How well does "drinking water" help with your weight loss efforts?

tmshank18
tmshank18 Posts: 37 Member
edited November 18 in Food and Nutrition
I'm not a huge water drinker, but was told it could help with the weight loss. Would love to hear everyone's thoughts on water drinking.

Replies

  • AllOutof_Bubblegum
    AllOutof_Bubblegum Posts: 3,646 Member
    edited May 2015
    It can only help with weight loss as far as it decreases your appetite for food. A lot of the times the brain can mistake thirst signals for hunger. Also drinking a large glass of water before meals can make your feel full faster, and subsequently eat less at mealtimes.

    That said, there is no other magical property that water possesses in terms of weight loss. But it's delicious and good for you, so drink lots of it!
  • juggernaut1974
    juggernaut1974 Posts: 6,212 Member
    Nothing magical to it.

    Your body certainly needs a fair amount of water to properly function, but you get water from a number of food/drink sources (not just drinking straight water).

    For some people, it helps 'fill' their stomach so they don't feel hungry as often or as badly, which may have the side effect of eating less calories (ergo, losing weight).

    At the end of the day, as long as you eat less calories then you burn, you'll lose weight.
  • jaqcan
    jaqcan Posts: 498 Member
    I'm definitely a person that mistakes thirst for hunger. I also get in a diet drink trap, where that's all I want to drink, and that sabotages my efforts, and I fall back into eating lots. So THIS TIME, I have a glass before each meal, before every diet drink, any time I go into the kitchen, and I'll brew a cup of tea at night if I still think I'm hungry but have no more calories.
  • moesis
    moesis Posts: 874 Member
    What are you drinking instead of water? Empty calories and sugar from other drinks (to include diet soda) can add up very quick.

    I find that water helps keep me feeling full and I eat less.
  • jrline
    jrline Posts: 2,353 Member
    it keeps you hydrated and flushes out your system. I know it helped me get where I am now and to maintain.

    29509743.png
  • tmshank18
    tmshank18 Posts: 37 Member
    moesis wrote: »
    What are you drinking instead of water? Empty calories and sugar from other drinks (to include diet soda) can add up very quick.

    I find that water helps keep me feeling full and I eat less.

    I drink some diet soda but mostly iced tea sweetened with sweet n low or diet Snapple tea.

  • tmshank18
    tmshank18 Posts: 37 Member
    jrline wrote: »
    it keeps you hydrated and flushes out your system. I know it helped me get where I am now and to maintain.

    29509743.png

    How much water do you drink on a daily basis? And does the "peeing" slow down when your body gets used to all the water?

  • jacklfc88
    jacklfc88 Posts: 247 Member
    Yes people mistake thirst for hunger. I fill a 2L bottle up in the morning and try to finish it before I go home. It's great not just for weight loss but the major benefit I have had from doing it has been increased alertness levels and just feeling generally better, less tired and more energetic, better skin and other physical benefits. It's not just about the weight loss, it's important to take in to account other things such as those mentioned when summarising general progress. :)
  • jrline
    jrline Posts: 2,353 Member
    I average about 2-3 gallons a day but I also walk over 6 miles everyday some days as many as 15 miles. Yes your body gets used to the extra water but you will still pee quite a bit. Good Luck on your journey
  • canoepug56
    canoepug56 Posts: 161 Member
    2-3 gallons ? Seriously ?
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    AllOutof_Bubblegum wrote: »
    It can only help with weight loss as far as it decreases your appetite for food. A lot of the times the brain can mistake thirst signals for hunger. Also drinking a large glass of water before meals can make your feel full faster, and subsequently eat less at mealtimes.

    That said, there is no other magical property that water possesses in terms of weight loss. But it's delicious and good for you, so drink lots of it!

    cosign
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    tmshank18 wrote: »
    I'm not a huge water drinker, but was told it could help with the weight loss. Would love to hear everyone's thoughts on water drinking.

    drinking water and staying hydrated is part of being healthy in general...not everything is about losing weight or helping you with losing weight...it's about being healthy.

    Staying hydrated flushes out and "detoxes" your system...you don't need any of those expensive detoxes...just water. Staying hydrated also helps your body function optimally, to include your metabolism. Staying hydrated is also important to recovery from exercise.

    In RE to how much you should be drinking, it really depends...your urine should be pale yellow to clear...if it's that way all of the time, you are hydrated.

    I drink roughly 1 gallon per day...a bit more in hotter months. I ride about 60 miles per week and hit the weight room a few nights per week and I live in the desert at over a mile high.
  • tekkiechikk
    tekkiechikk Posts: 375 Member
    Water can help satiate you if you are feeling hungry. Countless studies by countless numbers of smart medical people have been done that imply there are times when we aren't really hungry, but are thirsty.

    Personally, if I'm hungry and drink water (or on the rare occasion a diet soda), it helps for just a short time then I'm hungry again. At which point I have a sensible snack or eat the next regularly scheduled meal if it's close to that time.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    I drink 48-64 ounces of water or so a day (plus 20-30 ounces of coffee). Sometimes more, sometimes less... I just keep some bottles of water with me and drink frequently. As long as your pee is mostly clear, it's fine.

    The 'peeing all the time' thing gets better, but I still have a couple days a month when I'm shedding water weight and peeing all the time (I'm talking every 10 minutes, no lie). Those days completely suck.

    I've heard of the whole 'sometimes you think you're hungry but you're really thirsty and drinking water helps' thing but it's a bunch of BS for me... when I'm hungry, I'm hungry, and I know when I'm thirsty.
  • TaurianDoll
    TaurianDoll Posts: 111 Member
    tmshank18 wrote: »

    How much water do you drink on a daily basis? And does the "peeing" slow down when your body gets used to all the water?

    Your body tends to hold water (water weight) when you're not drinking enough water because it needs water to properly function. Your body sort of panics and thinks it won't receive the amount of water it needs to function. But when you begin drinking an adequate amount of water each day (80-120 oz), then you run to the bathroom a lot because your body is doing two things: 1) releasing fluid (water weight) and 2) flushing out toxins (cleaning your system). Eventually your body will learn not to hold on to so much water every day because it's learned that you will supply it with the water it needs to function properly.

    It takes a while but once that happens, the trips to the bathroom become more normal.

  • TaurianDoll
    TaurianDoll Posts: 111 Member
    Francl27 wrote: »
    I've heard of the whole 'sometimes you think you're hungry but you're really thirsty and drinking water helps' thing but it's a bunch of BS for me... when I'm hungry, I'm hungry, and I know when I'm thirsty.

    For me, it's sometimes true. I drink water to check to see if I'm actually dehydrated or hungry. If I drink the water and I'm still hungry, then I know my body needs food (usually a snack).

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  • nopotofgold
    nopotofgold Posts: 164 Member
    I drink water instead of other drinks unless is unsweetened tea most of the time. I don't think I drink enough water most of the time so i try to drink a cup before eating to make sure I am hungry and not thirsty. So far I have not confused hungry with thirst like so people say they do but it is getting me to be more hydrated. I think a drink about six to eight a day now. I don't get how people drink thirty plus glasses.
  • halfninja2
    halfninja2 Posts: 35 Member
    Agree with most of the comments here. Drinking water is important for good hydration and holding off "false" hunger when your body is actually thirsty. Your body also uses water in the process of converting fat to energy, so making sure you hydrated can only help that process function better. It is not going to accelerate weight loss significantly though - don't expect to start dropping a bunch more weight. Also, in my experience, how often you have to pee doesn't get better LOL! Other than coffee and drinks with meals, I drink maybe 32oz (two 16oz bottles) and seems like I have to pee every hour or two.
  • halfninja2
    halfninja2 Posts: 35 Member
    My comment is from personal experience - I lost 65 lbs over about a year and a half. No gym, no special food/diet. Just calorie management, 30 min of exercise bike cardio 6 days a week, and tried to get in plenty of fiber (fresh veggies, fiber bars, fruit, granola, cereal, whole grains).
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
    More is not better. Drink what your body needs.
This discussion has been closed.

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