What all do you count as WATER?

Allup2Me78

I am getting different views from different people on all that they count as water intake..Me personally-All I count is actual water and the little packets that you can add to water that gives the water flavor..I hear some count tea, coffee etc..I thought if it was a beverage that has caffeine in it, you do not count it as water..But what about decaf coffee and teas?? Do they count as water?

Mokey41

Or just skip the water counting. If your urine is pale yellow and you aren't thirsty then you're hydrated. There is no weight loss miracle to drinking large amounts of water or worrying about what is water and what isn't. Your body needs fluids to stay hydrated and it doesn't care if it's from water, tea, juice, milk, soup, a piece of fruit (did you know an apple is 85% water) or even soda.

AshyyMM

I count water as water...
I've done alot of research in the past, and was told not to count sports drinks/teas/coffee's as water...
Water is still important to drink..more so than juices/milk.. I make sure I get my 8+ cups in daily..you still need so much to keep yourself hydrated, and the thing is I know alot of people who stop drinking water and they've become completely dehydrated and end up getting very sick before realizing that, that was the reason in the first place...

If your drink has calories in it..it's ultimately not water.. (Thats what I've been told before anyway)

AnjellaRose_GF_SillyYak

I count water and half of my green tea, as I make 4 cups of the tea and add 4 more cups of water to it...

KetsyBaby

I count bottled or filtered tap water, even unfiltered municipal water, but I also count any herbal tea I brew (without sweetener or sugar) as water, since it is calorie free and has no caffeine or nutritional value. (I am thinking of Camomile, Mint, or any other Herbal Blends) Watch out for green tea, which is a stimulant. Not to say it is bad for you, it's not, it is great in moderation, but it does have an effect on your metabolism and can cause some people to feel jittery or interrupt sleep. Coffee, even decaf can have a dehydrating effect on you, so I don't count that as water, but rather a low calorie beverage.

I would even count a tall glass of water with a wedge of lemon in it, or squeezed into it for a dash of flavor, or a few cucumber slices to freshen up a cold glass (assuming you are not eating the cucumber), these add a tiny bit of flavor for those who aren't into plain water.

Even a Hot Cup of Water (Boiled) with a slice of Lemon would be fine to count as water intake.

Depending on whether you use Artificial Sweeteners or Stevia (A Natural Sweet Leaf), that is your call. I try not to sweeten my teas if I like the taste of them, like a mint tea, so nice and soothing. If you do use Crystal Light or some other drink mix with chemical sweeteners (Equal, Sweet & Low, Splenda, Sucralose, etc.) , I think you can count it as water, but try diluting it more than the package advises if you can, even slowly over time. If the mix says it makes 1.5 L, try making 2 L with it, you will hardly notice the difference.

This is what I have gleaned from years on clear fluid diets in hospitals, as well as what I advise my patients to drink postpartum so that they don't develop constipation and can be hydrated enough to breastfeed if desired, as to produce adequate urine output. Urine should be pale yellow, if you are finding it dark or amber colored, you need to drink more water.
Note: Some foods can change the color of your urine, especially some fresh juiced items like red beets and red cabbage, red kale, etc. They can give you a false impression of darker orange urine that will usually last only for the day or so you had the juice.

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dominoid747

Water is water. A group of people will be along shortly to tell you that you will die if you don't drink exactly 8 glasses of pure unadulterated tap water a day. They are talking from a theoretical point of view and although the science is correct, people who drink only other substances aren't dropping dead around us so the reality is drink what you want.

Amy967

I don't really count water(maybe I should) but I never record drinks like unsweetened tea or lemonade cause they are in 99% 0 calories

bunnabear

I only count water. I don't count my coffee which is the only other beverage that I drink on a regular basis (half a cup twice daily). I shoot for 10 eight ounce glasses of water per day since I have a history of kidney stones. If I do happen to have tea or another beverage on a very rare occasion I don't count that in my water total.

evileen99

Any thing that' essentially water counts as water, and that includes soda, tea, and coffee. Contrary to popular opinion, the caffeine will not dehydrate you, but you'll pee out about a third more of the liquid than you normally would.

If you read enough posts on here you'll see different advice on soda--some will say the sodium in it (which is actually very little) will make you retain fluid, others will say that the caffeine in it dehydrates you. It can't be both.

And that "8 glasses of water" stuff is a misinterpretation of medical research. Your body may need 64 oz of fluid a day, but the water in fruits and vegetables counts toward that requirement, so you don't HAVE to be chugging water all day. If it makes you feel better, fine, but you'll still lose weight if you don't.

evileen99

And ditto the pp that said your urine should be pale yellow. That's how you know if you're getting enough fluids, be if from plain water or whatever else.

denezy

I don't count water, as I drink upwards of 3-4 liters a day.... but all I drink is water. Why does this even keep coming up? Go drink water, all of you.

runningwiththepups

I just count regular water, and shoot to empty my 1 liter water bottle twice a day, and then everything else is just a bonus.

jayche

Water

Zommbunny

I would take it as water - personally I don't count mine but make sure I drink a lot of it
:drinker:

AnvilHead

I am getting different views from different people on all that they count as water intake..Me personally-All I count is actual water and the little packets that you can add to water that gives the water flavor..I hear some count tea, coffee etc..I thought if it was a beverage that has caffeine in it, you do not count it as water..But what about decaf coffee and teas?? Do they count as water?

Read this thread before people drill a bunch of silly myths and old wives' tales into your head:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/821181-myths-and-facts-about-hydration-requirements

kaseysospacey

Fluid. I count fluid if I feel the need to track. Mio? Goes under water. Iced tea? Water. If its caloric I will log it. I mostly just drink seltzer all the time, I'm a complete addict.

evdenapoli

I personally only count plain water, water that you add crystal light to, and tea's. especially green tea

MrDelts

If there were no water around, and all you had to drink was cofee or tea or a sports drink, guess what??? You wouldn't die of dehydration.. Wanna know why?? Because these drinks are made of water. Never understand why people have such a hard time believing that you can count other drinks as water. On the other hand, I do not recommend coffe, soda and sports drinks as a primary source of water because of the added ingredients. Its just not good for you.

kaseysospacey

Water is water. A group of people will be along shortly to tell you that you will die if you don't drink exactly 8 glasses of pure unadulterated tap water a day. They are talking from a theoretical point of view and although the science is correct, people who drink only other substances aren't dropping dead around us so the reality is drink what you want.

Funny, in my city I think I would die from drinking 8 glasses of unadulterated tap water. Although I use the word "water" lightly.

sleepytexan

um. water.

Mutant13

Peanut butter and vodka

JBcat123

I count green tea, herbal teas and regular water as water.

MB_Positif

We get water intake from a lot of foods we eat too. We don't need to be so technical. Personally, I log water intake on the little clicker button thing and anything else I drink is logged in my food log because that's how I like to keep track of it. The goal is to be hydrated, not overflowing...but seriously, drink water. I think it would be counterproductive for someone to drink 6 cans of soda a day and log those as water. Check your pee. Clear to light yellow = good.

fit4lifeUcan2

I only drink water. boo hiisss I know yeah yeah yeah. Had to give up coffee due to a peptic ulcer. But when I did drink coffee I didn't include it in my total water count. I did however track it. Drank it black with one splenda. Over the holidays I had an occasional glass of wine but thats about it.

ItsDawnMarie

Besides my actual water I HAVE to count my coke zero (just one a day) and my coffee (and i add whatever creamer i use into my calories for the day) otherwise I wind up going WAY over 120 ozs a day and ill be up all night : /

JesterMFP

I count anything that I drink out of a cup, mug or glass, that isn't alcohol. Sometimes I count soup out of a bowl too, if I stop to think about it. Actually, a lot of the time I don't count any of it, but my body still does, so it's all good.

JustANumber85

H2O.

SLRamirez2012

Ummm... well, I count water as water... if I add a packet to it then I count the packet in my food log. If your urine is dark yellow, drink more. water is water.. don't count coffee

shanmackie

i only count vodka as water.

Crystaleyed

Personally I think it's a matter of opinion, if you drink you are hydrated. and as mentioned before certain foods also count. I personally just count pure and flavoured water. I would have just water but I'm one of these people who has phases where I love water and other's where I hate it ... so for now I'm just taking it in baby steps and limiting to pure water when I feel like I can keep up with it

samantha1242

Water.