What is best besides water to keep you hydrated?

[rj134]

I can't make myself drink water and coconut water taste like dirt to me. What else is good to keep you hydrated?

Know you probably don't wanna hear this but I can tell you from first hand experience when it comes to really hydrating there simply is nothing better than water, period. Pure, clean water.

A simple water filter is always great to have. Cuts down the cost quite a bit.

Since I was notoriously bad about hydrating myself I also got this HydroCoach app to remind myself. Sounds ridiculous but it helps.

Having a girlfriend to punch you when you're not drinking enough also helps

My main tip is to stop thinking of hydration as something that's supposed to be "enjoyed" and more of something that's a necessity, because it is.
Stuff like ice-tea, fruit juice etc etc tends to be laden with sugar. If you keep using that stuff to really hydrate i.e. drink a minimum of 2.3 liters a day, you're gonna blow up and go diabetic from all the sugar.

 

[Rizzyking]

I take two or three mouthfuls of coke zero every half hour has always kept me hydrated and i also cannot stand plain water don't care if its filtered or slightly flavoured just get a funny taste from it likely years of abuse of poor old taste buds .

 

[Alien Traveler]

O, my... Is hyper-hydration a new religion?

 

[jdrewry]

Nothing fancy for me; if I get tired of water, some Snapple does the job...

 

[Belhade]

My wife constantly hounds me to drink more water. I try, really I do, but in the end aren't coffee and beer mostly water anyways? [emoji23]

 

[JMarca]

Asking for anything that hydraes besides water is simply trying to lie to your body. Everything on the planet that hydrates the body in it's plainest form is water. Nothing will do a better job than just plain water.

 

[Alien Traveler]

Asking for anything that hydraes besides water is simply trying to lie to your body. Everything on the planet that hydrates the body in it's plainest form is water. Nothing will do a better job than just plain water.

How so? What about tea? No sugar, of course.

 

[LMS62]

I think some may have misunderstood the OP's question. The OP did not ask what is better than water....the OP simply asked what was good (not better) for hydrating BESIDES water.

 

[KGB7]

OK, 97 responses, but I'll put in my two cents anyway.

First -- I don't "drink" water, I chug it down. For anyone who doesn't like the "taste" of water (although I do like my well water), doing that several times during the course of a day will at least keep you hydrated.

We're lucky enough to have a 280' deep well, I've had the water tested, and I drink it straight from the tap, no filtering, no osmosis, etc. It tastes as good as tap water gets, and I feel like well water has minerals I might need. And I don't refrigerate it or add ice. Cold water in a glass or bottle is a pita because it sweats, and ice from a (even filtered) fridge ice-maker always tastes "stale" to me, even with some Jack Black over it. I keep a few Gatorade/orange juice/whatever plastic bottles washed, clean and empty.

First thing in the a.m., I'll chug 12-16 oz. of tap water while washing up, then go get coffee -- caffeinated, black. After the 2nd or 3rd mug of java, I dilute one-to-two tbsp. of red apple cider vinegar with ~6oz. of tap water and shoot that down. (a daily tbsp. or two of vinegar works wonders for many ailments). Later, fill a 16oz. bottle from the tap and chug that. Leaving for work, fill a 28-32 oz. bottle to carry with me... and I don't constantly sip it -- when I feel like it or think I need it, I'll chug some more. Back at home after 5, it's time for a beer or three (I do sip, not chug, those though ). After supper, chug another 12-16 oz. a few hours before bed. Sleep. Repeat.
(ya reckon I could figure out how to say "chug" one more time?... doh!... just did)

Minus the coffee, i think you are my twin!!

I drink water before going to bed. I drink water in the middle of the night after i pee, when i wake up in the morning, i chug half a bottle of water, full bottle if and while im doing #2.. After doing my morning bathroom routine, i drink another half a bottle of water.
If i take a shower in the morning, then i drink 1/2 bottle of water before shower, and 1/2 after shower.
Take my multivitamins with full glass of water.
Walk the dog for 20 min.
Eat breakfast and chug 2 more cups of water.
Go to work and drink 32oz of water during 10 hours. Dinner break during work i drink additional 8 oz of water with dinner around 8pm.
Go home drink few beers, drink 1/2 bottle of water before bed time, go to bed and do it all over again.

I also carry 3 bottles of water in the car with 4 multi grain/nuts/fruit power bars.

Talk about deja vu.

I have half a dozen of empty bottles on the floor next to night stand as we speak.

This is too weird.

 

[JMarca]

How so? What about tea? No sugar, of course.

The only hydrating part of tea is the water you add to make it, so tea = water. Will tea hydrate better than water? No! Because again water is what makes tea a hydrating source, take the water out all you have is a tea leaf and maybe some sugar or other additive.

Anyway, back to the post - nothing hydrates better than water but if you don't like the taste of water plenty of alternatives but again none better than water.

 

[AndriaD]

I think some may have misunderstood the OP's question. The OP did not ask what is better than water....the OP simply asked what was good (not better) for hydrating BESIDES water.

I wondered if anyone besides me noticed that, with all these "drink water!" posts.

I don't really care to drink water either, unless I'm taking pills -- which I do fairly often, and I always drink a good bit more than just what's necessary to get the pill down. And sometimes when I notice, hey, I'm thirsty, I go to the fridge and get my cold bottle of filtered water and chug some down -- when you're REALLY thirsty, cold water is the BEST. But for just sitting around, sipping a beverage now and then... water just don't cut it. These days I mostly drink decaf, lightly sweetened iced tea; I consume very little caffeine anymore, it just makes me pee too much, which is NOT a good thing for staying hydrated. Mind you, I'm not one of these health nazis who thinks caffeine is poison; I drink regular tea in the morning, I just can't sit around drinking caffeinated beverages all day anymore.

I'll go along with whoever said that about whatever tastes good to you, that isn't too laden with garbage (sugar, salt, caffeine, alcohol). Tea is actually good for you, a powerful antioxidant, but the caffeine can really overstimulate your kidneys and bladder -- so I go for decaf.

Andria

 

[KGB7]

I wondered if anyone besides me noticed that, with all these "drink water!" posts.

I don't really care to drink water either, unless I'm taking pills -- which I do fairly often, and I always drink a good bit more than just what's necessary to get the pill down. And sometimes when I notice, hey, I'm thirsty, I go to the fridge and get my cold bottle of filtered water and chug some down -- when you're REALLY thirsty, cold water is the BEST. But for just sitting around, sipping a beverage now and then... water just don't cut it. These days I mostly drink decaf, lightly sweetened iced tea; I consume very little caffeine anymore, it just makes me pee too much, which is NOT a good thing for staying hydrated. Mind you, I'm not one of these health nazis who thinks caffeine is poison; I drink regular tea in the morning, I just can't sit around drinking caffeinated beverages all day anymore.

I'll go along with whoever said that about whatever tastes good to you, that isn't too laden with garbage (sugar, salt, caffeine, alcohol). Tea is actually good for you, a powerful antioxidant, but the caffeine can really overstimulate your kidneys and bladder -- so I go for decaf.

Andria

Had a convo with my doctor ones.

Doc; Looks like you dont drink enough water.( after he did a visual observation of my body and skin)
Me; i drink lots of tea (home made tea, not canned store bought tea).
Doc: Thats not enough, you need to drink more water.


Body builders consume pure caffeine daily in pill form or standardized liquid form to boost metabolism during training season.

Sport drinks might be the 2nd best choice after water, but only if you exercise regularly and drink it during or after a +30min cardio/weight lifting/etc. Other wise, you just stock piling sugars in your body, as sugars in sports drinks dont get properly used/absorbed by your body with out working out.
Getorade, is scientifically designed for people who play sports, not for people who vape while surfing internet all day. Its ok to drink a 16oz sport drink every other day if you dont exercise, but only if you consume x3-x4 times more water per day to flush out the stored sugars from sport drinks.


If you still not sure what you should be drinking, go read body building or cross training forums. They have tons of info on this subject.


Another reason why some of you dont like the taste of water, is because your brain is addicted to sugar like a crack addict. Whats good for us tastes bad, whats bad for us tastes good. Search Youtube for videos that shows kids that had sugar for the first time in their life. They go bunkers. https://www.google.com/search?q=kid...aY0VfCjOpLigwTkroHgCQ&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAg&dpr=1.1

The other day, my mother who is a health fanatic made me a salad for brunch. Its tasted bitter then anything i have ever eaten. But ate it. The rest of the day i felt amazing. Had salad for dinner from Wendys. And after working 10 hours straight, i wanted to work another 4 hours because i had so much energy.

Here is my personal secret. Eat an apple after lunch or dinner, and you wont feel fatigued or sleepy. Unless you only ate a salad or salad with apples.

 

[rj134]

I think some may have misunderstood the OP's question. The OP did not ask what is better than water....the OP simply asked what was good (not better) for hydrating BESIDES water.

Nah, his main question was "What else is good to keep you hydrated?" and the simple answer is nothing else is good to keep you hydrated.

There's nothing wrong with having a coke now and then and if tea is your thing then sure, have it, though I personally would always recommend sweetening it with Stevia rather than sugar if you prefer sweet tea.

However, the fact is if you drink coke (zero), tea, fruit juices in the quantities required to hydrate well, you'll run into problems.

Coke and similar drinks are way too acidic. They mess with your entire digestive tract and the sweeteners when consumed in large quantities are known to cause problems, too. Then there's over-acidifcation of your entire system which I can tell you from experience makes you feel bad overall.

Fruit juices are laden with sugar. Even if you make them yourself there's simply too much fruit sugar in them. Chug down a liter or more everyday and soon you'll be fat and diabetic.

Drinking too much tea, even unsweetened, can cause problems, too. There's a lot of healthy stuff in good tea so it definitely isn't bad for you... until you start chugging down liters of it everyday. That's when you start waking up in the middle of the night sweating as if you've just run a marathon, heart racing like it's gonna explode out of your chest.

Been through it all. When you're really talking about hydrating to a level where you feel good and healthy, there's only one answer: water.

 

[KGB7]

Nah, his main question was "What else is good to keep you hydrated?" and the simple answer is nothing else is good to keep you hydrated.

There's nothing wrong with having a coke now and then and if tea is your thing then sure, have it, though I personally would always recommend sweetening it with Stevia rather than sugar if you prefer sweet tea.

However, the fact is if you drink coke (zero), tea, fruit juices in the quantities required to hydrate well, you'll run into problems.

Coke and similar drinks are way too acidic. They mess with your entire digestive tract and the sweeteners when consumed in large quantities are known to cause problems, too. Then there's over-acidifcation of your entire system which I can tell you from experience makes you feel bad overall.

Fruit juices are laden with sugar. Even if you make them yourself there's simply too much fruit sugar in them. Chug down a liter or more everyday and soon you'll be fat and diabetic.

Drinking too much tea, even unsweetened, can cause problems, too. There's a lot of healthy stuff in good tea so it definitely isn't bad for you... until you start chugging down liters of it everyday. That's when you start waking up in the middle of the night sweating as if you've just run a marathon, heart racing like it's gonna explode out of your chest.

Been through it all. When you're really talking about hydrating to a level where you feel good and healthy, there's only one answer: water.

I feel like you and I are pounding sand as people dont want to hear the truth.

Its ok dude. At the age of 60, you and i will be running 50k, while the rest of them will still be paying off 3 mortgages to cover medical bills.

 

[rj134]

I feel like you and I are pounding sand as people dont want to hear the truth.

Its ok dude. At the age of 60, you and i will be running 50k, while the rest of them will still be paying off 3 mortgages to cover medical bills.

Well... I guess the main message I want to get a across is that one has to differentiate between drinking for pleasure, drinking for function and drinking for hydration.

Coke, juices & co is obviously something you need to keep in check lest you get sick and fat. Simple as that. But that said there's nothing like an iced Dr.Pepper on a hot summer day. Just don't drink liters of the stuff everyday.
Functional drinks like Gatorade, coffee, tea is something that's also easy to overconsume, which quickly reverses whatever beneficial effect it has into some pretty nasty illnesses.

When it comes to hydration there's really only pure, still water.
It stopped being a problem to me when I finally realized it's not neccessarily something you're supposed to enjoy. It's the only true medicine against a plethora of illnesses and conditions and you drink it for that reason. Really. For the longest time I was one of the dumb people who simply didn't understand just how important water is to your overall wellbeing. Drink those 2.5 liters a day and you feel like a new person. So it shouldn't matter if you like it or not. It's neccessary.

 

[AndriaD]

Coconut water. Not-from-concentrate, nothing added. It's wonderful for hydration. 'Course it tastes pretty awful by itself, so it's great to mix with juice; pineapple juice is a good choice, because it's also high in potassium -- which helps to balance the high-sodium in most modern diets. I agree about needing to drink a virtual ocean of water to counteract sports drinks, but not the sugar -- the sodium!

And now we've gone a full circle.

Andria

 

[crunchie812]

What's with all the bashing the taste of coconut water? Maybe because the only way I've ever had it is from coconuts fresh off the tree? Lop off the top with a machete, dump into a pitcher, chill, and enjoy! Delicious!

I don't feel any special need for hydration from vaping. VG/PG dries out my mouth and throat a bit. I tend to drink more often, but in smaller amounts.

 

[AndriaD]

What's with all the bashing the taste of coconut water? Maybe because the only way I've ever had it is from coconuts fresh off the tree? Lop off the top with a machete, dump into a pitcher, chill, and enjoy! Delicious!

I don't feel any special need for hydration from vaping. VG/PG dries out my mouth and throat a bit. I tend to drink more often, but in smaller amounts.

I'm sure it's probably better when just-picked. I buy the not-from-concentrate, nothing-added kind (Zico, it's from Thailand), but I just don't care for the taste -- but it's such a light taste, pineapple juice completely masks it, even when mixed 50/50.

And since I started drinking about 6-8oz of it daily, and eliminating 80% of my caffeine intake, I agree with you, I don't have any special hydration needs either. If I feel thirsty, I go chug some water, but most of the time, I'm just sipping on some lightly-sweetened decaf tea. I think my own problem wasn't so much dehydration in itself, as the electrolyte imbalance that results from long-term dehydration; once those electrolytes get messed up badly, just drinking water won't fix it -- when I started vaping, I started drinking more water, as advised -- but that didn't fix the electrolytes -- it took coconut water to do that. Now that they're balanced, and I'm not running to pee every 15 mins from excessive caffeine, I have no hydration issues.

Andria