Maria’s Hydration Experiment

As an active adolescent and now young-adult, I heard the “make sure you’re properly hydrated” speech in dozens of versions from dozens of well-meaning parents, coaches, athletic trainers, compliance officers, and nutritionists. I even remember at the beginning of my first season as a college rower, we had a sit-down meeting with a sports nutritionist who brought in her “hydration chart,” which had yellow blocks of varying gradients arranged in a vertical line, from light to dark—I’m sure you can figure out what exactly she was trying to explain with it. But, during the years I spent running, swimming, and rowing, I had to get creative with my water drinking—in high school, we weren’t allowed to carry around water bottles to class, so that meant drinking between 2 and 4 ounces in the five minutes between each class period in order to be (what I perceived as) properly hydrated for afternoon practices. Waking up at 5am for morning rowing practices, I always drank a cup of green tea on my way to practices—it’s chilly early in the morning—and continued to drink water throughout the practice. But one had to be careful with his or her hydration level while in a boat… miles away from our boat house with the nearest available bathroom.

Fast forward to the present, I like to believe that I drink an adequate amount of water every day. However, I find it’s very easy to overestimate how much water you drink throughout the day, and just as easy to underestimate how much you really need. I like to believe I consume a gallon of water a day, but in reality the number is probably closer to about 2.5 liters, in addition to drinking what I personally estimate as anywhere to from 16 to 24 ounces of fluid I classify as “other,” in which I include coffee, tea, and the occasional sugar-free energy drink.

For the past week, I’ve been conducting a little experiment– working to consume one and a half gallons of water per day to see what impact, if any, was made on my performance in the gym and on the mat. I also applied the following rules to this experiment:

• I would drink water exclusively from a store-bought gallon—This was to serve as a visual benchmark for me, rather than to just be “pretty sure” that I had consumed all 190 (!) ounces of water
• The total of 190 ounces would not include any of my “other” drinks—coffee, tea, and any other drink was not factored into the daily total.
• The water could be flavored—we’ll talk more about that later
• I would record my experiences, and any changes I perceived while adopting this new habit

Here’s what I expected to happen…

-I’d be unable to finish just the full gallon of water—at first

-I’d be running back and forth to the bathroom all day

-I’d probably give up—or at least drastically limit—my “other” beverages and opt for water instead

-I’d have more energy, clearer skin, lose 5 pounds, become impervious to disease, and be able to walk through walls—I hear drinking more water has that kind of effect on people.

Wondering why in the world my water is pink? Keep reading!

Here’s what DID NOT happen

• Surprisingly, during the beginning of the week, it was fairly easy to consume the whole 1.5 gallon total, probably because I was met with a new challenge and was earnestly trying to complete it. I found drinking water during the weekend more difficult than during the work week, and this is likely because I was able to add drinking more water to my already fairly stable weekly routine. Because weekends for me tend to be less structured, it then became harder to drink all 190 ounces of water throughout the day, and I found myself trying to drink most of the water around and during my own workout and jiu-jitsu training times.
• Also surprisingly, I was not running back and forth to the bathroom all day, every day during this experiment. This was probably the biggest shock to me personally, and this turned out to be an eye opener. Maybe 190 ounces is a lot of water in general, but the fact that I felt completely fine while drinking this much could be a sign that my ideal water intake should be a little higher.
• I still drank quite a bit of coffee. For the purposes of this experiment, I did not include anything other than water into the daily 190-oz total, but there is no direct evidence to support that coffee and tea have a dehydrating effect on the body, although caffeine can act as a mild diuretic. In my opinion, as long as you’re not drinking only coffee all day long, you’re probably not running the risk of being dehydrated. If it makes you feel more comfortable, you can try drinking 8 oz of water for every cup of coffee that you drink.
• Drinking water is certainly not a panacea for all health problems. However, I did find that at least, to some degree, the claim that drinking more water can help you feel more energetic did somewhat ring true for me during this experiment. Happily, I did feel adequately hydrated during all of my workouts and training sessions during this experiment. However, I don’t necessarily think that this was due to drinking more water in total, but instead spacing my water intake out evenly throughout the day. My skin didn’t become noticeably unmarred, and unfortunately I didn’t take on any superhuman abilities—and I drank quite a lot of water.

Here are some things I learned, and some conclusions that I was able to draw

• The “recommended daily intake” of water (about 3.7 liters for adult men and 2.7 liters for adult women) is not a hard and fast rule. Your individual needs are going to vary based on your age, activity level, and body chemistry…just to name a few factors.
• My own individual water intake is likely higher than what I was consuming prior to this experiment, though a gallon and a half did prove to be a lot of water, and probably more than necessary for me.
• Drinking water didn’t really make me feel “fuller” to a point where I felt like it also affected my food intake, but I did feel as though I had more energy for physical activity.

And, lastly, some tips to help you drink more water:

• I drank from a gallon jug throughout the duration of the experiment. I’d be hesitant to recommend it for convenience purposes unless you spend most of your day in one place, or away from a drinkable water source. I find the gallon cumbersome and rather annoying to carry around to different places each day, although seeing how much you have had to drink (and how much you have left) can inspire you to drink more.
• Flavoring your water can make drinking it more appealing. I’ve been known to do everything from cutting up lemons and oranges, to putting a few leaves of fresh mint into my water bottle. I also use a flavored Branched-Chain Amino Acid (BCAA) supplement that dissolves into my water. You can read more about BCAA’s here.
• Make drinking water part of your daily routine by attaching it to another activity you do regularly.  If you wake up every morning and brew coffee at 7am, drink a glass of water while your coffee perks, or try to drink a full 8-10 oz glass of water every time you eat a meal or a snack.  By making the act of drinking water a habit, eventually doing so will become second nature– it just takes time to cultivate the habit.
• If all else fails, set alarms on your phone. Space them an hour apart. This was a strategy I used while I was working in sales in New York City, and sitting at a desk all day. Setting an alarm on my phone (and, for iphone users, labeling the alarm “drink water”) not only helped me hydrate, but usually meant I had to get up, move away from my desk, and take a walk to the kitchen or water cooler—helping me to drink more, take effective breaks, and move around throughout the day.

This was a small-scale experiment (I may–or may not– have seen different results from doing this over a longer period of time), and in no way am I suggesting that you drink as much water as I did.  But, after doing this for even one short week, one thing is clear: our bodies simply function better when we give them the hydration we need, whether thats 90 or 190 ounces.

~Maria Capuano, CPT