1 gallon of water a day?

AngelaHuo
AngelaHuo Posts: 15 Member
edited November 20 in Food and Nutrition
I have heard some people doing this. However, I have also had some people tell me that doing this is dangerous cause it causes an imbalance in the water and the amount of sodium or smt like that in your body (I don't remember exact the imbalance or what but something like that).

So if I do want to try this 1 gallon of water a day thing, what do I need to eat in order to keep my body in balance?

Replies

  • Old_Cat_Lady
    Old_Cat_Lady Posts: 1,193 Member
    You can tell by the color of your urine. If it's a dark, cloudy color, you need more water. If it's slightly yellow and clear to see through, you are ok. Don't forget vitamins can make it very bright yellow.
    Here is a chart : https://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/2017/06/30/check-urine-color-tell-youre-dehydrated/
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    Seems excessive unless the person sweats a lot. Even then, they should substitute some water for drinks containing electrolytes.

    There is a lot of leeway in the amount of fluids a person needs to ingest. The best test is urine color:

    BSA_Urine_Color_Chart_zpsoubuxodo.png
  • rmgnow
    rmgnow Posts: 375 Member
    A gallon of water a day is fine.
    You don't need that much, but it's fine
  • oilphins
    oilphins Posts: 240 Member
    I drink anywhere from ten to twelve 8 ounce glasses a day but over the entire day. Apparently I've heard drinking a lot of water also helps suppress appetite and is very healthy for your kidneys. I'm in the bathroom every couple of hours but not a big deal. Like rmgnow said, you don't need a full gallon but 8 or 9 ounces is even fine. I think there's 16 ounces in a gallon.
  • perkymommy
    perkymommy Posts: 1,642 Member
    I've heard a gallon of water per day is too much but unless you are bedridden or laying around all day and not up and moving then you would work it off I'm sure or it would go straight through and you'd be in the bathroom a lot. As long as you are active I'm sure it would be fine spread out all through the day.
  • JennJ323
    JennJ323 Posts: 646 Member
    I usually drink a gallon of water a day (128oz) over an 8 hour period at work... 16oz per hour. I've been doing this for some time now, I've had no negative affects and feel like it helps keep my bloat down and cravings to snack in the day, because I'm not feeling hungry. I use the bathroom about once an hour, always light/clear pee.. so I don't see anything wrong with what I'm doing and plan to continue to do it. In the evenings after work I'll maybe have 1 more 16oz glass, I don't have much after work.
  • AmandaDanceMore
    AmandaDanceMore Posts: 298 Member
    I probably drink around that most days. I usually fill my 32oz Hydroflask 3 or 4 times from when I get up to when I go to bed, and often have several glasses of seltzer on top of that while at work. At this point in my life drinking water is a habit. I always have a water bottle on hand.
  • tjones0411
    tjones0411 Posts: 179 Member
    JennJ323 wrote: »
    I usually drink a gallon of water a day (128oz) over an 8 hour period at work... 16oz per hour. I've been doing this for some time now, I've had no negative affects and feel like it helps keep my bloat down and cravings to snack in the day, because I'm not feeling hungry. I use the bathroom about once an hour, always light/clear pee.. so I don't see anything wrong with what I'm doing and plan to continue to do it. In the evenings after work I'll maybe have 1 more 16oz glass, I don't have much after work.

    ditto. Between water and seltzer water, I get a gallon in most days of the week. It helps to keep the urge to snack down.
  • stanmann571
    stanmann571 Posts: 5,727 Member
    edited July 2017
    I get a gallon most days. No more than 1 Liter every 2 hours. So the gallon should take at least 8 of your waking hours to drink.

    I also start off the day with a B Complex vitamin, if I pass all the excess from that in more than 4 hours or before lunchtime, I know I'm drinking too fast/too much.
  • gothchiq
    gothchiq Posts: 4,590 Member
    oilphins wrote: »
    I drink anywhere from ten to twelve 8 ounce glasses a day but over the entire day. Apparently I've heard drinking a lot of water also helps suppress appetite and is very healthy for your kidneys. I'm in the bathroom every couple of hours but not a big deal. Like rmgnow said, you don't need a full gallon but 8 or 9 ounces is even fine. I think there's 16 ounces in a gallon.

    Typo? 16 ounces is two cups. 16 cups are in a gallon.
  • Huskeryogi
    Huskeryogi Posts: 578 Member
    Drink water when you are thirsty:)

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/821181/myths-and-facts-about-hydration-requirements
  • HockeyGoalie35
    HockeyGoalie35 Posts: 84 Member
    edited July 2017
    I usually go through 2 gallons a day depending on the heat. One gallon working and one at night when I am home. I just monitor my urine color. If it's clear you are drinking to much.
  • taziarj
    taziarj Posts: 243 Member
    I drink at least half a gallon during the day while at work and then also have a gallon jug in the fridge that I nearly empty after I get home around 5:00pm. Some days I will be a little under a gallon, some days a little over or if not nearly a gallon and a half.

    As long as you are eating throughout the day and taking in sodium, you really don't need to worry about drinking too much water. Hyponatremia comes from a significant drop in sodium levels. This often comes about during times of physical excursion where you also drink lots of water. The result may be a gain in weight from the water but your sodium levels have dropped through sweat and aspiration. You would normally would would lose weight through sweat and aspiration, so your sodium would remain in balance. Under excursion, your body is expelling sodium through sweat and you are diluting remaining sodium in your body through water intake and you get a dangerous imbalance of sodium in the body. This is very unlikely to happen to someone in the normal course of the day unless you work in a strenuous line of work.

    A gallon of water throughout the day won't cause an issue. Your kidneys are capable of expelling about a liter of water every two hours. There are four liters in a gallon, so your kidneys can process a gallon of water easily throughout a 12-16 hour day.
  • LynnJ9
    LynnJ9 Posts: 414 Member
    gothchiq wrote: »
    oilphins wrote: »
    I drink anywhere from ten to twelve 8 ounce glasses a day but over the entire day. Apparently I've heard drinking a lot of water also helps suppress appetite and is very healthy for your kidneys. I'm in the bathroom every couple of hours but not a big deal. Like rmgnow said, you don't need a full gallon but 8 or 9 ounces is even fine. I think there's 16 ounces in a gallon.

    Typo? 16 ounces is two cups. 16 cups are in a gallon.

    I think she meant 16 - 8 ounce glasses, :smiley:
  • Nykkismommy21
    Nykkismommy21 Posts: 224 Member
    I am so new to drinking water daily. I would always "forget" to drink water,unless it came from a bottle. But over the last week i fill up a 64 ounce bottle and try to do that.Im happy when I can get 48 ounces. I think of it like this , the more water,the more easily fat can get flushed away. Its not exxxactlly correct, but it helps to motivate me to continue to drink enough.
  • PowerliftingMom
    PowerliftingMom Posts: 430 Member
    I started drinking a gallon/day and now I'm up to 150 oz/day. I'm a powerlifter and do sweat a lot and lift heavy weights. It also keeps my weight down since the meets have weight classes. Not sure if this is true or not but supposedly you can safely drink 1 ounce for every pound you weigh.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,269 Member
    While problems are unusual (and I'm absolutely not disputing anything said above), it's interesting to read a personal account from General Diet & Weight Loss here, of someone reaching a dangerous amount of water, in a non-race scenario.

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10583723/warning-to-others-drinking-too-much-water-can-be-deadly-and-this-is-real

    It's good to remember that this could be an issue for some people, especially in an environment where some use water to stave off hunger, or because they've heard lots is healthy; and some may simultaneously believe that reducing sodium is a good and healthy thing.

    Context is important, balance is important.
  • oilphins
    oilphins Posts: 240 Member
    gothchiq wrote: »
    oilphins wrote: »
    I drink anywhere from ten to twelve 8 ounce glasses a day but over the entire day. Apparently I've heard drinking a lot of water also helps suppress appetite and is very healthy for your kidneys. I'm in the bathroom every couple of hours but not a big deal. Like rmgnow said, you don't need a full gallon but 8 or 9 ounces is even fine. I think there's 16 ounces in a gallon.

    Typo? 16 ounces is two cups. 16 cups are in a gallon.

    My bad, I meant 16 8 ounce glasses. Thanks for seeing that.
  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
    I've never understood the obsession with drinking ridiculous amounts of water. Even if there's no adverse effects, why make any more trips to the bathroom than needed.
  • fjmartini
    fjmartini Posts: 1,149 Member
    I drink between 1 and 2 daily. I feel better in general.
  • Spliner1969
    Spliner1969 Posts: 3,233 Member
    TheWJordinWJordin wrote: »
    You can tell by the color of your urine. If it's a dark, cloudy color, you need more water. If it's slightly yellow and clear to see through, you are ok. Don't forget vitamins can make it very bright yellow.
    Here is a chart : https://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/2017/06/30/check-urine-color-tell-youre-dehydrated/

    This. If it's completely clear you probably should back off drinking water for the rest of the day, or at least a few hours depending on what you are doing (IE: If you're outside in the heat, and have not been drinking alcohol or something highly caffeinated then you may be drinking too much water). I drink close to a gallon a day on days I work out (for up to 2 hours intensely). I also eat a lot of sodium and take plenty of vitamins and drink other electrolytes. On days I don't work out I drink far less because I'm not losing hydration as fast.
  • Katherinelittle24
    Katherinelittle24 Posts: 63 Member
    A gallon of water a day seems pretty excessive to me, unless of course you work out a lot and then it might be completely necessary in your case. But I have always heard that just drinking 8 glasses of water a day should be enough. Although, I really have to get used to just drinking even two cups of water a day...I am terrible when it comes to my water intake.
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
    Unless you live in the desert, you probably do not need a gallon of water per day.
  • OliveGirl128
    OliveGirl128 Posts: 801 Member
    rybo wrote: »
    I've never understood the obsession with drinking ridiculous amounts of water. Even if there's no adverse effects, why make any more trips to the bathroom than needed.

    This. My 4 large cups of coffee a day already sends me there enough :p
  • flemmingss
    flemmingss Posts: 32 Member
    TheWJordinWJordin wrote: »
    You can tell by the color of your urine. If it's a dark, cloudy color, you need more water. If it's slightly yellow and clear to see through, you are ok. Don't forget vitamins can make it very bright yellow.
    Here is a chart : https://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/2017/06/30/check-urine-color-tell-youre-dehydrated/
    But if it's clear you are drinking to mutch
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