Nutrition Thoughts on water.....

[IggyM]

Is it true about drinking plenty of water throughout the day, Ive read that a person my age size etc should be drinking 4-8 litres of water, Dont get me wrong i do drink about 2-3 most days and i find that a struggle 1 due to all the toilet visits and 2 because i constantly feel bloated.

 

[Incoqnito]

Drink when you’re thirsty - eat when you’re hungry. I personslly think that listening to our bodies is the best way.
3-4 liters sounds just about right to me - 8 liters is a LOT of water.
if you drink that much - remember to add a bit of salt.

 

[IggyM]

Drink when you’re thirsty - eat when you’re hungry. I personslly think that listening to our bodies is the best way.
3-4 liters sounds just about right to me - 8 liters is a LOT of water.
if you drink that much - remember to add a bit of salt.

I thought as much cheers mate

 

[Hasbro]

The standard you’ll often hear in nutritional/health circles is drink one half ounce for every pound of body weight. So if you weigh 200 pounds you would drink 100 ounces or approximately 3 liters daily. That’s probably a good starting point but doesn’t take into account environment, activity, or if you sweat more than the average Joe. For instance I’m a profuse sweater and if I’m doing a strenuous activity outside in the middle of a hot summer day I can lose a lot of water. So in situations like that I have to drink more than normal to make up for it.

Usually the way I judge it is to weigh myself before I start the activity and then afterwards I replenish my fluids with however much it takes to get me close to that weight again. But be sure to keep the fluids coming in at least every 30 minutes if your doing an activity that’s going to take a long while.

Once I did a 100 mile bicycle race on a really hot day. I was more worried about my time than I was staying properly hydrated so I didn’t stop to replenish my water bottles like I should have. I started the day at 200 pounds and crossed the finish line 6 hours later at 188 pounds. Completely dehydrated and in dangerously bad condition. That was a lesson learned the hard way and I’m lucky it didn’t kill me.

 

[IggyM]

The standard you’ll often hear in nutritional/health circles is drink one half ounce for every pound of body weight. So if you weigh 200 pounds you would drink 100 ounces or approximately 3 liters daily. That’s probably a good starting point but doesn’t take into account environment, activity, or if you sweat more than the average Joe. For instance I’m a profuse sweater and if I’m doing a strenuous activity outside in the middle of a hot summer day I can lose a lot of water. So in situations like that I have to drink more than normal to make up for it.

Usually the way I judge it is to weigh myself before I start the activity and then afterwards I replenish my fluids with however much it takes to get me close to that weight again. But be sure to keep the fluids coming in at least every 30 minutes if your doing an activity that’s going to take a long while.

Once I did a 100 mile bicycle race on a really hot day. I was more worried about my time than I was staying properly hydrated so I didn’t stop to replenish my water bottles like I should have. I started the day at 200 pounds and crossed the finish line 6 hours later at 188 pounds. Completely dehydrated and in dangerously bad condition. That was a lesson learned the hard way and I’m lucky it didn’t kill me.

Thanks mate im pretty similar i keep forgetting to drink sometimes and then i take alot in a short time scale

 

[Marc]

There is no set number of water that you have to intake daily. All those recommendations are just that. A very rough estimation but actually there is no scientific basis on how much water one needs. Drink according to thirst.

 

[offwidth]

Drinking according to thirst may be fine for normal day to day activities (including gym training)

Drinking according to thirst in more serious situations such as extreme locomotive endurance activities, like ultra running, mountaineering (especially at altitude and in the cold), long distance cycling, etc. is a sure fire way to lead to performance degradation, dehydration, heat exhaustion, and worse. In these types of activities one needs to drink well before one feels thirsty. There is also benefit from 'pre-hydrating' for days prior to an event...

I can recount witnessing near critical situations resulting from people not drinking because they weren't 'thirsty'...

 

[Marc]

Drinking according to thirst may be fine for normal day to day activities (including gym training)

Drinking according to thirst in more serious situations such as extreme locomotive endurance activities, like ultra running, mountaineering (especially at altitude and in the cold), long distance cycling, etc. is a sure fire way to lead to performance degradation, dehydration, heat exhaustion, and worse. In these types of activities one needs to drink well before one feels thirsty. There is also benefit from 'pre-hydrating' for days prior to an event...

I can recount witnessing near critical situations resulting from people not drinking because they weren't 'thirsty'...

Of course this is true, but does affect only a very tiny proportion of people even among athletic folks.
On the other hand there are also a lot of cases of hospitalisation and even deaths due to overhydration.

 

[offwidth]

Of course this is true, but does affect only a very tiny proportion of people even among athletic folks.
On the other hand there are also a lot of cases of hospitalisation and even deaths due to overhydration.

This is true as well.
Interestingly enough it's us endurance folks that are the high risk groups for both dehydration and overhydration...
(And I am one of that "very tiny proportion")

 

[Hasbro]

Overhydration “hyponatremia” is very rare but dehydration to some degree occurs in up to 80% of athletes in team sports, tennis, endurance events, etc according to this article. I would much rather err on the side of drinking more than I needed than not enough. Every individual is different and there’s many variables to consider. I drink a lot of water, sometimes 6+ liters a day and I have never once overhydrated or experienced any symptoms related to it nor do I know anyone that’s ever experienced it.

On the other hand I’ve dehydrated many times in my life and a few of them to the point of extreme danger. I was doing a 5 mile LSD run this summer on a hilly course on a 95 degree high humidity day. About a mile from home I had to stop and lay down in a ditch because I was dehydrated and couldn’t go another step. 20 minutes later I was finally able to gather myself and walk the rest of the way home at the pace and energy level of a 98 year old man. This is a run I do 3-5 times a week with no problems but I usually run at night.

Dehydration is nothing to mess with. A simple way to tell if your getting enough liquids on an average day is to check the color of your urine. If it’s dark you need to drink more.

Hyponatremia or Overhydration—who is at risk? | SportMedBC

 

[william bad butt]

Big fan of water here! Also lots of sodium/salt and orange gatoraide (it's the only flavor that tastes good)!

 

[Hasbro]

Here’s a good article explaining how to calculate water needs and has a color chart for urine evaluation. It also says that “sensation of thirst” only works at rest or exercising at lower intensities for less than one hour in cooler conditions.

Hydration | Korey Stringer Institute

 

[Bauer]

I know some people (from the same family) who just don't feel thirsty. They even forget to pack water (or pack too little) for a hike and always ask for my water supply. I actually pack more because I know how they are.

They don't feel thirsty that quickly but develop symptoms of dehydration like headaches, tight muscles in general, and cardiovascular problems.

And (at least over here in Germany) older generations were raised not to drink during activities - and not even during lunch or dinner as it would "suppress appetite".

I guess the typical recommendations are aimed at those populations. I on the other hand have always some kind of beverage closeby. Water, green tea, coffee, beer, kefir

 

[JW513]

I bring water everywhere.

I'll never forgot one day at work, we poured concrete in direct sunlight on a very hot day.... Then I worked another job until 6. So roughly 10 hours in direct sun I was so weak at the end of the day I almost went down with the wheelbarrow. I went home passed out on the couch and woke up with bad foot cramps.

It's no joke being dehydrated. I even drink a few glasses of water before bed and bring a glass with me.