Tea instead of water?

whitewhisper
whitewhisper Posts: 76
in Food and Nutrition
Hi all,
I was just wondering if anyone else here is not a huge fan of water? I LOVE water when I've done some exercise and am thirstier than a desert, but when I don't do vigorous exercise I find it torturous to get the minimum 8 glasses a day. I don't know why, I know it has no taste and all, but after about half a glass I can barely swallow more. I think my average is about 1 glass a day, which is terrible.

Anyway, I have for the last couple of weeks started drinking green tea a lot (Lipton Vanilla Green Tea). I will have around 1 water bottle (about 800mL) of it a day, sometimes more but usually around that amount. Is that a good way to keep my water levels up without actually just drinking water? Does anyone else substitute tea for water? Am I the only one who doesn't like it?? Haha :blushing:

Replies

  • beckydunks
    beckydunks Posts: 65 Member
    I feel the same, i dont like plain water either! I use dilute fruit juice to add to it, add some ice and i'm sorted.

    I don't know who much this is true, but a cold drink aparently helps you burn calories because your body works to keep it warm lol but dont take my word for it :)
  • coliema
    coliema Posts: 7,646 Member
    I drink tea and I drink water, but I never count my tea as water....I only count my plain water as water. Have you tried adding lemons to your water? I used to have trouble drinking water and I started adding lemon slices to it, makes it much easier to drink.
  • nhga47
    nhga47 Posts: 118
    I also feel the same. But I do drink several glasses of Tea a day. LOL Unsweet tea, usually lipton with a lemon or two :)
  • bluered3038
    bluered3038 Posts: 13 Member
    I don't like water either. Never did. To me to drink what theys say, I have to schedule it and take it like medicine. So I drink decafienated tea and count 1/2 as water. I think that is what WW said to do.
  • charlena48
    charlena48 Posts: 192 Member
    I drink green tea and water every day. I do count my tea - I've heard that does count, but not sure. I get enough water in anyway. Water is my drink of choice.
  • alassin_sane
    alassin_sane Posts: 12 Member
    I really, really hate plain water...I admit, I replace it with diluted juice, tea or coffee.

    I have a bit of a thing for ginger and lemon tea. :-)
  • whitewhisper
    whitewhisper Posts: 76
    The juice thing sounds like a good idea! The only reason I was thinking the tea may be better is because it has no calories just like plain water? I have also heard that cold drinks help your metabolism as well, but haven't confirmed it haha.

    Yeah, I drink the tea the way it is, no sugar or milk or anything. It used to taste bland but now I like it and can distinguish the flavours too :)

    I have added lemons to my water before, it did help for a bit getting down a glass or two but after I while even that didn't really help. I know I should force myself to drink it but when I go to the kitchen I just make a tea instead, it's so much easier and tastier.
  • whitewhisper
    whitewhisper Posts: 76
    @bluered I did that for a while, but it made me dislike water even more.
    I'm so glad other people feel this way, everyone I know thinks I'm crazy for not liking water.
  • smaugish
    smaugish Posts: 244 Member
    I've no idea if yous are in the US or what, and I'm pretty sure you don't get it over there, but I use a tiny drop of squash in my water. Whatever flavour I have, and I always get the no added sugar varieties. Makes the water that much more palatable.

    I've never liked plain water, unless I was super thirsty or it was a really hot day, but even then it HAD to be ice cold.

    But generally, yeah I drink a hell of a lot of tea. Comes with the nationality, methinks; I'm English and Irish, and the Irish are even worse than the English with their tea drinking! :drinker:
  • Curvimami
    Curvimami Posts: 1,851 Member
    I also hate the taste of water. I couldnt get my water requirements in for the day until I started adding grape or apple juice. And now I just add Mio to my water. A couple squirts in 4 or 5 16oz bottles and Im good for the entire day :-)
  • jinjin8
    jinjin8 Posts: 220 Member
    I do count herbal teas but don't count anything with caffeine since it dehydrates the body.
  • whitewhisper
    whitewhisper Posts: 76
    I've no idea if yous are in the US or what, and I'm pretty sure you don't get it over there, but I use a tiny drop of squash in my water. Whatever flavour I have, and I always get the no added sugar varieties. Makes the water that much more palatable.

    No, I am in Australia and I've never heard of Squash but Wikipedia says it's like cordial? If a little bit of that helps reach the water goal I say it's a good idea! Better of with a bit of that than not getting enough water, no? :)

    Also I thought you meant squash the vegetable and was very confused for a while! haha

    @curvimami I don't think we get MiO here but it also sounds like a good substitute!
  • wellbert
    wellbert Posts: 3,924 Member
    h20 is h20. And there's no excuse for someone to still believe that caffeine is going to dehydrate you.
  • jtslim42
    jtslim42 Posts: 240
    try drinking mineral water... The carbonation might help and Perrier has one with lime and one with lemon.
  • opuntia
    opuntia Posts: 860 Member
    I love water but I also love green tea, and I'm not really aware of any differences in my hydration levels if I drink lots of green tea, or if I drink lots of water. I find they work equally well.

    Caffeine can give me headaches and dizziness, but the amount of caffeine in green tea is not very high, and you can reduce it further if you pour out the hot water you've poured onto the teabag/leaves and then pour fresh hot water onto them and drink that.
  • firstsip
    firstsip Posts: 8,399 Member
    I feel the same, i dont like plain water either! I use dilute fruit juice to add to it, add some ice and i'm sorted.

    I don't know who much this is true, but a cold drink aparently helps you burn calories because your body works to keep it warm lol but dont take my word for it :)

    The metabolic effect of drinking cold water isn't enough to actually burn calories ;) It's just a consistent diet myth.
  • HIITMe
    HIITMe Posts: 921 Member
    h20 is h20. And there's no excuse for someone to still believe that caffeine is going to dehydrate you.
    http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/caffeinated-drinks/AN01661


    Question
    Caffeine: Is it dehydrating or not?
    I've been seeing ads that say cola and coffee drinks hydrate you as well as water does. Is this true?
    Answer
    from Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D.
    It is true. Researchers used to believe that caffeinated drinks had a diuretic effect. This means that you would urinate more after drinking them, which could increase your risk of becoming dehydrated. Recent research shows that this is not true and that caffeine has a diuretic effect only if you consume large amounts of it — more than 500 to 600 milligrams (the equivalent of 5 to 7 cups of coffee) a day.

    Still, caffeinated drinks can make you jittery, sleepless or anxious. Water is probably your best bet to stay hydrated. It's calorie-free, caffeine-free, inexpensive and readily available.
  • beckajw
    beckajw Posts: 1,728 Member
    Hi all,
    I was just wondering if anyone else here is not a huge fan of water? I LOVE water when I've done some exercise and am thirstier than a desert, but when I don't do vigorous exercise I find it torturous to get the minimum 8 glasses a day. I don't know why, I know it has no taste and all, but after about half a glass I can barely swallow more. I think my average is about 1 glass a day, which is terrible.

    Anyway, I have for the last couple of weeks started drinking green tea a lot (Lipton Vanilla Green Tea). I will have around 1 water bottle (about 800mL) of it a day, sometimes more but usually around that amount. Is that a good way to keep my water levels up without actually just drinking water? Does anyone else substitute tea for water? Am I the only one who doesn't like it?? Haha :blushing:

    Yes, the tea can be used as a substitute for water. The guidelines actually say that you need 64 oz. of liquid per day. This liquid can come from any form, except alcohol.
  • smaugish
    smaugish Posts: 244 Member
    I've no idea if yous are in the US or what, and I'm pretty sure you don't get it over there, but I use a tiny drop of squash in my water. Whatever flavour I have, and I always get the no added sugar varieties. Makes the water that much more palatable.

    No, I am in Australia and I've never heard of Squash but Wikipedia says it's like cordial? If a little bit of that helps reach the water goal I say it's a good idea! Better of with a bit of that than not getting enough water, no? :)

    Also I thought you meant squash the vegetable and was very confused for a while! haha

    Aha, cordial! That is a word I should have used :p It's basically cordial =)
  • ATT949
    ATT949 Posts: 1,245 Member
    I feel the same, i dont like plain water either! I use dilute fruit juice to add to it, add some ice and i'm sorted.

    I don't know who much this is true, but a cold drink aparently helps you burn calories because your body works to keep it warm lol but dont take my word for it :)

    The metabolic effect of drinking cold water isn't enough to actually burn calories ;) It's just a consistent diet myth.

    I've calculated the amount of energy needed to raise the temp of 8 glasses and it's only about 20 cals/day (I forgot the details but it was something like water temp of 43º).

    My thinking is based on simple principles of physics and the human body.

    If you ingest a substance that's below body temperature, water in this case, it will absorb energy from the body. We know this because "cold" means that a substance has a low energy state than the environment around it. The body is warmer meaning it has a higher energy state.

    We know that energy flows from high to low.

    Second, the body is a homeostat which means that it regulates, among other things, the body temperature and it will attempt to keep the body at a constant temperature.

    It would seem to follow that when you lower the temperature of the body by ingesting a cold substance (which we know it must do) and, since the body must try to keep a constant temperature, it must follow that it will burn more energy to keep the body at the "normal" temperature.

    I don't see any other conclusion that drinking cold water increases calories burned.



    Could you be so good as to either post your links that refute this "myth" or help me understand the flaw in my logic?
  • pandorajinel
    pandorajinel Posts: 13
    In nursing school we were taught that items with caffeine (coffee, black tea, etc) are worth half the amount consumed. Juice and water are worth 100% of the amount consumed. Hope this helps.

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