What if I don't like water?

Hi Folks,

Seeking some assisance/motivation from the smart-ones.

I can appreciate the value of drinking 8-10 glasses of water a day but I am traditionally not a heavy drinker (of anything). Maybe I used to drink 1 cup of a coffee a day and some fizzy thing with dinner but I have cut all of that out and switched to water.

But maybe it’s a phsycological barrier or actually true but I swear I can taste water. Not only that drinking a full 600ml bottle leaves me quite quesy…and I have to get 4 of these in to me.

Are there any other options other than water or is it simply a case of “suck it up, it must be done?”

Thanks!

— Steve, Australia.

Add a squeeze of lemon? Drink lots of milk instead?

You can drink pretty much anything you want, as long as it’s got water in it somewhere; the question is really whether or not the other stuff in the drink is worth it. Typically, 8-10 glasses of anything will have a lot of calories, or a lot of chemical flavorings/sweeteners.

There are lots of options to add flavor to your water. You can always do the crystal light thing, but personally I like sliced fruit in it more.

One thing to try is making big jug of water, but throw in a couple of slices of lime, a couple of lemon, a couple of orange, and a couple slices of cucumber. I know, the cucumber sounds weird but it takes the edge off of the citrus and comes out really nice. Let that sit in the fridge over night and you’ll have a nice tasty water drink for the next day. You CAN drink it right away, but it tastes better after it sits for a while.

Another thing I like is Perrier. I find it too bubbly, so I mix it 1:1 with water. Throw in an ice cube and a slice of lime, and it’s a really nice drink.

When I say water by the way, I mean filtered water – I have a filtered water dispenser in my fridge, but you can always use a Brita or something like that. My city water is OK, but the filter makes it taste better.

Personally I really like lime, so I keep a few limes in the fridge, and whenever I’m getting water I just grab a section, squeeze it in the glass, and throw the lime piece in. Yum!

Also, it will grow on you. I didn’t like the “taste” of water at first either, but as I began to exercise more I started to like the taste of pure water more and more. When I’m done a run or a workout at the gym, nothing taste better than cool water!

Just start small, and build on that. You don’t need to start by drinking 4×600ml bottles of water a day. I don’t think you will ever need to drink this much, unless it is real hot and you have been working real hard.
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Not being able to drink water is a weakness you don’t need. And you should not allow your self to have that weakness. So start by drinking one bottle over the day. I really don’t think you will need much more, if you drink other things as well, and you also get some water from food stuffs.
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If you want to baby your self you can add some sugary flavors to the water. But just realize that you are being weak and need to get over this childish behavior. Realizing this will make you be able to overcome it eventually.

Well I can relate to you because I was not a big water drinker either put I started using the crystal light flavor packages and adding them to my water and I have been able to consume more water during the day. But I would suggest starting of slow maybe with 1 or 2 bottles of water to allow your body to adjust to the amounts of water, then just gradually increase the amount as you see fit.

-alexguerra15

I don’t mind drinking water, but I do get most of my water by drinking green tea, usually a gallon of tea and another half in plain water.

Also, you might try to get a good portion of your water consumption in while you’re working out. Being hot and working tends to make water more palatable for me.

vk4isp,
Don’t worry about going straight for the 8-10 glasses right away. Figure out how much you are currently drinking and try to gradually add more. You don’t want to overwhelm yourself for a few days and not be able to continue drinking a lot of water.

Find out some things you like to drink that have a lot of water in them but some flavor. Tea is a great alternative because it is all water and there are some great health benefits to it. Try green tea, black tea, white tea…. Just make sure you are not drinking the caffeinated kind every time. I’m not a huge fan of them but you can try those flavored powder packs that Gatorade or Lipton make. Wouldnt hurt to do a Emergence packet in your water too.

Theres tons of options to add some flavor and get creative. Just try to gradually build up your water consumption as you go. You obviously have been able to survive without it to this point so don’t worry about switching to 8 glasses by tomorrow.
-JF

I’m the same way as you. I try to drink water as much as I can, but I just don’t seemed to drink as much as I should. I also don’t’ drink as much of anything like you also. Water is good for you so I would suck it up, but if you really don’t like the taste for some reason, there are flavor water, and gatorade and things like that. You don’t have to drink a lot of water, but just try to squeeze a little bit in your daily day.

Crystal light is a great way to add flavor to the water. They have great flavors, wild strawberry, raspberry lemonade, etc. If you get queasy, you may try not drinking alot of water at a time but sipping it and perhaps not drinking ice cold water.

Interesting question. I really hate drinking warm water. One thing that has really worked for me is putting plenty of ice. Also filtering water makes it taste a lot better. Basically pure water is the best if you are trying to avoid lots of sugars and such. You can do it.

Not liking water is easily curable! I had this problem for most of my life. I recently started drinking flavored water and it is soo delicious. It’s zero calories and everything just like water. I am now getting the daily recommended amounts of water. My favorite is strawberry..

Drinking water is so important to your well being. It surprises me that you dont crave it. Do you eat a lot of fruits and veggies. This would make you not crave water. Also if you are working out you body should want water more. I still would avoid drinking flavored water because you doing know what kind of chemicals go into the flavoring part of it. Good luck and I hope this helps.

I had a problem that I did not drink much, one glass of SOMETHING for every meal, couyld be a glass of milk or soda or so. SO I basically got 3 glasses a day with something to drink! Way too little, but I didn’t feel thirsty the rest of the day. Then I basically started forcing water into myself. What I do is that I have a 2 liter jug, fill it with water, put in cucumber and ice cubes and let it stand in the refrigerator (you can put in citrus also but I’m allergic to citrus).

Then I take it as a goal to have that one empty by the end of the day.

The thing is, I even FEEL thirsty now if I haven’t had my water! I NEED it, so train your body basically by forcing it to drink water (flavored and filtered since you don’t like the taste).

When your body has gotten used to getting what it actually should have, it will cry when it’s dehydrated. Good luck! :)