Having trouble drinking 8 glasses of water a day

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  • hiyomi
    hiyomi Posts: 906 Member
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    Come to south Texas outside for 5 minutes. ^_^ Should help. :D
  • jessvaughn74
    jessvaughn74 Posts: 164 Member
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    I agree with the person that said not to rely on water flavorings (i.e, crystal light). I unfortunately did that and I am finding it very hard to wean myself off of it. I have a hard time drinking plain water now. But a couple things that has helped me is for one get a water bottle with a straw - it makes it so much faster and easier to drink the water. Secondly, try this trick. Buy a 32 ounce water bottle (with straw :) ) and take a sharpie and mark 4 lines on it evenly on the bottle. Each line represents the amount you need to drink per hour. For example, at 8am drink one line worth of water...9am drink to the next line, etc. Once you drink 2 bottles you have your 8 glasses.
  • SpeSHul_SnoflEHk
    SpeSHul_SnoflEHk Posts: 6,256 Member
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    You don't actually need to drink 8 glasses of water a day. Drink when you are thirsty. If your pee is light, and you have no symptoms of dehydration, you are getting enough water.

    Seconding this. You will be getting water from your food and there's no reason to stress your kidneys by asking them to do so much more work. I know this is not the prevailing opinion here at MFP but google around.

    Which part the 8 glasses or the drinking water stressing the kidneys?
  • JenaePavlak
    JenaePavlak Posts: 350 Member
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    I flavor all my water with propel zero packets.. but you can put fresh fruit into jugs of water in your fridge to get different flavors as well.
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
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    You don't actually need to drink 8 glasses of water a day. Drink when you are thirsty. If your pee is light, and you have no symptoms of dehydration, you are getting enough water.

    Seconding this. You will be getting water from your food and there's no reason to stress your kidneys by asking them to do so much more work. I know this is not the prevailing opinion here at MFP but google around.

    Which part the 8 glasses or the drinking water stressing the kidneys?
    Drinking just for the sake of drinking works your kidneys more than they need to, as they need to constantly filter all the extra water out of your system. HINT, when your urine is perfectly clear, that means you're just wasting water, as it's the water you just drank being eliminated. It serves absolutely no purpose or health benefit to your body. It's just a waste of water and your time as you need to make extra trips to the rest room.
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
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    Water also helps your metabolism speed up which helps lose weight. it also helps all of your body function a lot better giving you more energy to do more which helps lose weight. I drink lots of water and even though im over weight, i feel healthy, am healthy, and can move constantly with the help of water. Its also been proven that 8 glasses a day keeps the doctor away because it boosts your immune system and detox's your body especially if you add a little lemon in your water...water does a lot for your body.
    Um, no. Those are all myths.
  • ereck44
    ereck44 Posts: 1,170 Member
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    I am seriously having trouble drinking all my water daily... I can do 4 no problem... Just wondering if anyone has some tips and tricks on how to attain my goal... I try carrying my water bottle everywhere with me but still having trouble getting to my minimum 8 cups...

    After 45 minutes on the stair climber, I have no trouble getting the 8 glasses of water. I have to admit that it is tougher on non-exercise days. good luck!
  • sskaufel
    sskaufel Posts: 3
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    I put a tea bag in my bottle and drink my water that way. Or with lemon in it.
  • karrielynn80
    karrielynn80 Posts: 395 Member
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    Okay so since your question wasn't "help me think of excuses NOT to drink water" i'll avoid wasting your time [hint hint] by telling you bogus information on why you DON'T need to drink water.

    I generally drink a gal + / day, but have recently lowered my water intake to 64oz (not including water i consume in food, in protein shakes,etc.) and i'm not saying you NEED a gallon a day, but 64oz is a minimum for results (and yes you could Google why you "don't" need water and get results, but you can also Google the opposite - the interenet isn't the "source of all wisdom" it's the source of whatever wisdom you are looking for...) and trust me, once you start drinking more water you should** notice a big difference in several areas.

    First suggestion: get big water bottle or even a pitcher & keep it at your desk.
    Second: set up a time to "chug" some water - like every 30m, or for me it's whenever i'd finish a task at work - some way of "scheduling" it. so it easily becomes habit. eventually you'll start going to the bathroom more, fill it up every time you go.
    Third:If you have have no problem drinking 4 glasses, great. aim for 5 glasses for a wk straight & then aim for 6, etc. you don't have to try & overload your body all in one day. but once you get used to a higher intake in water, it'll be much easier.
    Last: make it a habit to drink a glass or bottle when you wake up. i wake up @ like 5am so between drinking a glasses right then & working out, by the time i get to work i'm usually 1/2 thru my goal.

    **should meaning as long as you aren't doing anything to contradict your water consumption (i.e. drinking tons of soda, intaking really high sodium, etc)

    Things i've noticed from drinking water: increase of energy, hydrated skin (my husband says he can literally tell if i'm hydrated by the LACK of "golf ball booty" i have lol)
    Need energy? - drink iced water
    Feeling hungry? - drink room temp water

    my 2 cents. hope it's helpful :)

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