Water… what counts?

ldilouie

hi all … new to full MFP access.

So I really dislike drinking water. I’m 65 and I just didn’t grow up w this as a priority. I do however drink copious amounts of coffee. 😂 I use a small amt of vanilla protein shake as creamer (about 6 oz total daily & count the calories)

Can I consider any of this water? Please?

Strudders67

It's definitely fluid, in terms of liquid intake, as is tea, fruit juice, milk and soft drinks. If you're looking at the tracker at the bottom of the food page, it doesn't count towards anything with regards to weight loss and, after a while, you'll probably do what many of us do - and just ignore it. It's important, in general, to stay hydrated, which is possibly why MFP has a counter for you to track your intake.

AnnPT77

Coffee counts. "They" used to say it didn't, because it's diuretic. More recent research seems to indicate that it stays in the body long enough to be hydrating for most of us.

From a health perspective, it definitely doesn't need to be just plain water. Most non-alcohol fluids count, including those in foods like fruit, soup/stew, etc.

As far as what to count in MFP: Count whatever helps you. I tend to underconsume water and other non-chewable fluid sources even though I like water fine, so I logged it in MFP long enough to get some better hydration habits in place, then stopped. I logged only plain water, because things like coffee, tea, juice, etc., were logged as part of my meals/snacks.

Speaking as a fellow 60-something, though, I felt a pang of concern when I read your post - maybe misplaced concern, I admit. Many people in our demographic underhydrate in ways that are suboptimal for health.

In my understanding, the best guide is urine color: If it's pale yellow, kind of straw colored, that's around the right amount of hydration. If it's dark yellow, maybe under-hydrated. If clear, over-hydrated. Consuming more than needful of certain vitamins will make it sort of neon yellow, which is OK - the dark vs. light yellow concept still applies. Some medications will make it other colors, but doctors, pharmacists, or drug packaging usually points that out. Brown is usually a very bad sign, unless the person knows why it's that color and their doctor has said it's OK . . . mostly not OK, though.

ldilouie

Thanks .. I do recognize that hydration is important 😊 I feel Im rarely under hydrated (urine color is Windsor & Newton lemon yellow LOL) as fruits & vegetables make up at least 40-50% of my diet. I just really don’t enjoy plain (or flavored for that matter) water. I don’t like carbonated drinks either. Probably my best bet might be decaf/herbal chai tea… but it’s good to know I can chose to count my coffee if I want. It’s funny just even the idea of having agency when it comes to food choices is kinda wild for me … decades of diet culture y’know? 🤦🏻‍♀️

Retroguy2000

"Water… what counts?"

For the site, it's irrelevant. For yourself, your own needs are going to be based on your own body, your climate, your activity, your diet, etc.

I would hazard a guess that you're either chronically dehydrated or drinking waaaaaay too much coffee. Neither of those two extremes is good for you.

How about drinking diet soda instead of water or coffee?

rms62003

I don't look at the water thing in MFP. I think it's there because a lot of people push water when you are losing weight - it's an easy 'fill up' that doesn't have calories.

Personally, as a health care professional - I count anything without caffeine as 'water' and tell people it's OK to drink it. Yes, caffeine products are mostly water, but the diuretic effect of the caffeine (for some people) will drive that water out. This effect does wear off, however, if you are a habitual caffeine user.

I would caution you, however, about including things like fruit juices in the 'water' category. Fruit juice is basically sugar water. A lot of good stuff from the fruit - mainly fiber, is removed when you do juices. Totally DON'T recommend drinking calories - they are not as satisfying as food, and can add the calories up fast.

If you don't like water, I think herbal teas are a great solution. No calories, some of them have a good benefit. You could also switch some of your coffee to decaf, or do half/half. Sorry, I DON'T think decaf has a different taste! Try a blind taste testing, bet you wouldn't know the difference!

age_is_just_a_number

We are all unique. I drink lots of water, I also sweat a lot. My husband drinks maybe a glass a day, he doesn’t sweat much. We are both equally hydrated.
So long as you are not dehydrated, then you are getting enough ‘water’ in your diet through other drinks and food.