I know you got enough answers but I have actually tried this method. I was trying to give up sugar so I still needed something "sweet". I literally would drink 8 glasses of Crystal Lite a day including pure water. It still flushed my system out. I guess I traded one addiction for another

I did eventually get off the Crystal Lite too.

I would count it as water.

I count it. Water is water. Whether you add to it or not, in my opinion.

I avoid the aspartame as there seems to be quite a bit of research saying it is bad for you, and at least some research saying it might make it harder to lose weight. There are other low-calorie drinks out there without the aspartame.

I have oftern wondered about this. It totally makes sense since fruits and veggies are comprised of a lot of water. Whether I am driking soda or water I use the restroom all the time because of the amount of fluids that I take in all together.

Thanks for posting this. It is very informative.

Great post and very educational. Have to admit I read the subject line and came in thinking the answer would be that it would NOT count as water.

Thanks to all who indicated otherwise!

Have to go with counting it as water.

And to those who drink Crystal Light, did you deduct (the 5 calories per 8 oz.?) from your total calorie intake for the day? I didn't want to do that, so I switched to zero calorie bottled water drinks i.e. "Skinny Water" or "Vitamin Water Zero"

Any thoughts on that?

Well, zero doesn't really mean zero. Any product that contains fewer than 5 calories per serving can be labeled as having zero calories. Some companies round down to zero, but others round up to 5. So a Crystal Light or bottled water product that contained 3 calories per serving might be labeled as having 5 calories, but another product that contained 4 calories might be labeled as having 0 calories.

I've seen Crystal Light and store brand drink mixes that because of the identical flavor, and nearly identical packaging, I would be willing to bet are being made in the same factories - the only difference being the label - and yet the labels sometimes listed different calorie counts (one rounding down to zero, one rounding up to 5). I don't think the drink mixes actually contained different calorie counts, I think the math was just done differently.

I don't count Crystal Light or other "zero" or "five" calorie beverages partially for that reason, and partially because the math isn't worth it for the results. At most I'll drink 2 pitchers of Crystal Light a week (usually only one). But let's assume 2 for worst case scenario math.

That's a gallon per week (16 servings) or 52 gallons per year (832 servings per year). That's 4160 calories per year or 1.18 pounds.

That means - worst case scenario - that if I don't count those 5 calories, I'm going to lose 1.18 pounds less PER YEAR than if I did count those calories.

So no, I do not subtract 5 calories for each glass from my total for the day, because at most it means I'll lose about 1 pound less per year than if I did count.

I can live with that.

I figure I probably burn 5 calories getting up to walk to the cupboard and grab a packet of Crystal Light to mix up. It's like counting calories in sugar free gum... kinda pointless considering any packaged food you buy can legally be off count by 20%, and restaraunt meals are notoriously innacurate with calorie counts.

I use it in my water once a day as well. I put one packet in a 33 oz bottle and it sure helps. Feels like I am having a treat and I am getting my water in.

Good Luck

JO

This. I'm a prime case in point. I almost never drink plain water -- perhaps a half-cup every two weeks. I get all my fluid needs met from coffee, tea, sparkling water/juice mix and wine, along with soups, fruits, etc. I'm still healthy, my pee isn't dark, and I have lots of energy for exercising.

Freelance

Edited to add: Just realized I posted earlier on in this thread. What can I say, Alzheimer moment.

I count it towards my water, but I DO count the calories. One packet has two servings, so it's 10 calories per bottle (except for the fiber added kind, I think?).
Still worth it for me, but it adds up over time.

I don't count the calories in crystal light, or anything else under 30 calories or so. I have my own method that already counts these things in.

I round up everything so these smaller calorie items are accounted for without me having to go nuts adding every little calorie in. For example, if something is 175 calories, I will count it as 200. It makes it easier for me to keep track in my head while simultaneously allowing for these smaller items without me having to start logging everything.

I then get annoyed when things are say 160 calories or so. It presents me with a dilemma: do I round up to 200 or down to 150? I usually round up unless I've done a lot of rounding up that day.

I have a lot of strange little "rules" when it comes to how I count calories, but it's worked for me thus far.

Thank you, all, for your feedback! I really appreciate it and enjoyed reading everyone's take on the subject!

I recently posted about my struggle with constipation in the "Introduction" section.

It really sucks to have to count calories for things that I "need" but do not "like". This morning I had 2T of flaxseed (70) in 1 container of Activia
(70) and 1T of psyllium (15) mixed in a blender with water and 3T of a superfood pre/probiotic powder (112.50). All in the name of constipation
(267.50)!

I consume an average of 1400 calories a day and 267.50 is quite a big chunk of that.

Hope something works soon!

Have a great day, all!

I have a coworker who does not drink water AT ALL. EVER. And I mean NEVER!!!! Only Coca Cola. And she is still alive. (Not supporting this- just sayin'). So I think if the water in her Coke counts, then your Crystal Light water counts toward your water consumption. If water is needed in the body, it will be utilized by the cells. If not, it will be added to urine as it flushes through the kidneys. So I'm not sure where your trainer got the idea that the body needs water all by itself to function properly... What if you drank water on top of the food you ate two hours prior and it ran together? Is it instantly invalidated? The digestive system handles literally thousands of molecules at a time, and manages to do just fine sorting and utilizing. I'm thinking his training in biochemistry is out of date? I agree with nibbles that this seems like a "trainery" thing to say.
On the other hand, I don't know how effective the packets of green tea would be for supporting the metabolism. Processing the tea might render the EGCG ineffective? You might have to drink tea you brewed yourself to get the benefits. But don't take that as gospel, as my training in biochemistry is only slightly more up to date than your trainer's! It is worth researching, though, if that is the primary reason you drink it.