How Much Water Should I Drink For Weight Loss?

How Much Water Should I Drink for Weight Loss?

We’ve all heard that drinking more water is good for weight loss, and overall health in general.  What most people are confused about is how much water they should be drinking and how it helps us lose weight.

How Does Drinking Water Help with Weight Loss?

The mechanisms for exactly how water promotes weight loss are controversial.  There have been many theories over the years, but many have failed to give conclusive results when put to the test in a randomized controlled trial.  One theory was that drinking liquids helped stretch the stomach with its volume and resulting in the release of appetite suppressing hormones.  Unfortunately, this theory has not held up well under scrutiny, and in fact 40 minutes after drinking, only 25% of the liquid is still in your stomach. 

Another theory was that you had to burn more calories to warm the water up to body temperature, thus using more energy, leading to weight loss.  Once again though, studies to prove this have been controversial, with some studies showing no statistical difference between warm water and cold water. 

One action that has been proven in laboratory studies is that water is essential for lipolysis, the process of metabolizing fat.  This means that having enough water in your system makes it easier for your body to turn stored fat into energy for your body to use – thus resulting in weight loss.  Therefore, to optimize this process, it is essential to drink enough water. 

If It's Controversial, How Do We Know It Works?

While the exact way that drinking water helps us lose weight is controversial, the evidence for drinking water is not.  Study after study has repeatedly shown that drinking water does help promote weight loss.

A recent 2014 study in the Journal of Natural Science, Biology,and Medicine studied the effect of increasing daily water intake by 1.5L.  They studied a group who did not change any eating habits or physical activity.  For 8 weeks they had each participant drink 500 ml of extra water before breakfast lunch and dinner = 1.5L extra per day.  After 8 weeks, the participants showed statistical improvements in weight loss, BMI, body fat percentage, and appetite suppression.  All this by simply drinking more water!

So How Much Water Should You Drink?

The amount of water you should drink depends on your current size, gender, BMI, and any health conditions that may be affecting you such as diabetes or heart conditions.  Before making any changes, you should check with your physician if you have any pre-existing medical conditions.

The USDA currently recommends drinking 1 quart of water (0.94L) of water for every 50lbs you weigh. Studies have estimated that for people ages 20-50, less than half of us drink the recommended amount of water on a daily basis.  As we get older, we drink even less water with only 15% getting enough water by the time we are 70 years old.  

A good amount to start with for most people is aiming to drink 1 gallon of water per day.  You really want your urine to be a pale yellow color, which is a good marker of being well hydrated.  If it is looking concentrated and dark, you probably need to drink more water.  1 gallon is approximately 128 oz of water or 3.8L. 

Strategies To Improve Water Consumption

If you are serious about losing weight, drinking enough water needs to be a part of your overall plan.  Here are a few ideas to get enough water throughout the day:

·       Get a 1 gallon water bottle and fill it every morning.  Refill your glass/water bottle from there throughout the day and make sure it is empty by bedtime. 

·       Set an alarm to go off at intervals throughout the day to remind you to drink water.

·       Get a 24 oz water bottle and make sure you refill it 5 times. 

·       Drink 2 glasses of water with each meal, which will give you approximately half of your daily needs.

·       Keep a tally of your water consumption on your daily food log.

You can experiment with other liquids, but they should not have any sugar or sweeteners added.  Diet sweeteners have been shown to stall or decrease weight loss and should not be a part of your water consumption plan.  Some popular choices for liquids include tea or sparkling water with lime or lemon slices added. 

Thirst Can Sometimes Feel Like Hunger

The sensations we feel in our body of hunger can sometimes actually be thirst.  One strategy for when hunger strikes is to drink a large glass of water instead of eating something.  Set a timer and wait 30 minutes.  If you are still truly hungry after 30 minutes, then eat something healthy and on plan.  Often, you will notice that the feeling has passed after just drinking water.