Drinking Water, Any Tips ?

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  • Carl_Duffin
    Carl_Duffin Posts: 1
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    Try not to drink glasses of water immediately before or after a main meal. This will dilute your digestive juices and slow down the digestive process. Drink water at least one hour before and after a meal to ensure you are hydrated but not on top of a full stomach.
  • Cathy_Daydreams
    Cathy_Daydreams Posts: 120
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    Personally if my thirst never kicked in Id see a doctor- I would wonder if thats a sign of something more serious. Dehydration is no joke and most ppl walk around dehydrated on the regular and they wonder why they are foggy, have head aches, muscle aches and various other ailments.

    Find an 8 oz glass- keep it at the sink and slam one before and after each meal for starters- that will at least get you started to 8 glasses a day. Then make it a 16 oz glass (what I do) and slam those at least after the meal if not before as well.

    Have a glass before and after your shower, before and after a work out, before and after work- any places in your day where it would be convenient to just walk over to the sink and get a drink. Not hard just gotta make yourself do it.

    So true!

    Also, since I've never been a big water drinker, other than sometimes adding flavor packets... I always keep ice water at my desk at work. Drink a cup first thing in the am, since Bob Harper says to do this to help boost your metabolism. But also, I don't let myself have my mid morning snack after breakfast until I've drank my first 24oz glass of ice water. Just a motivator, maybe it'll help you too. Good luck! :flowerforyou:

    My problem is being really tired in the morning and a caffeine addict from years of one - bottle - a - day of pop I always go for a fizzy drink, otherwise I get withdrawal symptoms (e.g. splitting headache, unable to concentrate on much) so I'm not sure how to manage drinking water in the morning when I rely so much on caffeine to make me function ... but thannk you for the suggestion.
  • Cathy_Daydreams
    Cathy_Daydreams Posts: 120
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    I like/hate water. It depends on how I feel...sometimes I love it, sometimes I can't stand the taste.

    I'm like that at times, although now it's just a case of 'I'm not thirsty, why do I need to drink' and then by the end of the day it's like 'oh ... no cups of water again today, I'm screwed'
  • Cathy_Daydreams
    Cathy_Daydreams Posts: 120
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    I am such a dork, but I always drink more water if it is out of some sort of container that I like. For a while I used one of those insulated Starbucks cups with the straw. Now I have a new bottle from there that is actually glass which is fan-freaking-tastic becuase it doesn't alter the taste of the water at all. I also prefer ice cold water if possible.

    Also, when I was working, I would plan to drink 3 glasses of water before I left the house. One immediately after waking up, one after my shower, and one more before leaving.

    OH MY GOD I LOVE THOSE THINGS
    Sorry I'm a huge Starbucks fan, despite that I still can't bring myself to like hot drinks ... such a shame :(
    and thank you for the suggestions it;s really helped :D
  • Cathy_Daydreams
    Cathy_Daydreams Posts: 120
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    I don't like plain water ... tried many many times, now I just don't worry about.
    I drink lots of other things.... ice tea, coffee, decaf coffee, almond milk, diet v8 splash, protein shakes etc...

    Find something you like to drink and drink it. If it has calories, track it in your food diary and well as counting it towards fluid intake.

    That's what I'm doing at the moment, my only problem is I would like to get into water since it flushes things out of your system a bit, which is always a good thing. But thanks for letting me know I'm not the only one with the water issue ;)
  • Cathy_Daydreams
    Cathy_Daydreams Posts: 120
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    There must be a lot of us that just don't like water. Here's my thing on water: It tastes disgusting. With that said, the water is a really important part of losing weight. So I use MIO water enhancer (other's use lemon or something), and then after my two cups of coffee in the morning, I don't allow myself to drink a diet Dr. Pepper or anything else until all of my water is done for the day. That could take any number of hours. When I finally get my Dr. Pepper, it's more of a reward. You may not be feeling thirsty, but for sure your body is. Try it out and see if you can't make a game out of it.

    This is a brilliant idea, I hadn't thought of it at all but now you've said it seems so obvious.
    Thanks :D
  • BucsGirl4Life
    BucsGirl4Life Posts: 29 Member
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    I actually found this from another post earlier on here: Mio! It's about $4 and it'll flavor 24 oz of water. I've bought it at places like Raley's, Walmart, Target and you add 1/2 tsp for every 8 oz of water. I have a 16oz glass mug that I fill to the top and add 1 tsp. But I also suggest totally getting rid of sweet drinks (not talking about mio) and drinking at least one 8 oz. of water a day. I really think you'll come to love water! It's refreshing and I now drink at least 8oz. with every main meal because I like the way it cool, "washes" everything down and cleans my taste buds for another tasty bit! :)

    I concur with the suggestion of Mio. I NEVER drank water and was addicted to sweet tea. Mio has awesome flavors, my favorites are sweet tea and mango peach. Now, I don't drink anything BUT water with a little squirt of Mio. You can put as much or as little as you want in the water.
  • MelStren
    MelStren Posts: 457 Member
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    Try setting a timmer to ring once every hour until you've had your 8 glasses.
  • Nikki_Nx
    Nikki_Nx Posts: 27 Member
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    I try to drink 2 glasses of water (200 mL) at certain points of the day: breakfast, lunch, tea time and early evening, which should total 1L...which is your daily requirement and just keep in mind that water is a better filter for your kidneys than any soda drink :o) xx
  • Illona88
    Illona88 Posts: 903 Member
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    Keep some water in you line of sight the entire time.

    At work have a bottle next to the monitor, if you are watching tv have a big glass on the table in front of you etc.

    It is best to take a sip every now and then than to chug a whole glass in one go.
  • Shrinking_Moody
    Shrinking_Moody Posts: 270 Member
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    I found a refillable water bottle at Wal-Mart for about $5. It's 32oz - so I initially set goals for myself to have had one of those by noon - and then the other one before dinner - and if I hit that goal I'd have a diet green tea or a diet coke w/ splenda. Now I go through 4 or 5 of those bottles a day and sometimes add lemon/lime/orange slices - or even a squirt of Mio.
  • Cathy_Daydreams
    Cathy_Daydreams Posts: 120
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    I actually found this from another post earlier on here: Mio! It's about $4 and it'll flavor 24 oz of water. I've bought it at places like Raley's, Walmart, Target and you add 1/2 tsp for every 8 oz of water. I have a 16oz glass mug that I fill to the top and add 1 tsp. But I also suggest totally getting rid of sweet drinks (not talking about mio) and drinking at least one 8 oz. of water a day. I really think you'll come to love water! It's refreshing and I now drink at least 8oz. with every main meal because I like the way it cool, "washes" everything down and cleans my taste buds for another tasty bit! :)

    Getting rid of sweet drinks, as much as I would love to, is tricky. I still live with my parents and my mum loves diet coke, which means we sometimes have it in the house and it makes getting rid of it really quite difficult (it's not fair on her to stop her drinking what she likes because I'm on a diet) I used to love water, especially when we went down to London last year I drank soo much. I think, as well as not feeling thirsty at all, the fact that the water up here, in Yorkshire, is so pure and has no taste is a reason I can't drink it. I like to taste something
  • Anastasia0511
    Anastasia0511 Posts: 372 Member
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    I do not understand when people say they hate water. What's to hate? There's no flavor ,just liquid going down your throat. I mean unless of course you're drinking out of 100 year old rusty pipes. Like NIKE says, "Just Do It".
  • Cathy_Daydreams
    Cathy_Daydreams Posts: 120
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    I have been trying to choke down a gallon of water a day... but my biggest problem is going to the bathroom every hour...makes long car trips a no-go...

    That's what I'm worried about, not so much now cos' I'm on holiday but when I get back to school I don't want to be missing out on lessons and valuable revision time going to the loo.
  • tejasmh87
    tejasmh87 Posts: 91 Member
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    I drink about 80 ounces / 2.36588 liters a day of water and it was a stuggle to get there.

    I have a 24oz / 0.71 liter stainless steel water bottle at work and first thing when I get there is drink down a bottle full.

    Anytime I feel hungry I tend to drink another bottle full to see if it really is hungry pains. When my stomach growls right after the 3rd bottle of the day it is usually time for a snack ;)

    I drink another bottle full with my lunch. By the end I will have had about 72oz - 96oz of water.

    My trick is Mio water enhancer. My boyfriend actually got me hooked on them since he cannot have any other sweetner with Aspertame in it and dislikes any gritty powder taste. The flavors are bold and 0 calories all the way. Target and Kroger stores now have their own versions as well.

    By most standards my water intake is really high for someone who isn't a hardcore exerciser but I can tell the difference to my personality when I am well hydrated and feel sooo much better.

    So whatever amount works for you, tweek it until you can enjoy the taste and you'll be surprised when you start craving water. :)
  • Cathy_Daydreams
    Cathy_Daydreams Posts: 120
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    I use to hate water too.. never drank it...always diet 7-up until I found out what the soda does to your body and won't let you lose weight...I usually put 1/2 of those sugar free packets like grape,orange,berry (great value from walmart) in my orange thermo cup that holds a water bottle full of water (16 oz)..thats 2 cups and put a few ice cubes in and take it wherever you go...there...you have drank 2 cups already...just have to drink 4 like that...You will get use to drinking water...soon you will crave it! Good Luck!

    This is a really good idea actually.
    I always take a bottle of water with me but never seem to drink it at all, I don't know why, maybe the fact it's a small bottle that get's thrown in the bottom of a bag and forgotten about is the reason. If I had something bigger, like a thermo cup it might make me remember more. Thank you for the suggestion.
  • opuntia
    opuntia Posts: 860 Member
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    I know what you mean - I like water, but I often simply forget to drink it, because I'm not conscious of being thirsty. But once I drink a glass of water, I realise I needed it. I've found it helpful to have an app on my phone which tells me to drink 8 glasses of water (or however many you want to make your goal) and it has 8 cups for me to click whenever I have a drink of water, and it tells me how many I have left to drink. Also, if I am planning my day, with a timetable, I add 'drink water' to the end of each hour, to remind me.
  • epiper69
    epiper69 Posts: 2
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    I like adding a couple of drops of Mio to my water (when I have a craving fro something sweet to drink). The Watermelon-Strawberry is my favorite. Crushed cubes in my water also makes me feel like I'm having some type of treat and with the Mio, it is like drinking a Slushie!
  • Cathy_Daydreams
    Cathy_Daydreams Posts: 120
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    Find an 8 oz glass- keep it at the sink and slam one before and after each meal for starters- that will at least get you started to 8 glasses a day. Then make it a 16 oz glass (what I do) and slam those at least after the meal if not before as well.

    Have a glass before and after your shower, before and after a work out, before and after work- any places in your day where it would be convenient to just walk over to the sink and get a drink. Not hard just gotta make yourself do it.

    I could never do the "keep a cup of water near you" thing because water that has been sitting out is really gross. Refilling a cup before and after doing common daily activities seems a lot more reasonable.

    hmm yeah I know the feeling. Had that a lot when I was at school by the time it came to lunch I had a bottle of luke warm water in my bag and even if you like water that is not a nice thing. I think putting ice in it might be a good idea. It's a suggestion that I've heard somewhere on here and it might work for you as well :D
  • Bronx_Montgomery
    Bronx_Montgomery Posts: 2,287 Member
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    I figured out a way. I love to drink really cold liquids and making my water ice cold made it easy to drink tons of it. Plus I heard drinking really cold water boots your metabolism

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