Member
    I drink when I'm thirsty, usually about100 ounces a day more or less depending on salt intake and/or exercise.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    By thirst generally and an occasional colour of pee check

  • BrunetteRunner87
    BrunetteRunner87 Posts: 591 Member
    edited October 2016
    But I always hear that if you're thirsty you're too late. And for example I could go all day sitting in the air conditioned office not feeling particularly thirsty and not drinking anything, then go for a jog in the hot evening sun and feel thirsty and dehydrated, so I'd have to drink something prior to going jogging - how would one know what is enough?
  • Michael190lbs
    Michael190lbs Posts: 1,510 Member
    Sued0nim wrote: »
    By thirst generally and an occasional colour of pee check

    Courious what is the pee test?
  • fishshark
    fishshark Posts: 1,886 Member
    by thirst and color of pee.
  • AlabasterVerve
    AlabasterVerve Posts: 3,171 Member
    BrunetteRunner87 wrote: »
    But I always hear that if you're thirsty you're too late. And for example I could go all day sitting in the air conditioned office not feeling particularly thirsty and not drinking anything, then go for a jog in the hot evening sun and feel thirsty and dehydrated, so I'd have to drink something prior to going jogging - how would one know what is enough?

    They used to say that but it's not evidenced based. It's ok to just drink when you're thirsty and not force it. Here's some quotes from articles on a recent drinking study that might put you at ease:

    "Farrell says the discovery is further evidence that controversial advice to deliberately drink fluids is wrong. “It shows we have several very subtle mechanisms for regulating the amount we drink. If left to your own devices, you will drink the requisite amount of water to maintain balance.”

    Farrell says even people doing exercise just need to drink according to their thirst. “These are well refined mechanisms forged on the anvil of evolution.”     -New Scientist

    "If we just do what our body demands us to we'll probably get it right -- just drink according to thirst rather than an elaborate schedule." -Michael Farrell
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    Thirst here too. But I pretty much keep a bottle with me at all times and drink a sip here and there.
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
    I go by thirst too. In summer i can easily get through 3L a day, but in winter i struggle to finish my 1.5L bottle.
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,423 Member
    I drink a glass of water/tea with meals and then whenever I am thirsty.
    My urine is very light colored.

  • CooCooPuff
    CooCooPuff Posts: 4,374 Member
    I go by whenever I feel like which is pretty often.
  • ItsyBitsy246
    ItsyBitsy246 Posts: 307 Member
    I'm not a fan of rules. I just drink whenever I'm thirsty. Most of my food contains water too, so I stay hydrated. My pee said so. :)
  • TonyB0588
    TonyB0588 Posts: 9,520 Member
    BrunetteRunner87 wrote: »
    I always hear so many different things about water needs. Some people say drink half your weight in ounces per day. Some people go by the 8 cups rule, but I don't think either of those are really based in science, just suggestions. I have no clue how much water to drink in a day. I think I sweat more than most people, so that's a factor. Also I don't want to drink too much water, as it'll deplete the electrolytes from my body so that's bad too. And what if you drink a lot of water in the morning but taper off in the afternoon? I can't really use the pee test because I take multivitamins that make my pee yellow (which I know is excess vitamins my body doesn't need, but I don't want to stop taking supplements completely, just probably should take ones with less vitamins). I just want to hear how you personally determine how much water to drink.

    My mother-in-law always told us we weren't drinking enough. Then her doctor told her she was drinking too much!! Her body was deficient of stuff that the water completely washed out.

    I aim for 8 glasses but sometimes don't even get halfway there.
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 10,091 Member
    Thirst.
  • BusyRaeNOTBusty
    BusyRaeNOTBusty Posts: 7,166 Member
    By thirst.

    http://www.snopes.com/medical/myths/8glasses.asp
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    AlabasterVerve wrote: »
    By thirst.

    Yup.

    I tend to drink throughout the day, so I imagine I end up drinking a lot (and I am not worried I will drink too much), but I really think your body can handle this. Check pee color if you are worried.
  • Red_Pill
    Red_Pill Posts: 300 Member
    I drink to thirst - which is loads. I piss like a race horse.
  • canadianlbs
    canadianlbs Posts: 5,199 Member
    since i started taking creatine, i go by the way my overall body feels. there's a very discernible sweet spot i can get to when i've fed the creatine enough water to let it fully do what it does. it literally feels like being a well-oiled machine. every joint feels like the bones are just floating inside their capsules, every muscle feels like all the fibres are moving smoothly and nothing is sticking or catching on anything else.

    anecdotally, it seems to take about four litres of water to get myself into that zone. i weigh 140 on a heavy day atm, so that's a whole lot of water going by 'standard' standards. but that seems to be what it takes in my case. so i aim for that zone but i'm fairly philosophical about not being there.
  • H_Ock12
    H_Ock12 Posts: 1,152 Member
    If I'm thirsty (which is rarely), I'll drink some water. If my pee turns brown, I'll force myself to drink water.
  • crackpotbaby
    crackpotbaby Posts: 1,297 Member
    I take a medication that increases thirst and can have serious health consequences if dehydration occurs.

    It also can cause you to pee larger volumes of dilute urine which makes measuring hydration by colour of out put unreliable.

    As a base, I drink 3lt of water over a 24 hour period to avoid side effects such as tremor, nausea and diahorrea. If it's hot or I am strenuously exercising I drink more.

    For most generally healthy adults 2 litres is adequate with a urinary output of between 800-2000ml.

    This does vary for individuals depending on factors such as electrolyte balance, heart failure, kidney function.

  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
    By the color of my pee. It's almost always extremely pale yellow, almost clear (unless I'm eating nutritional yeast by the pound). If it's a little dark I try to drink more.
  • Basilin
    Basilin Posts: 360 Member
    This is tough for me, too. I can't go by thirst because I am always dehydrated when I rely on that.

    When I researched it a long time ago, I found that you can be in a state of chronic dehydration and it will require increasing water intake slowly to get to a new balance, otherwise you just piss a lot and are still dehydrated.

    What worked well for me was to evaluate how much I naturally would drink. After that, I increased it by one glass for a week, give or take, and kept doing this until I got to a point where I didn't pee constantly but didn't feel dehydrated either. Of course, it will vary by day depending on activity and weather.

    I feel dehydrated when my lips become chapped, my skin is less elastic, I do not pee for a long time, the pee is dark, my throats is dry, and I feel tired. Feeling thirsty is usually the last sign that I'm super dehydrated.
  • lilac_bunny
    lilac_bunny Posts: 137 Member
    I have been reading recently that drinking more than 1000mls in 1hr is bad for you. That is how I've always drank. I can go all day without drinking then suddenly feel really thirsty and down 6000/1000 ml in about 10 minutes. I am trying to just take sips throughout the day now.
  • Trish1c
    Trish1c Posts: 549 Member
    Initially I forced myself to drink the 8 glasses. Then I drank as thirsty. Now the 8 glasses is almost a minimum based on thirst. I've learned to listen to my body more
  • bwhitty67
    bwhitty67 Posts: 162 Member
    I probably have 120-160oz a day. I just like water and if I'm thirsty I drink. I have a hydroflask because I like cold water.
  • cerise_noir
    cerise_noir Posts: 5,468 Member
    Sued0nim wrote: »
    By thirst generally and an occasional colour of pee check

    This. Aim for straw coloured urine. Its the best personal indicator there is. The darker the urine color, the more dehydrated you are. If the urine is clear and stays that way for a while, back off from the water for a little while...over-hydration is never a good thing.

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