Hi guys - I'd really like some input here. Am I drinking TOO much during the day?? I regularly drink 6 liters of water(ed down Crystal Light) every day - and I mean REALLY watered down - I use one of the singles packets and mix it with 2 liters of water instead of 500ml - just enough to give the water a little flavour. I keep two 2-liter jugs in the fridge at all times, and make one up as soon as I finish one.

I tried to look this info up online, but most of the info out there seems geared towards 'a healthy adult' - ummm, yeah. Not me - Not YET! So, I did read that you should try to drink a half ounce for every pound you weigh... that works out to about half of what I drink in the course of day. Some days I even drink 8 liters... and days when I only have three or four, I feel a little - well, 'dry'.

I don't FEEL like I am drowning myself - in fact, I feel pretty good! It isn't a thirst issue, really, and I am not diabetic. According to my calorie tracker online, I do often go a bit over my suggested sodium amount, so I doubt very much if I am diluting my saline enough to do damage.

For background, I do not exercise excessively either - quite the opposite!! and I drink this amount throughout the course of day - not all at once! This from the girl who didn't drink ANY water at all during the day three months ago - no kidding! I'd have coffee, maybe a diet soda and a cup of tea, and that would be it.

So - I'm looking for some input. How much do you guys drink? Is there something I am missing, or should know? I want to think, 'hey - this feels okay, so it can only be a good thing', but you guys are so knowledgeable on here, I'd like to hear what you think.

Thanks,
Heather

Well, that IS a lot of water... I think only a professional who can do a work up can truly tell you that you are drinking too much water. All we can tell you is the reccommended daily intake (which you already know and is arguable between studies) and what we as individuals prefer for ourselves. I will say that I don't know many people who can drink 6 liters of water in a day- are you in the bathroom a lot?

As for me, I drink on average 70 ounces on most days. I am working in an office setting for the summer with an endless supply of coffee and diet soda and at first my water intake trailed off. I am back to normal though, but I pee all morning, it seems!

My personal opinion is that water intake varies from person to person, not necessarily dictated by weight or activity level. I drink however much water I need to keep me hydrated (gotta save some for the fishies, ya know ) and I know if I'm getting dehydrated by my pee color (TMI, I know), and sometimes I get a headache if I have too much caffeine and not enough water as well.

EDIT- I was just looking at my water bottle and I calculated my water wrong- I typically drink around 90 oz a day, not 70... FWIW.

Thanks Jen - I guess I'll ask my doctor and see what he says. Will let ya'll know!

Heather

I've never heard of being able to drink too much water. Hmmmm...I'm an interested to know, so please get back to us when you hear back from your Doc!

I, personally, drink about 100 ounces a day....that is definitly not an ounce per pound and I can't imagine drinking 300 ounces of water....I'm ALREADY in the bathroom enough as it is. I base whether or not my water intake is good by the color of my pee as well. I exercise a LOT too, and if I drink TOO much, I'd be stopping ALL the time to go potty. Hmmm...

I should ask my trainer..

Honestly, water poisoning requires drinking a similar quantity in a MUCH shorter period of time - if you feel good, keep doing it. Your body will let you know if there is something wrong. You may find yourself craving salt, and that would be a sign to slow down on the water a little, but other than that... It may also be one of those things that will settle down to a more normal pace eventually. You said you used to not drink ANY water, so your body is used to taking whatever it can get. If you continue to drink like this, it might well realize that it doesnt need all of it, and start regulating your thirst better.

My mother tells me that if you drink too much water, you start to flush all the nutrients from your system, which isn't good. But I imagine that "too much" is a pretty individual value.

I'd say, don't wait for your body to tell you something is wrong. Our bodies try to make do with whatever circumstances arise, until they can't anymore, and then we are really sick.

You are drinking too much water. The amount you listed is 2.4 to 3 times more than the 8 to 10 8-oz. glasses a day that most sources recommend. You may deplete your body of the salts it needs for proper functioning. Cut down on the water, is what I would tell you--stay with 64 to 80 ounces a day. That's a liter to a liter and a half. No, I am not a doctor or health professional, so you still need to ask your doctor.

Jay

There is something called Water Intoxification. You can Google it to find out more. When I asked a registered Dietitian this very same thing, she told me she has only known of one person who had this happen. That person drank like 160 ounces of water AND like a 6 pack of diet soda in a day.

Yes, well, 6 liters of water is over 6 quarts, which comes to 192 ounces a day!

Jay

Good question, one I was wondering as well. I don't drink nearly as much water as you do, I'm only drinking 5 bottles a day, 17 oz each, so that's about 85 oz a day (and truthfully, about 1/2 of that last bottle often goes to the plants on my kitchen windowsill at night ).

But do our bodies ever get used to this much water, as far as the need to urinate so often? I drank this much one other time for about a month and never got used to it (being in the bathroom so often, that is), but maybe after awhile our bodies regulate themselves with that much water intake? Just wondering.

(I'd type more but I gotta run to the loo again! )

This has been very educational to me, thanks guys. I'm glad people make these kinds of threads, because maybe it was asked before, but some of us would never think of searching for a thread asking this question.

I might cut down on a little bit of my water intake as well, although my body seems to be getting used to it. I guess if one exercises a lot, it would be different too, right?

I mean...you get rid of a LOT of water while working out, and you're supposed to replenish your body

You asked what others do, so here's the answer for me: I drink about 8 oz. of water before I go to bed and then again when I wake up. Other than that, I drink a small amount of water all day long, between meals, when I am thirsty and when I exercise. Usually I refill my water bottle 2 times daily (it's a great stainless steel water bottle, that holds 1 liter). Occasionally I have sparkling water or a mix of juice and sparkling water. I also often eat soups and juicy fruits and that contributes to my fluid intake for the day.

If you aren't thirsty, why are you drinking as many as 8 liters of Crystal Light a day?

I wouldn`t worry about water intoxication, since that takes about as much water as you`re drinking but like, in an hour.

I would also suggest asking a doctor because it does sound like a lot. For example, on days when I`m in the field I take in between 4 to 5 liters, but that`s because it`s really hot and I sweat tons when I`m out. If I don`t get at least 4 liters in me on those days I get a headache. On days when I`m in the lab (like today, weeee!), I guess I`m around 2 to 2.5 liters, because I run and still sweat a lot because it is HOT here. Good luck!

Typically, my day starts with 8-10 ounces of water followed by 12 ounces of coffee. I take my .5 liter bottle of water to work and I'll drink and refill it several times (probably 2 liters during the day). Once home, I'll have a cocktail followed by about 20 ounces of water. So all in all, my daily water consumption is about 96 ounces (plus coffee and cocktail). On the weekends, if I don't have my water bottle, I find that by mid afternoon, I'm terribly tired, but if I have a good 10-20 ounces of water it rejuvenates me!

I'm no doctor either, but that seems a little too much, yes, especially since you mentioned you don't exercise a lot. For information, my doctor considers me a heavy drinker, and that amounts to between 3 liters and 4 liters a day (the latter being on summer days with exercise; I tend to drink less in winter, partly because I drink hot tea, which takes more time to be drunk than fresh water). If you're not really thirsty, maybe it'd be best to not drink as much?

Besides, I hope you're not like me in that regard, because if I'm not careful and drink too much in the evenings, I need to get up twice a night to pee, and I tell you, this makes me tired, since the quality of my sleep isn't exactly good in those cases.