Gallon a day water drinkers, got a question

[Piz]

"I drink a liter more each day".  Emil Kolb, 1978.

[TN94z]

2 hours ago, Valleygolfer said:

Fine if you need it but I don't agree with forcing water down and don't get me started on crossfit... If it is more difficult to drink a gallon, then your body doesn't probably need it.

It's not really a matter of having to force it down. It's more of a "I honestly forget to drink anything" while at work except at meals, kind of thing. I can tell by my pee (sorry about the tmi) that I need more intake

I have worked out doing powerlifting and bodybuilding for 22 years. I also had a bad taste in my mouth for crossfit until I tried it seriously. There is nothing wrong with it if done correctly with good form and leaving the pride factor out. As a matter of fact, I feel better now than I have in years since starting crossfit. And I've heard (and said) the same stuff like "crossfit only gets you good at crossfit." I now realize how stupid that is...lol. My goal is not to be a shredded bodybuilder or be as strong as I possibly can. My goal is to have great conditioning and be good at functional, everyday movements. 

But anyway...that's my .02

Edited August 23, 2017 by TN94z

[Patch]

6 hours ago, CT207 said:

I don't drink water to lose weight. I drink a lot of water to make sure I don't get kidney stones again. After two episodes of stones, I don't want to go through that again.. ever.

In the morning I'll have a 16oz coffee

I'm at the golf course by 0800 Mon - Fri and will go through 2 to 3 16 oz bottles of water during the round. After the round I have a GatorAde.. I think they're 16 oz also. Upon returning home I have a Stainless steel 24 oz mug which I'll go through 2 or 3 of those throughout the afternoon / night.

I'll occasionally squirt Real Lemon in for some tartness / different flavor. Also, Costco & BJ's sell Propel which is a flavored water. 

I did the kidney stone thing quite a while back. Worst pain I ever experienced.  I ask the er doc what caused them. He asked me if I drank tap water with out filtering it first. I told him I did. He said water in our area had a high mineral content, which when unfiltered can lead to a build up of deposits in the kidneys. 

Not sure how true his answer was, but I have not drank any tap water since. These days it's bottled water, with a little concentrated lemon juice added. I also tend to drink more beer than soda these days. 

As for losing weight, and water helping with that, I am not so sure how that works. Unless a person has a health issue, weight is based on colorie intake, versus calories burned. Water, and food help with hydration, so when eating less food, more water is needed for the hydration process. Add in exercise, and even more water is needed to stay hydrated. I have heard some folks say drinking water helps to mask the feeling of being hungry, or curbing one's appetite. 

I think it's safe to say that a properly hydrated body, will burn calories easier, and adequate water helps with the process. 

[TN94z]

7 hours ago, Patch said:

I did the kidney stone thing quite a while back. Worst pain I ever experienced.  I ask the er doc what caused them. He asked me if I drank tap water with out filtering it first. I told him I did. He said water in our area had a high mineral content, which when unfiltered can lead to a build up of deposits in the kidneys. 

Not sure how true his answer was, but I have not drank any tap water since. These days it's bottled water, with a little concentrated lemon juice added. I also tend to drink more beer than soda these days. 

As for losing weight, and water helping with that, I am not so sure how that works. Unless a person has a health issue, weight is based on colorie intake, versus calories burned. Water, and food help with hydration, so when eating less food, more water is needed for the hydration process. Add in exercise, and even more water is needed to stay hydrated. I have heard some folks say drinking water helps to mask the feeling of being hungry, or curbing one's appetite. 

I think it's safe to say that a properly hydrated body, will burn calories easier, and adequate water helps with the process. 

Yes, water helps with not eating as much. Many times when you feel hungry, you really just need water. But that's not my biggest reason for drinking it. I just feel better when I drink lots of water. It also helps with digestion and many other things. Not to mention that if not drinking water, I would be drinking things that are not good for dieting. That is my main reason. I'm a HUGE sweet tea drinker and as sweet as we make it, the sugar kills my weight loss. The gallon is not a requirement for losing weight. It's just a target I shoot for on a daily basis. 

Edited August 23, 2017 by TN94z

[dennyjones]

5 hours ago, TN94z said:

I'm a HUGE sweet tea drinker and as sweet as we make it, the sugar kills my weight loss.

I just Googled "How many calories in a cup of sugar"   773!    That's more than a Big Mac from Mc Donald's.   Sweet tea is my vice.   I've cut back to 1/2 cup each day but still....

[TN94z]

47 minutes ago, dennyjones said:

I just Googled "How many calories in a cup of sugar"   773!    That's more than a Big Mac from Mc Donald's.   Sweet tea is my vice.   I've cut back to 1/2 cup each day but still....

Exactly and my wife makes it SWEEEET!!

[iacas]

A cup of sugar is a LOT of sugar.

(I think Kool-Aid used to be two cups of sugar in a gallon or 2L of water… yikes.)

[Jack Watson]

Dude water rules.  Drink some good bottled water.  I don't believe in liquid calorie intake except a vodka at the end of my day.

Weight loss is simple math however it's done.  Done it doing it end of story.  

My advice on weight loss is the bulk of vegetables keeps one full.

No need for rich things like cheese or oil.  Potatoes rule if not topped with bacon and sour cream.  Love me some home baked fries with spices no added oil.  We need less protein than most think.

SImple sugar sucks.

Edited August 24, 2017 by Jack Watson

[dennyjones]

9 hours ago, iacas said:

A cup of sugar is a LOT of sugar.

(I think Kool-Aid used to be two cups of sugar in a gallon or 2L of water… yikes.)

I grew up drinking sweet tea.  My parents were originally from SE Missouri.   We had a cup of sugar in a pitcher of tea (2 quarts).   I've diluted it 1/2 cup of sugar but I still need to eliminate it all together.

[TN94z]

10 hours ago, Jack Watson said:

Dude water rules.  Drink some good bottled water.  I don't believe in liquid calorie intake except a vodka at the end of my day.

Weight loss is simple math however it's done.  Done it doing it end of story.  

My advice on weight loss is the bulk of vegetables keeps one full.

No need for rich things like cheese or oil.  Potatoes rule if not topped with bacon and sour cream.  Love me some home baked fries with spices no added oil.

SImple sugar sucks.

I've got tons of experience with what not to eat and what to eat. A lot of that comes down to knowing your individual body needs, which I have figured out over the years. Motivation is my biggest issue..haha.

Quote

We need less protein than most think

I agree with this 100%. I generally go by .8g per body weight...lean weight.

[JCrane]

On 8/22/2017 at 6:54 AM, TN94z said:

I am trying to lose some weight and I know that drinking around a gallon of water a day plays a big role in that process. I have trouble getting a gallon down in a day and was wondering what you guys do? I was thinking maybe a flavored mix or something to help. I normally buy the gallon jugs of drinking water and just carry it around with me. I thought about the Crystal lite mix but do not really care much for the aspartame in it.

Any tips or mixes that you guys use?

Are you working out ?  Water does not replace the electrolytes which you lose when you sweat. If you want to lose weight , check out Intermittent Fasting.  You eat within an 8 hr window and have no calories outside of the window. It is not that hard and has amazing results.

[TN94z]

9 hours ago, JCrane said:

Are you working out ?  Water does not replace the electrolytes which you lose when you sweat. If you want to lose weight , check out Intermittent Fasting.  You eat within an 8 hr window and have no calories outside of the window. It is not that hard and has amazing results.

Yes, I am working out. I drink drinks to replace the electrolytes. IF is pretty good and I have tried it in the past. It's not want I want to do this time though.

[Denny Bang Bang]

On 8/22/2017 at 7:54 AM, TN94z said:

I am trying to lose some weight and I know that drinking around a gallon of water a day plays a big role in that process.

 

On 8/22/2017 at 9:51 AM, Valleygolfer said:

I don't really see the requirement of drinking that much water a day to lose weight. If you require that much water drink it. Otherwise I think it is overkill.

I agree with Valleygolfer... drinking water isn't a necessity to weight loss.  The purpose of drinking water is simply, staying hydrated (which has in itself several benefits).  Staying hydrated could be 60 oz for one person, 120 oz for another, depending on many factors (climate, physical activity, etc).

 

As far as how to manage the necessary water intake, I don't have anything to add beyond what others have stated.  I just carry around a refillable water bottle and drink and refill throughout the day.  My body tells me if I'm getting enough (thirst level and urine color).

Edited August 29, 2017 by Denny Bang Bang

[TN94z]

13 hours ago, Denny Bang Bang said:

 

I agree with Valleygolfer... drinking water isn't a necessity to weight loss.  The purpose of drinking water is simply, staying hydrated (which has in itself several benefits).  Staying hydrated could be 60 oz for one person, 120 oz for another, depending on many factors (climate, physical activity, etc).

 

As far as how to manage the necessary water intake, I don't have anything to add beyond what others have stated.  I just carry around a refillable water bottle and drink and refill throughout the day.  My body tells me if I'm getting enough (thirst level and urine color).

Exactly.  No, it's not a necessity, but for me, it helps me tremendously with weight loss. I am going from past experience, getting close to a gallon is when I notice a consistent urine color that I am after. I'm not new to this subject, just having more trouble than I used to at getting the water down and, if anything, I sweat more water away now that I used to.

Edited August 29, 2017 by TN94z

[Zeph]

You'll drink more if it's readily available throughout the day. You can also add flavors without calories if that helps. Lime, orange, lime, cucumber etc.

Drinking a gallon isn't what I would generally suggest someone trying to lose weight, but if it helps you, it works.

Edited August 29, 2017 by Zeph

[TN94z]

7 minutes ago, Zeph said:

You'll drink more if it's readily available throughout the day. You can also add flavors without calories if that helps. Lime, orange, lime, cucumber etc.

Drinking a gallon isn't what I would generally suggest someone trying to lose weight, but if it helps you, it works.

Yeah, the flavor type stuff is what I was looking for. Why would you not suggest it out of curiosity?  Most trainers out there will tell you to get as close to that as you can, for the most part.

[Zeph]

Drinking water in itself won't make you lose any weight. You should of course drink as much as the body needs, but the body is pretty clever and can figure that out by itself. When it wants water you feel thirsty, when it's had enough you don't feel thirsty anymore.

Where it can help people is filling the stomach, but even then, fluids go through the body pretty quickly, especially if you drink large amounts. I'd rather put focus on what you eat and how much. If eating too much high-calorie parts of a meal is an issue, eat more vegetables. They fill the stomach better than water and got lots of nutritional value. The guidelines I've followed are pretty much to eat all the greens you can, as long as they are low in calories. I don't know about you, but if I drink water when I feel hungry, the hunger won't be gone for long.

As an experienced person in training and all that, you know that it's the energy balance that matters. How much energy you spend and how much you take in. When talking about weight loss, I focus on the intake part. We can calculate and estimate the energy spent, but it's never exact. It's easier to maintain control over what and how much we eat. When taking the time and putting in a bit of effort, it's not very difficult to reduce the consumption by 500 kcal a day.

For a person wanting to lose weight, jogging every day might not do anything since the body spends more energy and crave more energy to avoid losing weight. Which is why just starting to exercise doesn't work for many. They jog more, but without thinking about it also eat more, so the weight doesn't change. The most important factor is the diet. If done properly, you don't even have to work out much. When I try to lose weight I lift weights to avoid losing muscle mass, but I don't do too much cardio. I'd rather consume 1500 kcal and spend 2500 than consume 2500 and spend 3500. I sometimes do cardio to get an extra meal that day. As long as I got control over what I eat and monitor the weight over time, it's pretty easy in theory.

I'm on a personal trainer, nutritional expert or anything like that, but I've worked out for some years and been part of many discussions on exercise, muscle gain, weight loss etc., and over here, I haven't heard much talk about drinking a lot of water to lose weight.

In my opinion, the biggest obstacle to losing weight is the mind. It's very simple math, but the mind has to make the body not do what the body wants to do. The body wants to not lose weight, so it makes you hungry to make you eat more food. On the other side of the table is your mind, which does not want to eat more food since that means you won't lose weight. For most people that try, the body ends up winning, which is why I've always had the perspective that it's very much a mental thing, being able to overcome the needs of the body.

Of course there are individual differences on which kind of diet works, what kind of food etc., but the mental aspect is always there.

A girl I know asked for help on losing weight some time ago. I told her what to eat and how much. After a few days she complained that she was getting too full from the meals, while being on a 500-1000 kcal deficiency. We focused on protein and vegetables, which when selected carefully won't add up to a whole lot of calories, but it does fill the stomach. The body doesn't need copious amounts of protein during bulking or cutting, but it has a nice property of filling the stomach, making people eat less or not having to go around hungry too much.

Edited August 29, 2017 by Zeph

[TN94z]

2 hours ago, Zeph said:

Drinking water in itself won't make you lose any weight. You should of course drink as much as the body needs, but the body is pretty clever and can figure that out by itself. When it wants water you feel thirsty, when it's had enough you don't feel thirsty anymore.

Where it can help people is filling the stomach, but even then, fluids go through the body pretty quickly, especially if you drink large amounts. I'd rather put focus on what you eat and how much. If eating too much high-calorie parts of a meal is an issue, eat more vegetables. They fill the stomach better than water and got lots of nutritional value. The guidelines I've followed are pretty much to eat all the greens you can, as long as they are low in calories. I don't know about you, but if I drink water when I feel hungry, the hunger won't be gone for long.

As an experienced person in training and all that, you know that it's the energy balance that matters. How much energy you spend and how much you take in. When talking about weight loss, I focus on the intake part. We can calculate and estimate the energy spent, but it's never exact. It's easier to maintain control over what and how much we eat. When taking the time and putting in a bit of effort, it's not very difficult to reduce the consumption by 500 kcal a day.

For a person wanting to lose weight, jogging every day might not do anything since the body spends more energy and crave more energy to avoid losing weight. Which is why just starting to exercise doesn't work for many. They jog more, but without thinking about it also eat more, so the weight doesn't change. The most important factor is the diet. If done properly, you don't even have to work out much. When I try to lose weight I lift weights to avoid losing muscle mass, but I don't do too much cardio. I'd rather consume 1500 kcal and spend 2500 than consume 2500 and spend 3500. I sometimes do cardio to get an extra meal that day. As long as I got control over what I eat and monitor the weight over time, it's pretty easy in theory.

I'm on a personal trainer, nutritional expert or anything like that, but I've worked out for some years and been part of many discussions on exercise, muscle gain, weight loss etc., and over here, I haven't heard much talk about drinking a lot of water to lose weight.

In my opinion, the biggest obstacle to losing weight is the mind. It's very simple math, but the mind has to make the body not do what the body wants to do. The body wants to not lose weight, so it makes you hungry to make you eat more food. On the other side of the table is your mind, which does not want to eat more food since that means you won't lose weight. For most people that try, the body ends up winning, which is why I've always had the perspective that it's very much a mental thing, being able to overcome the needs of the body.

Of course there are individual differences on which kind of diet works, what kind of food etc., but the mental aspect is always there.

A girl I know asked for help on losing weight some time ago. I told her what to eat and how much. After a few days she complained that she was getting too full from the meals, while being on a 500-1000 kcal deficiency. We focused on protein and vegetables, which when selected carefully won't add up to a whole lot of calories, but it does fill the stomach. The body doesn't need copious amounts of protein during bulking or cutting, but it has a nice property of filling the stomach, making people eat less or not having to go around hungry too much.

Ok, yeah. Don't get the post confused with my trying to drink a gallon of water a day ONLY to try and lose weight. When I run a diet, I figure out my macros that I know work for me and then I plan out each day depending on whether I want to run static calories, wave, zig zag, etc...I then measure and weigh everything I eat to meet those macros. That is obviously the main thing that drops the weight for me, but changing my focus to drinking water exclusively rather than sweet tea, coke, etc... is very important as well. And from past experience, I just know that close to a gallon a day is what I have found my body needing once I take into consideration the lifting, cardio, and golfing where I lose quite a bit. I sweat a lot. It doesn't matter if I'm playing golf or working out...I sweat!  So there is a need for the amount of water I'm shooting for. Regardless of whether it is a gallon or half a gallon, I just get tired or drinking the unflavored water (unless it's ice cold) after a while and start looking for something to change it up. That is basically where this post is coming from.