Water vs. Other Drinks

I try very hard to drink all my water. I have two cups of coffee every morning followed with a glass of water. Then I either drink unsweet tea when eating out or diet coke. At home it's splenda tea

There have been many debates on MFP about water, soda and other sources to hydrate our bodies. I drink coffee. I drink diet soda. I drink water. In the end, the best way to know if you are hydrated is to check the color of your unrine. The darker it is, the more dehydrated you are.

It sure is possible that coffee and/or diet soda could have an affect on your weight loss ... or they could have no affect. Different people report different things, so the best solution is to dry different approaches and systematically determine what affects these kinds of drinks have on you (or don't have).

Peace!

I don't think my results were typical in the past but I've lost as much as 15 lbs by just stopping to drink soda. Regular or diet. I've recently stopped and not had that type of result, but all in all they are empty calories. Even diet low or zero calorie drinks have the sugar, additives, etc.

I get bored with water and have tried various packs to add in but I'm really liking Mio now. Everything on the label claims to be 0's in terms of calories, etc. I'm not sure I'm convinced because they add too much taste to be true. I recently found a sweet tea flavor and it is awesome. I like straight water during workouts or right after, but the flavor is nice with meals or just as a drink watching tv.

I cut out all hot drinks over four months ago and just drink water from a cooling machine at work / a juice for breakfast and a cold milk before bed time. I can safely say I don't miss any of the "stuff" I used to chuck down me, including alcohol, and my concentration / energy levels / stamina all appear to have sharpened up.

That is just me though, so just my opinion that drinking water in copious amounts influences well being and fitness.

I wouldn't drink so much of that stuff...the sweeteners alone are not good. I love Diet Coke, don't get me wrong, but I stick to the one a day limit. As for the other times, I drink 80% water mixed with 20% crystal light lemonade. Yes CL has sweeteners too, but you are getting barely any if you water it down, just to get a taste. I find that I drink a lot more water this way.

I didn't read the thread so this may have been mentioned, but caffeine is a diuretic which will actually lead to dehydration.

It's too bad you didn't read the thread, you would have learned something. Instead, you have thrown out information without any facts around it.

I'm having trouble agreeing that pop is ok at all. Maybe it's because when I was in Basic Training they wouldn't let me drink it because it was so hot outside and they were terrified of us getting dehydrated (because of the caffeine). Also it was our Drill Sergeants theory that it wasn't going to help us make weight so we could STAY in the Army (get fat=get booted). I know they were not all nutritionists, but they trained a lot of people and half of that training was getting us into shape and helping us make weight.

I did a little reading to back up my point. All these articles explain why pop is bad for you. One is study suggests that drinking sugary drinks causes people to crave more sugar throughout the day, thus adding more calories. Also there are links to heart attacks, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, kidney problems, and calcium deficiencies. I did find, however, a study on caffeine using coffee showed that it is not a diuretic. The only reason why you would want to use the bathroom more is because you drank so much in the first place. Don't get me wrong, I love me some Pepsi and Rum, but I think all of this is proof that Pop even Diet Pop is something to be moderated.

http://whitney05.hubpages.com/hub/Soda-is-Bad-for-You

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/diet-soda/AN01732

http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/sodas-and-your-health-risks-debated?page=2

http://www.americanhealthandbeauty.com/articles/?article=3532

Urine should be very pale yellow. 8 glasses a day is a generic guide. If you weigh 120 lbs and your neighbor weighs 200lbs your water intake requirements will be different. In addition, your water requirement varies with your activity level and food consumption. Your body obviously needs more water when you sweat. Your body also uses water to digest food when you eat, that's why eating makes you thirsty. Soda's and sugar drinks won't kill you, but they aren't good for you and are really easy to give up. We aren’t talking about chocolate here, it's just diet soda (which really doesn't taste that good anyway). The easiest way to drink more water, if you need it, is to keep a thermos type squirt bottle on your desk at work. Cold water is easier to drink and actually burns a couple calories as your body warms up the water inside you. Also by setting a 24 oz bottle on your desk it makes it easy to take a swig. The goal isn't to down the whole bottle in one shot. Just sip on it throughout the day, you'll find you can drink 2-3 a day easily. It's like forming any habit, do it long enough and it just becomes natural.