Your thoughts on how much water we should be drinking...

nationalparklover
nationalparklover Posts: 120 Member
edited October 4 in Food and Nutrition
I'm just curious to hear from the "experts" out there on how much water we should be drinking if we are trying to lose weight...

This weekend, I was talking with a neighbor who is on a Doctor supervised plan and it is a little wacky but one of the things she is supposed to do is drink 1/2 of her body weight in ounces of water and she was struggling with that part of the diet (she is around 200 pounds so she needs to drink 100 ounces of water/day). She asked her Doctor about the logic that once you have the fat cells, you can never really get rid of them--you can only make them get smaller. He told her that drinking more water would help "carry away" her fat cells so it wasn't true that you couldn't get rid of them. Do any of you know anything about this?

I have to say, I've tried to increase my water since I heard this and have already made the drastic change of eliminating Diet Coke from my diet and so far, I've been doing really well. I'm just curious what your thoughts are on the matter of water and how much makes sense to drink.

Thanks!

Replies

  • HMonsterX
    HMonsterX Posts: 3,000 Member
    The average person requires roughly the equivalent of 8 cups of water a day, much of which we get from our food. It can come via any source, tea/coffee/milk/juice/soda/fruit/veg etc. You do NOT have to drink half your bodyweight in pure water!!! People who are are either misinformed, being safe, or simply like the taste of pure water. There is no added benefit in getting your 8 cups of water from pure water. As long as you account for the calories etc in other fluids, there's very little difference. You do NOT need pure water at all, either to stay hydrated or to lose weight. I never drink pure water, and I've never felt better! :D


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

    http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2011/jul/13/myth-eight-glasses-water-day

    http://junkfoodscience.blogspot.com/2008/07/wellness-water-8x8-myth.html

    http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2010/12/08/the-myth-behind-drinking-8-glasses-of-water-a-day/

    http://www.divinecaroline.com/22178/46361-coffee-makes-dehydrated-say-what
  • msarro
    msarro Posts: 2,748 Member
    The average person requires roughly the equivalent of 8 cups of water a day, much of which we get from our food. It can come via any source, tea/coffee/milk/juice/soda/fruit/veg etc. You do NOT have to drink half your bodyweight in pure water!!! People who are are either misinformed, being safe, or simply like the taste of pure water. There is no added benefit in getting your 8 cups of water from pure water. As long as you account for the calories etc in other fluids, there's very little difference. You do NOT need pure water at all, either to stay hydrated or to lose weight. I never drink pure water, and I've never felt better! :D


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

    http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2011/jul/13/myth-eight-glasses-water-day

    http://junkfoodscience.blogspot.com/2008/07/wellness-water-8x8-myth.html

    http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2010/12/08/the-myth-behind-drinking-8-glasses-of-water-a-day/

    http://www.divinecaroline.com/22178/46361-coffee-makes-dehydrated-say-what

    The only issue is most humans in western cultures get an excessive amount of sodium in their diet, which puts a pretty big damper on how much water you're really getting from your food. That's the reason why if you're admitted to the ER, the very first thing they will do is put you in an IV drip of saline solution, without even checking how hydrated you are. Because its a safe assumption that the general population is dehydrated.

    These articles are right, if you eat a good diet, you shouldn't have to drink extra water. But the fact is most people in the West do not. Most of the people on here? Hopefully much better. But still, drinking extra water won't hurt you (unless you start chugging gallons of it). Plus it gives you the added benefit of feeling full, without needing to eat food. Not to mention ice water burns calories to drink (fact).
  • lambeas
    lambeas Posts: 229 Member
    I think it is best to think.. with EVERY meal & snack, drink 1 eight ounce glass of water..

    Helps with digestion, to feel more full and easy way to keep track!
  • mynika
    mynika Posts: 312 Member
    While, I am not sure how much each person may need medically, I personally think that drinking water is to our advantage, I can certainly tell when I don't drink mine. I know that when I have too much sodium, drinking my 64 oz of water daily helps tremendously in flushing out my system. Drink your water, you will find that it helps :drinker:
  • Moneicalynn
    Moneicalynn Posts: 136 Member
    My Dr just told me that if I want to lose weight I need to drink @ least 16 glasses of water per day :) I was also told by another Dr that it is 1/2 of ur bodies weight in ounces... which for me they are about the same #
  • JOANIE69
    JOANIE69 Posts: 132 Member
    hello there i have just came from a doctors appointment and i have been drinking lots and lots of water thinking it helps with weight loss so one nurse said.but now my doc has just told me i should drink a 2 litre bottle a day and no more and put me on water tablets furosomide to get rid of excess water which causes swelling to my legs,so now i will be sticking to 2litres no more than that.cant win can you .
  • UponThisRock
    UponThisRock Posts: 4,519 Member
    Your body lets you know when you need water
  • HMonsterX
    HMonsterX Posts: 3,000 Member
    My Dr just told me that if I want to lose weight I need to drink @ least 16 glasses of water per day :) I was also told by another Dr that it is 1/2 of ur bodies weight in ounces... which for me they are about the same #

    Do you have some medical condition?

    You must have, or else that Dr is a bit of a quack if he says you NEED to drink 16 glasses to lose weight! I don't, and never have, drunk pure water...and have i lost weight?
  • kellykw
    kellykw Posts: 184 Member
    Personally, I feel better when I drink a lot of pure water, so I consider the 8 8oz glasses guideline to be the minimum for me. I don't keep track of how much water I drink every day, but it's around 100oz, probably more on days when I exercise a lot. I can definitely tell when I'm not hydrated! I drink diet soda too, but I don't substitute it for water. I know all liquids (and foods) contribute to hydration, but I don't feel so good when I don't have plenty of water.
  • HMonsterX
    HMonsterX Posts: 3,000 Member
    Personally, I feel better when I drink a lot of pure water, so I consider the 8 8oz glasses guideline to be the minimum for me. I don't keep track of how much water I drink every day, but it's around 100oz, probably more on days when I exercise a lot. I can definitely tell when I'm not hydrated! I drink diet soda too, but I don't substitute it for water. I know all liquids (and foods) contribute to hydration, but I don't feel so good when I don't have plenty of water.

    And that's fine! I have no problem if you're drinking it because it makes you feel better, and you're aware you don't HAVE to drink that much! I'm just trying to quash the stupid myth that you HAVE to drink at least 8 cups of NEAT water a day to stay hydrated.
  • Uerzer
    Uerzer Posts: 273
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  • Moneicalynn
    Moneicalynn Posts: 136 Member
    My Dr just told me that if I want to lose weight I need to drink @ least 16 glasses of water per day :) I was also told by another Dr that it is 1/2 of ur bodies weight in ounces... which for me they are about the same #

    Do you have some medical condition?

    You must have, or else that Dr is a bit of a quack if he says you NEED to drink 16 glasses to lose weight! I don't, and never have, drunk pure water...and have i lost weight?

    Yes if you must know I do have a medical condition....I am facing THROAT & STOMACH CANCER........
    but i was told the same thing by a different Dr who didnt know about my medical condition...... he is the one that says a good amount of water to drink if you want to lose weight is 1/2 of ur bodies weight in ounces..... which for me is about the same amount of water............
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    Personally, I feel better when I drink a lot of pure water, so I consider the 8 8oz glasses guideline to be the minimum for me. I don't keep track of how much water I drink every day, but it's around 100oz, probably more on days when I exercise a lot. I can definitely tell when I'm not hydrated! I drink diet soda too, but I don't substitute it for water. I know all liquids (and foods) contribute to hydration, but I don't feel so good when I don't have plenty of water.

    And that's fine! I have no problem if you're drinking it because it makes you feel better, and you're aware you don't HAVE to drink that much! I'm just trying to quash the stupid myth that you HAVE to drink at least 8 cups of NEAT water a day to stay hydrated.

    hmonster....relax. There are "studies" to support both sides. No need to get all mythbusters on us.

    I drink 1/2 my body weight in ounces. I also lost weight - 52 lbs. More than eight glasses is not harmful. Chillax.
  • HMonsterX
    HMonsterX Posts: 3,000 Member
    Personally, I feel better when I drink a lot of pure water, so I consider the 8 8oz glasses guideline to be the minimum for me. I don't keep track of how much water I drink every day, but it's around 100oz, probably more on days when I exercise a lot. I can definitely tell when I'm not hydrated! I drink diet soda too, but I don't substitute it for water. I know all liquids (and foods) contribute to hydration, but I don't feel so good when I don't have plenty of water.

    And that's fine! I have no problem if you're drinking it because it makes you feel better, and you're aware you don't HAVE to drink that much! I'm just trying to quash the stupid myth that you HAVE to drink at least 8 cups of NEAT water a day to stay hydrated.

    hmonster....relax. There are "studies" to support both sides. No need to get all mythbusters on us.

    I drink 1/2 my body weight in ounces. I also lost weight - 52 lbs. More than eight glasses is not harmful. Chillax.

    Show me a study that says we have to drink 8 cups of pure water to stay hydrated....preferable one that isn't from the 40s, which is where that original 8x8 myth came from.

    All i was saying is that you don't have to drink any neat water at all in order to lose weight.
  • yummy♥
    yummy♥ Posts: 612 Member
    All i was saying is that you don't have to drink any neat water at all in order to lose weight.

    much like my whiskey, i prefer my water neat.
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