I drink water most of the time--I enjoy it. My other go-to drink was unsweetened iced tea, but after the kidney stone episodes last summer, that's off the table, of course. So I stick to plain water. And I'm one of the few people I know who does drink as much as is recommended (and have even before the KS's).

Depending upon how much water you're drinking, and what your activity level is, and the temperature, you may from time to time end up running in and out of the bathroom, but that's good for you, actually. Most of us don't urinate nearly as much as we should for optimum health.

Water is almost the only thing I drink. Sometimes I will have Hot Chocoate in the evening. I drink very little soda. I cant even stand the smell of coffee much less drink it and I hate Ice Tea. I very seldom drink alcohol

I do drink the recommended amount of water every day. I just keep a glass nearby and sip all day long, in addition to drinking at least five or six ounces when I take meds three times a day. After a while, it just becomes a habit, I think.

Sleeperblues.... I found that the urge to 'go' will get better as your body gets used to the water. I drink 80 ounces a day. Water. not including my every now and then coffee or tea, I don't count those. It did take some getting used to, but I think it is good for you. I don't know how much I 'should' drink, i just aimed for that amount. As Mamatoad says after a while it will become a habit.

I do drink a lot of water. I like ice water which is why my new fridge has the water & ice dispensers in the door. Last year I gave up buying soda pop to drink at home. Any soda, diet or regular is just not a good thing for anyone's body.

I drink between 10 and 16 cups of water a day.
LOVE it!

I have never liked water, but lately I've been having it with lemon slices and that really appeals to me. I drink much more water now.

I drink a lot of decaf iced tea (purchased) I've been trying to mix half watr and half tea. I used to like ice water but find I don't enjoy just plain water anymore.

You really don't need as much water as urban legend would have you believe. If you are thirsty drink water but if you aren't there is no need to choke it down. Flavored water is just as acceptable as plain.

If you have clear urine and aren't thirsty you are drinking enough.

An average person in an average climate only needs about a liter a day to replace lost fluids.

Of course drinking a glass of water will fill you up and perhaps cause you to eat less at that time but overall the whole idea that we all need to gulp down 8 to 10 glases of water a day is malarkey.

I don't like water, it is tasteless. I was in Dodge city Kansas years ago and their water was Fabulous!
If I drank that much water I would need to stay in the bathroom all day.

I know I feel better in general if I keep my water intake up. I've read that as we age we tend to lose our sense of thirst, so we need to make a point of drinking water. That's certainly been true for me; I used to be good about drinking water, but now I have to think about it. Reading this thread reminded me that I was thirsty. But I wish I enjoyed drinking water the way I used to.

I should keep the book Your Body's Many Cries for Water on my desk. Just looking at the cover reminds me to drink. :-)

I usually have one large mug of tea in the morning, or occasionally coffee. The rest of the day water is my only drink, except sometimes I'll make a cup of Kaffree Roma coffee substitute, which I like a lot. I love it iced in summer. No caffeine. And I never drink soda. I gave that up in my twenties.

Good for you Sleeperblues! Glad to know, you're making a better change for your health.

I agree with what Wildchild posted. Everyone's body is different; the amount of water depends on how much your body needs.

I grew up drinking water so it's natural. When I got a bit older, I was allowed to drink tea, and later, coffee. Tea and coffee are secondary drinks for me and they're consumed moderately, a cup or two in a day.

I've always been a big water drinker, long before it became fashionable. I carry water in my vehicle and with me at work or when I go most anywhere. I make a conscious effort to drink water, especially after being dehydrated a couple of times. Once in hot weather but I was hospitalized in the end of November to be hydrated so it wasn't a heat issue. Actually the biggest thing there was spouting from both ends, if you know what I mean. That will dry you out like you wouldn't believe. And they couldn't figure out what caused that either.

You really shouldn't try to force yourself to drink, unless you haven't had enough fluids and often when you know the symptoms you'll know if you're approaching dehydration concerns. And I found out the hard way that once seriously dehydrated, drinking water isn't sufficient by itself to rehydrate you.

I seldom drink water but I do have several glasses of iced tea a day. I agree with wildchild - a healthy person only needs to replace what they eliminate during the day. Each person is different and their requirements vary. It annoys me that so many 'experts' simply rattle off that we need 8 glasses of water a day, they're just repeating what they assume to be fact.

Here is a link that might be useful: water

I've been trying to drink a litre a day, but there's some days at work I'm too busy to stop and grab a drink of anything. And when I'm at home, I don't think about it.

I find it easier to drink water when it's warm/hot out, than when it's cold.

I am never with out my big bottle of cold water, I drink it all day long and always have a mug of it at my beside to drink at night when I wake up with a dry mouth. I love water it is pretty much all I drink. Many mornings I fix an iced mocha coffee, then I usually get busy and forget to drink it, other that water is all I drink. If I go to a restaurant I may get unsweet tea.
Water helps keep your skin looking young and hydrated, my Mom has never been one to drink water and she got so badly wrinkled early on, everyone tried to get her to drink more water but she just won't do it.

I wish I could drink water, but plain water gives me heartburn. Tea is my drink of choice, iced, hot, sweet, unsweet doesn't matter to me.

I don't drink much of anything really. Before I had DD I drank even less. My dad used to call me a camel ROFL! I was rarely thirsty.

Then while I was pregnant, I got this awful feeling while we were out shopping. I thought I was going to die! Turns out, I was thirsty. I said to DH "How can people stand this!!!" - tee hee!

When I take more than a little sip of water or another beverage, it just sits in my stomach and sloshes around, which makes me feel sea sick ;).

I have started to drink more ice water now that we have the fridge with the auto ice and water, and I have a nice double wall glass with a lid that I enjoy drinking from. But still, sloshy!

Sometimes I like a slice or two of lemon, or lime, or orange. For something different, try sliced cucumber in your water. It can be quite refreshing.

Dances, part of the reason you feel "sloshy" may be from drinking iced water. Try room temperature water. It doesn't taste as good, but it will be absorbed faster.

It really isn't necessary to load up on water. Somehow the idea got around that you "must" drink 8 glasses a day, but there was recently a medical article published stating "not so."

it's ok to have tea just be aware of the caffine content...and check if you like herbal teas with the doc if your're on meds....you don't want to counteract them.

my new drink of choice is green tea...often it can be a bit bitter, but have found a little sugar-free creamer (i measure, to assure calorie count) is really good...

the bummer is now our concern our japanese green tea could be tainted...last boxes we purchased were all before the earthquake, sigh...

I'm sure you can get away with less water but I don't know if it's optimal, at least for me. I know I feel sluggish and gross if I don't drink at least 8 glasses. If I drink more than that, I feel energized and I lose weight quickly. But of course, like with anything, too much can be harmful as well.

I'm also prone to kidney stones (4 in my 28 years) and they always develop after a few weeks of not drinking enough.

I also have lost any sense of thirst. I used to be able to go a whole day without drinking anything at all and feel fine. I've started forcing the water now though and I can really feel a difference when I drink enough.

I like distilled water. I think it tastes better than most.

I've always liked the taste of water. I keep a pitcher of filtered water in my fridge. I even use it for soup, coffee, ice cubes.

Update-the runs to the bathroom are less. I seem to be getting used to this. I have been drinking 8-10 glasses which includes stuff like vitamin water 0 cals or propel and caffeine free tea.

Hi sleepy,

Maybe your system's getting more accustomed/acclimatized?(immune?) to that "propel"lant that you say that you've been using.

Just the "bathroom blues" ... not rocket science, possibly?

ole joyfuelled

I'm not big on drinking water. I have sips of water with food and once in a while if I feel thirsty, but I don't gulp down an excess amount of it and don't feel I need to do so.

If I'm thirsty, I drink water, otherwise, no, and no adverse effects from it.

The whole thing is everyone is different as are their needs so to say it's absolutely *not* necessary to drink x-gallons of water a day is as uninformed as to require you to drink a set amount. It's similar to a calorie count.

Someone sitting around in moderate temperatures will certainly not need the fluid intake a laborer in hot weather will require.

I like water and always have. At the cabin we had a well with very hard water with a distinctive taste many didn't like but I sure did. It would affect the taste of things like Kool Aid and even coffee. I always looked forward to the Kool Aid and nectar at the lake.

I used to have very good water here but they switched wells and it got worse. I always filter water for coffee, drinks, ice and cooking (at home). When I travel I clean the coffeemaker well and use bottled water.