is water really that important for weight loss??

jnnfrch

does anyone know why water results in weight loss?

and how much do you guys suggest drinking?

supplemama

Check this out:
http://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20100823/water-may-be-a-secret-weapon-in-weight-loss

I drink 136 oz. of water a day, but most folks don't need that much. Water is pretty much all I drink though. I tend to have 5 oz. of wine every evening with my dinner, but other than that I'm usually drinking just water. If you really struggle with drinking water I suggest that you drink at least one cup (8 oz.) of water with every meal and snack.

danasings

If you really struggle with drinking water I suggest that you drink at least one cup (8 oz.) of water with every meal and snack.

Good advice. It really will help you eat less over time.

iulia_maddie

Water is important for you know, life?

ninerbuff

Water is important for you know, life?

THIS. You can go several days without food, but rarely several days without water.

A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

86_Ohms

Burning energy during exercise is a chemical equation. You're left with a byproduct that has to go somewhere, and it's best to carry it out of your system with water's help.

jfsears

The dietitian told me to take my body weight and divide it in half and that is how many ounces of water I need a day.

olDave

There is no proof that drinking lots of plain water helps weight loss.

Almost everyday someone in these forums posts that they struggle with drinking so much water. No matter what others say, they seem to ignore anyone who doesn't agree with the idea that we need so much plain water....and yet they wonder why it's so hard to drink it all.

It's good to be skeptical about other people's opinions on a public forum. So, here is an article on the subject with opinions from people in the medical field who SHOULD know. It's not simply MY opinion.

If nothing else, this demonstrates that this subject is debatable and not a hard scientific or medical fact. The question will then be..."Who do you believe?"

Peace.

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Eight glasses of water a day an urban myth'?

Water and a well-balanced diet 'do far more than water alone,' Australian researcher says

CBC News

Posted: Jun 10, 2012 12:51 AM ET

Last Updated: Jun 10, 2012 12:48 AM ET

The common advice to drink eight glasses of water a day doesn't hold water, say nutrition and kidney specialists who want to dispel the myth.

"What drove us to drink two litres of water a day?" asks an editorial in this week's issue of the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health.

The recommendation was driven by vested interests rather than health, suggests author Speros Tsindos of the department of dietetics and human nutrition at La Trobe University in Victoria, Australia.
Other beverages also help us meet the body's fluid needs, say nutrition specialists. (Aaron Harris/Canadian Press)
"Humans need to maintain fluid balance and need to drink water when required, but should also consider fluid in unprocessed fruits and vegetables and juices. There is further evidence that water and a well-balanced diet does far more than water alone," Tsindos wrote.

"Water is important for health; however, the recommendation of eight glasses of pure water per day appears an overestimation of requirements."

Even a baked potato is 75 per cent water, said nutrition Prof. Susan Barr of the University of British Columbia, who sat on a Canadian-U.S. committee that looked at fluid intake.

"There's nothing magical about water from a glass of water as opposed to water from a food or any other beverage," Barr said.

Drinking caffeinated beverages such as tea and coffee do not lead to dehydration, said Dr. Stanley Goldfarb, a nephrologist at the University of Pennsylvania who reviewed research claims on drinking eight glasses of water and studied how the kidneys handle it.

Let thirst guide you

"Drinking the coffee will count towards your total water intake for the day," Goldfarb said.

Goldfarb said despite the common idea that it's important to "drink eight glasses of eight ounces of water" a day, "There’s no evidence that benefits health in any real way and it really represents an urban myth."

There's no evidence you need to drink more water than what thirst dictates, Goldfarb added.

Studies on desert nomads showed people can consume minimal amounts of water in harsh environments. The military has also looked at how much water soldiers need to take with them when patrolling in hot climates without harming their performance.

"If one is just playing a game of tennis in an indoor facility, for example, or having a short run on a treadmill in an air-conditioned gym, the need to maintain hydration during that is just non-existent," Goldfarb advised.

People have died of dehydration and from drinking too much water too quickly.

A good guide to tell if the body’s finely tuned fluid balance is to check the colour of your urine. If it's very dark, you're on the dry side; if it's very light or translucent, then you need to drink a bit less water, said Dr. David Price, head of family medicine at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ont.

laineybz

I do drink water but when it's cold out, i just want a hot drink. Roll on summer!

bethlaf

The dietitian told me to take my body weight and divide it in half and that is how many ounces of water I need a day.

not QUITE right!

1/2 body weight less 20% that you normally intake through food.

add 3 oz more for each caffeinated drink
add 10 oz for each 30 minutes exercise

ANy liquid is good - it doesn't HAVE to be Water only

bethlaf

If you really struggle with drinking water I suggest that you drink at least one cup (8 oz.) of water with every meal and snack.

Good advice. It really will help you eat less over time.

ACTUALLY- if youre eating and want to stay "full" longer on less calories
you will be better served NOT drinking with meals!!
wait 30 minutes before and after a meal to drink .
the excess fluid makes the meal "slide" through digestion faster.

Nikki_WantsIt

I used to really really really hate water.. but now.. you don't see me without a bottle of water. its just second nature now.. and yes, it helps A LOT. and helps with sodium.

SnicciFit

I have no idea if it helps with weight loss or not (I have some assumptions though), but it most definitely will help with your overall health (which can show up as weight loss).

DaughterOfTheMostHighKing

I'd like to see someone lose weight and NOT drink water... see what gathers in the gut... you need it. your body is made of it.. drink it or die. :P

imhungry2012

I have always been a water drinker, pretty much the only non-alcoholic beverage I drink aside from a cup of coffee a day. I attrubute my not being fatter than I was when I was fat (if that makes sense) to my consistent water drinking and 8 hours of sleep (usually) a night. Muscle is made of mostly water, hydration aids in digestion, makes your skin look nice, keeps you from mindless eating and so on....I have no doubt that you can drop LBs without increasing your water consumption but have to imagine you'll feel better if you do! I drink 60-80 oz. of water a day, am 5'3" 135lbs.

daybehavior

There is no proof that drinking lots of plain water helps weight loss.

God why the hell is everything related to weight loss a myth?! I've ran across more myths than cold hard facts while losing weight. This leads me to believe weight loss is a completely random and arbitrary phenomenon

Seriously though any care to counter the argument I quoted?

Ang108

I am glad to have read this article. I don't drink plain water.at.all.
I live in a country where there is no clean water from the tap and the water that is available has a lot of chemical additives.
Even boiling the water ( which I do each day to have water for cooking and brushing teeth each day ) does not get rid of the nasty taste,
I refuse to buy bottled water which here is more expensive than Coke and because of all the plastic it generates. I do not drink soft drinks, juice or anything else, I drink coffee in the morning and tea ( no sweetener, no milk/cream) the rest of the day. I get more than the " required " 8 cups of liquid, but have been told that they don't count, because it's not plain water. I am glad to read this article and will continue to do what I have been doing.....:o).

bumblebums

That study described in the webmd link does not seem to have controlled for caloric intake (hard to tell from the informal description, and it isn't published).

I do not know of any evidence that water intake affects weight loss when caloric intake is controlled for.

It is important to drink enough to support your basic metabolic functions. You need water to live, but it can come in forms other than H2O. That said, if you routinely drink your calories (=soda, juices, etc.) and do not pay attention to how much you consume that way, your weight loss will be difficult.

On a final note, I drink a barn-sized bucket of coffee every day. It has not deterred my fat loss. I probably drink about a gallon of liquid (water, coffee, etc.) on a daily basis, but not the standard "8 glasses a day" that you see on all those sites that just repeat what all the other sites have said.

BusyRaeNOTBusty

Nope.

http://www.snopes.com/medical/myths/8glasses.asp

concordancia

There is no proof that drinking lots of plain water helps weight loss.

God why the hell is everything related to weight loss a myth?! I've ran across more myths than cold hard facts while losing weight. This leads me to believe weight loss is a completely random and arbitrary phenomenon

Seriously though any care to counter the argument I quoted?

This one isn't so much a myth as an oversimplified rule of thumb. 8x8 was easy to remember and about what the average person needed.

Teaching people to judge their hydration level by the color of their urine just isn't as catchy.

schondell

Drink when you're thirsty. Drinking 8 cups a day is totally unnecessary/excessive and bad for the environment!