Keeping hydrated

Conventional dieting wisdom has always been to imbibe 8 glasses of water daily, for a total of 64oz, or 1 solid gallon. On fOODLOVERSFATLOSS, wisdom is tossed aside and we're told that 12 glasses of water is the norm.

For a normal person, that's a lot of liquid to fill up on daily.

At the beginning of this program I drank nothing but water for the first week. Forgone was soda and tea. At the end of the first week I didn't feel bloated, but getting that 12 glasses in every day ( or 6 16 oz bottle) was a little difficult, esp when I had to work. I was going to the bathroom every 20 -30 minutes! Inconvenient to say the least.

After the first week, I got a little bored with just the plain taste of water, so I started back on my tea with breakfast and started having soda in addition to the water. Now I still had about 5 bottles of water a day, but my tea is a 16 oz cup and most soda bottles now are between 20 and 24 ozs. The second week I estimated I was taking in about 96 oz a day and for some reason I didn't go to the bathroom as much.

I learned that once you adequately hydrate your body, the water won't be used as a flush to your system as much as an adjunct to keeping you hydrated. The water is "used" to help with digestion and in keeping your organs and skin hydrated, esp during the cold dry months. I still didn't feel bloated, but I did notice a subtle change in my skin - it started feeling a little smoother and softer.

I love that: secondary benefits from fluid intake!!