How Much Water Should I Drink?

Hydration is important, but how much water do you really need?

We all know drinking enough water is important, but how much water? Yes, other drinks count towards hydration, but for those on the Kaufmann Diet, most of the beverages people regularly drink are eliminated, including soda, sports drinks and most else. Even initially, tea (except herbal tea) and black coffee are eliminated. For the most part––with the exception of fresh squeezed vegetable juice––you are encouraged to drink primarily water on The Kaufmann Diet. Water is really all your body needs by way of hydration, especially since you get a good portion of hydration from your food (even more if you are eating fruits and vegetables). 

Fortunately, in the US, we have access to mostly clean drinking water wherever we go. Although, we have seen in recent years that municipal water is not always as pure as it should be. Furthermore, some kinds of bottled water come with the risk of leached plastic chemicals like bisphenol A and others. If you have the opportunity to put a reverse osmosis filter in your home to filter all your water, that would be ideal. This is, however, obviously somewhat cost prohibitive. There are more affordable options that can be used on kitchen sink and shower heads. And, for drinking water, there are gravity-fed filters that are affordable and useful for at-home applications. Steel or BPA-free plastic, reusable water bottles are a good option for toting clean, filtered water around and are better for the environment. 

But how much water do you need?

Water needs vary, depending on age, weight and environmental conditions, but the general rule of thumb recommended by medical experts is eight 8oz glasses of water per day, or 64oz total. Other recommendations are half your body weight in ounces, so depending on what you weigh, this could be considerably more than what is recommended by experts. For those who are extra active and sweat regularly, needs might even be higher. 

Contrary to popular belief, there is such a thing as too much water; more is not always better. Drinking too much water flushes out important vitamins and minerals, which is not advised, and in extreme conditions can cause serious health problems.

Your kidneys naturally flush out excess water in the form of urine (up to 33oz per hour when needed), and this can be a good meter to judge whether you are drinking too much water. If your urine is always clear, chances are you are drinking too much water. Ideally, it should be a pale yellow color. If it becomes darker, it is time to drink more water. Ultimately, how much water you need is a very personal thing. Start within the recommended amounts and gauge from there. Importantly, do not drink too much water or too little, and try to spread out your drinking over the entire day instead of in spurts.

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